Some thoughts
from 
Stardock Forums
Stardock Forums
Since I can't play the game at the moment, I'll just write about it 
( the reason I can't play is that version 1.03a crashes everythime I hit the "Done" button in the "Our story so far..." screen, but that's for another forum )
First a disclamer : my first language isn't english, so forgive the errors in this post.
Some nice features
------------------
- The tech tree is really nice build !
- The leasing of units or buildings is good too.
- Trading tech/units/money/... is balanced.
- AI is good.
- Trade-routes are nice, expecially their influence on the relation between the civs.
- Autolaunch feature is a nice add-on.
- Regular updates are a good thing and easy to get, once you get stardock working
( although I can imagine some people don't like the fact that the save games aren't compatible and that not every version is well tested when released ).
- Wonders and trade goods are also balanced.
- The Midgard planet-name is a nice touch : someone somewhere likes MUDs !
( still looking for the first Nethack reference though )
- Ingame MP3 player is a nice touch ( I think this is the first game with that feature, no ? )
Some missing features
---------------------
( If I didn't knew any better I would put "military build queues" on top of the list of missing features.
The reason that I don't put it in the list, is that I'm 100 % sure that they're in the game somewhere, but I don't see them.
I mean, come on, every game has them and without them you loose alot of clicking-time, so surely they're in there somewhere, no ? )
- Personally I think the races aren't customable enough : adding another 15 points would give the player more options.
- It would be nice to see the treasure from the minor civs in the minor's general stat screen, so you don't have to speak to them to see if they can buy your tech.
- Converting the unused production into money : I know they're discussing it already some time on the forum but nothing happens.
- You should be able to "buy" contact to civ A from civ B.
- We need a decent forum : the current forum is too strict : a 400-reply post with bugs is not efficient. But perhaps I'll change my opinion when the zillion Walmart-buyers start to post.
- The random events should be based on a "seed" that's determined in the beginning of the game instead of being determined on the spot : reload a saved game when confronted with disaster can result in Metaverse-cheating too easy.
- On the little upper-right screen you can't see the difference between the space sthat you can see and the zones that you have explored but don't see anymore.
Some bugged features
--------------------
(perhaps some of these are solved in the latest version)
- When a civ is destroyed you still get money from it when they leased something from you.
- When a civ pays you money every year for making peace and you declare war anyway, it keeps paying.
Then you can ask money again to make peace and attack again and so on and so forth.
- It's nearly impossible to make an alliance (does the turn-counter restes when you reload ? Or perhaps even when you save ? I save every turn so...)
- The attacker first targets missiles when they're in orbit (instead of the best defending ship)
Some play hints
---------------
( I play on a huge galaxy, with crippling dificulty, only military victory allowed, perhaps your mileage may vary )
- In a huge galaxy, get Eyes of the Universe at all cost.
- When you trade tech to one player, you might as well trade to all players, else he does it.
- I often give away my voting power on the turn before the UP meets,
- Have a decent military after the first 100 turns, even when not fighting (else the other civs attack you too easy)
- I don't build any fighting ship untill i can build corvette's. I keep them until I can build anti-matter missiles. And the missiles I keep until I can build excalibars. I simply skip all the other ships (when not in war).
- Give away all your absolete units when you get better ones, preferably to a civ that's in war with the best placed civ (unless you happen to be the best placed civ, ofcourse)
- Have I told you to get the Eyes of the Universe in a huge galaxy ?
- Make a research-road-plan based on the wonders you need; the trade goods you can usually buy. Another aproach is to go for all the trade goods and trade them for tech, but that's a risk : perhaps someone else get's the wonder first.
- Aim for 100% happy people and 100% taxes : take the morale-resources at all cost and buy the morale-trade-goods and the morale-resources at any price.
- I personally never, ever, ever start a war with a major player : I use constructors and build culture palaces in their back yard (often in section where I conquered planets from a minor league).
- Don't build starbases in section that you don't own : the owner of the section usually demands that you hand them over.
- If you're in a war with a major civ, take 5 constructors, fly them next to the enemies capital, build a terror star and blow the entire star-system to pieces. That will cramp his style.
