How many times have you uninstalled SMAC?

[Lumberjack]

I've lost count of how many times I've uninstalled SMAC out of sheer frustration over a bad game. I'm sure we all know what constitutes a bad game, right?...Heh, dang University always bagging the HSA before you? Miriam "testing" your base security 5 years after planetfall. We've all been there. We've all come back for more punishment. I for one probably need to face the fact that I'm hopelessly addicted to this game. Sheesh. How many times have you come crawling back to SMAC, installing the game again after vowing to NEVER, absolutely NEVER touch that THING again! You just had to check just *one* more strategy; one new opening gambit. Let the confessions begin!

[Adam_Smith]

Why are you bothering to play or to post here then?

[Lumberjack]

Relax. It's sarcasm. That's what the two faces are for. I apologize for the misunderstanding. I love the game. Just get very frustrated sometimes with it. Heh.

[Ned]

Lumberjack, Did you ever play Civilization? My addiction started then and continues today with its successor, SMACX. I will occasionally play other games. But, I quickly get bored. I then return to THE game.

The game is tough. But, once you learn how the AI plays, you can typically beat it easily. Then the competition is how soon or by how much. It is also interesting to play different factions and combinations. Every game is truly different and yet the same.

So, have fun. I know I will.

Ned

[Adam_Smith]

Ok, I'll try to relax. Sorry, I don't get sarcasm sometimes when it's writen.

[Lumberjack]

My fault entirely Adam. I have a habit of not expressing sarcasm with enough cues, so I end up sounding more literal. Ouch, lands me into nasty predicaments sometimes. In response to Ned, I've never played Civilization. I kept hearing through the grape vine how good it was but never decided to plunk the money down to buy it before I bought SMAC. I thought the SMAC theme was cool and decided that since it's Sid Meier's creation, I guess it had to be good. Being the sequel to Civilization 2, probably even better! I love empire simulations and micromanagement but I tend to be impatient in waiting for the fruits of my strategic planning to ripen. Hence, I make careless mistakes and overlook major blunders. I always considered myself a builder at heart but now in retrospect it seems like a momentum game may be more to my liking. I shudder at shuffling around 50+ formers so I rarely make more than 1 per base. I'd put them on auto except the the former drivers are usually drunk and make particularly stupid choices. Dang former union...
[This message has been edited by Lumberjack (edited April 11, 2000).]

[ChrisShaffer]

Ned, the real challenge isn't

quote: how soon or by how much

- it's multiplayer.

[Ned]

Chris, I posted a reply to you on a new topic: Multiplayer. However, I find playing "ironman" in single player a lot of fun. It makes one think. The tension is really high at points.

Ned

[Master Marcus]

Yes, and especially when playing on an average map size. A good builder player may prefer playing on a huge one, but only on average map can a more hybrid player be satisfied: the military is as important than the facilities, but not that much like on a very tiny map.

The gameplay gap between a huge and an average map is even more considerable than any other setting ( but the difficulty level ) you can make at the beginning.

Sorry if I contribute to hijack this thread. ( I have uninstalled once only ).

------------------
The art of mastering:"la Maîtrise des caprices du subconscient avant tout".

[SixArmedMan]

Hey, ever since I installed the patch, I've encountered an absolutely frustrating the CPU uses. I've gone to the trouble of invading its continents and capturing two bases. Instead of the CPU buidling a military force to fight back, what it does is, it switches all production in its cities to building probe teams. Now I didn't care at first but what started happening was, I didn't have enough military to proceed with my conquest so while it would've taken me another 25 years or so to advance, the CPU just sends wave after wave of probes at what used to be his bases. I'd kill'em off ad nauseum but it got to a point where the CPU's turn would take three-four minutes because he had to move all 1,000,000 of his probes teams from his base so he could increase drone activity at my base. F***, now that was frustrating. Every probe team of course, would be sent back to base unharmed and any probe team I would build would simply be overwhelmed. Elite P. teams are a joke because just about any faction can get them. I had the Data Angels do this to me when I was the Believers and I had the Caretakers do this to me when I was the Hive. Both games I ended in frustration because of the tedious amount of time it took for the stupid AI to finish its turns. I've uninstalled SMAC and SMACX since and haven't played in months. Anyone experience this also? Anyone know of a possible way of countering this???????

[Ned]

Six, I once had a situation like that before I learned that it is much easier to wade into a fortified continent if you have the Hunter-Seeker Algorithm. This SP prevent probe teams from being successful. As a alternate, take probe teams with you on the initial assault to defend against the probe counter attacks. You then may be able to keep up with the AI. But it will be expensive b/c you will have to rush built quite a few.

As to slowness, trying playing on a smaller map. I too had to wait millenia before the computer would finish its turn using the Asia.zip map from the Sidgames.com forum. That map is ten times HUGE. In the end, the computer never came out of its AI turn. I suspect something got overloaded.