Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

I like GalCiv, tho not as much as SEIV. It's designed for solo play, so all the development effort that otherwise would have gone into multi-player went into the AI instead. I haven't had time to play much since its release--altho I did play CONSTANTLY as part of the open beta test--and the AI kicks my butt on a regular basis at low difficulty levels. They also have a more detailed diplomatic model, in which, altho you still ultimately know you're playing a computer, the illusion of playing another human is much stronger than in other games.

On the down side, there's no ship design--you research techs to get bigger hulls, and research other techs which upgrade your fleet as a whole. Also, there's no tactical combat--ships or fleets fight when they occupy the same location, with the "action" occurring behind the scenes. But, to be fair, this was the intent--to have the AI take care of the tactical detail so the player can focus on the big picture, and the result is a smooth, easily understood system, unlike MOO3 which had the same stated goal but exectued it incomprehensibly. Planetary development can involve a lot more detail, as there is a vast array of different facilities from which to choose--most of which appear as associated techs are researched--but even here, you can let "Governors" [essentially automated queues] handle the details, and they'll actually do what you tell them to--ulike MOO3's "Ministers."

I disagree with whoever it was on this forum who argued that GalCiv isn't a Space 4x game. It certainly is, merely focused on a higher level than most others. But, the decisions you make in the game have a discernable impact on the course of your civilization, and the variety of victory paths, whether military, cultural, technical, etc., require different approaches to play and are all possible to pursue successfully. One final thing: GalCiv is a sequel to a very popular game for the OS2 operating system, a game which had a highly devoted fan base. From everything I've seen, these fans are quite happy with the new game, unlike the legions of angry MOOers.

[ June 11, 2003, 03:40: Message edited by: Hrothgar ]

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

Here is a direct quote from the MOO3 site about how to install the new patch. NOTE: the patch does not install correctly.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Do any of you understand this? Unzip the file: Ok, Run the "Install Moo3 Patch.exe:" Ok. About a third of the way through the install, it errors out. This occurs each and every GD time I try it. I have even downloaded the patch from other sources and still I get the error. I have uninstalled and reinstalled MOO3 and still get the error. From what I gather a lot of people are getting errors.

Lets face it, if they can't even make a patch that will install, the game is hopeless.

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

Ok, I get it to install and presto it updates.

THEY NEVER FIXED THE FUZZY FONTS

Second, does any one understand that F-ed Up opening? I mean it seems to me that they had no clue as to how to open the game so they invented something that made absolutely no sense at all.

For the record, when that happnes, you might as well as forget the rest of the game; it's trash as well.

The patch FIXED NOTHING of importance. NOTHING that mattered. The patch is NOTHING!!!!!

I mean this when I say it, they should fire everyone who was involved with the game and start over. Publish an apology and refund peoples money.

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Do any of you understand this? Unzip the file: Ok, Run the "Install Moo3 Patch.exe:" Ok. About a third of the way through the install, it errors out. This occurs each and every GD time I try it. I have even downloaded the patch from other sources and still I get the error. I have uninstalled and reinstalled MOO3 and still get the error. From what I gather a lot of people are getting errors.

Lets face it, if they can't even make a patch that will install, the game is hopeless.</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Patch was quick to download & EASY to install per instuctions. This patch also made this game close to a classic. Without wasting my time revealing all the improvements, just visit the MOO3 websites for all the details.

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

i don't have the game, but i'm downloading the patch to look at the readme file. if it looks good, i might buy the game.

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">As they always are...

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

"The Patch was quick to download & EASY to install per instuctions."

Uh-huh. How come the person you responded to couldn't get it to work then?

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Why you asking me? You should be asking him. I think I read somewhere that he returned his cd. (maybe he forgot he needed an installed program to patch, I DON"T KNOW!) Personnaly I don't care, I just stated a fact. Why is it ok to spew nonsense about a game , but not ok to disagree about said nonsense? (btw, "nonsense" is my opinion http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif )

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Why you asking me? You should be asking him. I think I read somewhere that he returned his cd. (maybe he forgot he needed an installed program to patch, I DON"T KNOW!) Personnaly I don't care, I just stated a fact. Why is it ok to spew nonsense about a game , but not ok to disagree about said nonsense? (btw, "nonsense" is my opinion http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif )</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Friend, the patch that I downloaded was missing files. I had to download it four separate times and finally to get the whole thing I had to download it directly from MOO3 site. Ya I know, anything worth getting is best gotten from the developer. I have never had problems before and can only speculate that my problem was a fluke. Never the less, I did get the patch and yes it did install rather easily. Again as they should. That discussion is now over. On to the Game it’s self.

The game in my humble opinion is actually quite worthless and that is why I chose to uninstall it and send back the disks in peaces. QS, or now the blame is being shifted to Atari (?), got my money and in return ran laughing to the bank. I feel that it is only appropriate that I return their POS game to them and spread the word about how truly awful MOO3 actually is. And I do know what it is I am critiquing friend, one horribly implemented game that just happened to be named Master Of Orion 3.

[ June 11, 2003, 09:55: Message edited by: Atrocities ]

Re: Moo3 is a shareware now
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Your right, this patch did in my opinion make the game a classic. A Classic what I will not post, but never the less it is most assuredly a classic. I just wish they would have fixed the fonts.

I do not mean to offend you, but IMHO MOO3 is not a good game.

[ June 11, 2003, 10:43: Message edited by: Atrocities ]