- Get the Eyes of... aaah, I already told you that !
( the reason I can't play is that version 1.03a crashes everythime I hit the "Done" button in the "Our story so far..." screen, but that's for another forum )
First a disclamer : my first language isn't english, so forgive the errors in this post.
Some nice features
------------------
- The tech tree is really nice build !
- The leasing of units or buildings is good too.
- Trading tech/units/money/... is balanced.
- AI is good.
- Trade-routes are nice, expecially their influence on the relation between the civs.
- Autolaunch feature is a nice add-on.
- Regular updates are a good thing and easy to get, once you get stardock working
( although I can imagine some people don't like the fact that the save games aren't compatible and that not every version is well tested when released ).
- Wonders and trade goods are also balanced.
- The Midgard planet-name is a nice touch : someone somewhere likes MUDs !
( still looking for the first Nethack reference though )
- Ingame MP3 player is a nice touch ( I think this is the first game with that feature, no ? )
Some missing features
---------------------
( If I didn't knew any better I would put "military build queues" on top of the list of missing features.
The reason that I don't put it in the list, is that I'm 100 % sure that they're in the game somewhere, but I don't see them.
I mean, come on, every game has them and without them you loose alot of clicking-time, so surely they're in there somewhere, no ? )
- Personally I think the races aren't customable enough : adding another 15 points would give the player more options.
- It would be nice to see the treasure from the minor civs in the minor's general stat screen, so you don't have to speak to them to see if they can buy your tech.
- Converting the unused production into money : I know they're discussing it already some time on the forum but nothing happens.
- You should be able to "buy" contact to civ A from civ B.
- We need a decent forum : the current forum is too strict : a 400-reply post with bugs is not efficient. But perhaps I'll change my opinion when the zillion Walmart-buyers start to post.
- The random events should be based on a "seed" that's determined in the beginning of the game instead of being determined on the spot : reload a saved game when confronted with disaster can result in Metaverse-cheating too easy.
- On the little upper-right screen you can't see the difference between the space sthat you can see and the zones that you have explored but don't see anymore.
Some bugged features
--------------------
(perhaps some of these are solved in the latest version)
- When a civ is destroyed you still get money from it when they leased something from you.
- When a civ pays you money every year for making peace and you declare war anyway, it keeps paying.
Then you can ask money again to make peace and attack again and so on and so forth.
- It's nearly impossible to make an alliance (does the turn-counter restes when you reload ? Or perhaps even when you save ? I save every turn so...)
- The attacker first targets missiles when they're in orbit (instead of the best defending ship)
Some play hints
---------------
( I play on a huge galaxy, with crippling dificulty, only military victory allowed, perhaps your mileage may vary )
- In a huge galaxy, get Eyes of the Universe at all cost.
- When you trade tech to one player, you might as well trade to all players, else he does it.
- I often give away my voting power on the turn before the UP meets,
- Have a decent military after the first 100 turns, even when not fighting (else the other civs attack you too easy)
- I don't build any fighting ship untill i can build corvette's. I keep them until I can build anti-matter missiles. And the missiles I keep until I can build excalibars. I simply skip all the other ships (when not in war).
- Give away all your absolete units when you get better ones, preferably to a civ that's in war with the best placed civ (unless you happen to be the best placed civ, ofcourse)
- Have I told you to get the Eyes of the Universe in a huge galaxy ?
- Make a research-road-plan based on the wonders you need; the trade goods you can usually buy. Another aproach is to go for all the trade goods and trade them for tech, but that's a risk : perhaps someone else get's the wonder first.
- Aim for 100% happy people and 100% taxes : take the morale-resources at all cost and buy the morale-trade-goods and the morale-resources at any price.
- I personally never, ever, ever start a war with a major player : I use constructors and build culture palaces in their back yard (often in section where I conquered planets from a minor league).
- Don't build starbases in section that you don't own : the owner of the section usually demands that you hand them over.
- If you're in a war with a major civ, take 5 constructors, fly them next to the enemies capital, build a terror star and blow the entire star-system to pieces. That will cramp his style.
- Get the Eyes of... aaah, I already told you that !
