Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri

The Good
The most important thing for a game is that it should be enjoyable to play, and SMAC manages this perfectly. Completing that monolithic project that took 100 turns to complete feels satisfying, as does negotiating with the other seven factions... or crushing them. The brilliant thing about SMAC is that - unlike most other games - you can tailor any unit to suit your needs and coffers. This game has every charm of the Civilisation games, only executed with much more effort.

The Bad
This is not a game for those who have not played TBSs (Turn Based Strategies) before. The interface at first looks daunting, so sitting through the five-minute guide to the various screen is recommended. After this, though, it's a breeze. The graphics are acceptable, but by todays standards they are not brilliant, but then, that's not what TBSs are about. The music can get repetetive after a while, but this is only a minor problem.

The Bottom Line
If you're a diehard TBS fan looking for something new and challenging to try, this is the game for you. Sid Meier has cracked his brilliant formula again, and this results in one of the best TBSs around. Enjoy, and don't hang around in Xenofungus for long...