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First MOO3 reviews are out *IGN gives it 9.2*

E

exp

Platinum Member
Two positive first impressions out so far:

Penny Arcade

TwistedMonkey.net

Sounds like it's going to be a winner for anyone who likes TBS...complex with a steep learning curve but very rewarding once you get used to level of detail. 🙂

As a fan of the original MOO I'm so relieved they managed not to screw it up...I thought for sure that all those delays were bad news.

-------------------------------------------------------------

2/15 EDIT: The first real reviews are starting to come out:

IGN gives it 9.2/10. Available only to subscribers. Here's a summary of the review I nabbed from IG's forums...

Pluses:

best strategy game in years
better than Moo2, even after author had kept Moo2 on their harddrive for years and years
Huge amount of information
tons of great additions
Diplomatic AI best he's seen, doesn't do irrational/stupid/crazy things
Planet viceroy AI excellent, CAN RAISE TECH % ON FIELDS IF NEEDS PERMIT - i.e. if it sees that it can get a mining benefit, it'll raise physical sciences by a % or two if it needs to or if you've set it's priorities to do so.
Tactical AI in combat also excellent
Sound really great

Cons:
Not enough info in manual/online
tutorial weak
big learning curve
presentation sometimes sub-par in terms of information given
SUPPOSEDLY: CANT TURN VICEROYS OFF
Saves are a bit annoying - unlike Moo2, it saves only the beginning of the turn, not anything during, so any actions you've taken aren't recorded

Overall:
Gameplay
Superb. Best AI on several levels for this kind of game. Great game balance. Strong replayability, fine strategic rules implementation in battle. 9.5
Lasting Appeal
Deep and rich as a primeval ocean-soup. Surmount the learning curve, and you'll never put it down.


Also: doesn't knock graphics, not once.
This is a guy who reviewed Moo2 and kept it on his HD for years afterwards because he liked playing it so much.
Good graphics on diplo screen
Stupid problems with race picks have been fixed (example given was creative from MoO2)

Overall: great review. Nothing spoilery.

Active Reviews also gives MOO3 a positive review (site is down though).

Everything still looks good. I'm just waiting for confirmation from one more well-known review site, then I can finally let out a big sigh of relief. Imagine that, a game that actually turned out well after massive delays and turmoil in the dev team?
 
I hope MOO3 rocks. I never played the original but I loved MOO2.
I know the game is freakin late. But I would rather get a late finished game then an ontime unfinished game.

I think I read somewhere it is supposed to be in stores in like 2 weeks or something.
 
I think I read somewhere it is supposed to be in stores in like 2 weeks or something.
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The really annoying part is that it went gold in late January (25?). I don't know why Infogrames decided to take an entire month to go from gold to shelves. I've never heard of a printing/shipping cycle that long. 😕

 
Originally posted by: exp
I think I read somewhere it is supposed to be in stores in like 2 weeks or something.
Click to expand...
The really annoying part is that it went gold in late January (25?). I don't know why Infogrames decided to take an entire month to go from gold to shelves. I've never heard of a printing/shipping cycle that long. 😕
Click to expand...

The manual is a couple of hundred pages long... maybe that's it?
 
The manual is a couple of hundred pages long... maybe that's it?
Click to expand...
*shrug* Dunno, could be...although I think I heard the manual was already printed (along with the boxes).
 
I still play the orginal MOO. MOO II I did not like as well since you could only learn one new tech advancement at a time.
 
Amazon claims MOO3 will ship on February 25th.

Must resist...reinstalling...MOO2...must resist.......

TOO LATE!
 
I'm really excited about this game because I asolutely loved the first one and played that to death. Too bad the wife isn't letting me get this game because we're broke right now... In the meantime I've been writing a Pocket PC game that's a really simplified version of MOO. One type of ship, all planets are the same, and no technology - the focus is completely on troop movement/placement kinda like the boardgame risk.
 
Supposedly now retailers already have the game in their possession...but can't release it until the publisher says so. Sounds crazy that they would just let the game sit there collecting dust, but that info has been confirmed by the developers themselves. Weird. Maybe they're just waiting for some straggler stores to get the game so the release can be simultaneous (?)...it's a PITA whatever the reason.
MOO II I did not like as well since you could only learn one new tech advancement at a time.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I was very disappointed in MOO2 (I know a lot of people liked it though). Mainly I hated the way they changed space combat and how tedious micromanagement became late in the game. Supposedly both problems have been fixed for MOO3 so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

 
Originally posted by: exp
Supposedly now retailers already have the game in their possession...but can't release it until the publisher says so. Sounds crazy that they would just let the game sit there collecting dust, but that info has been confirmed by the developers themselves. Weird. Maybe they're just waiting for some straggler stores to get the game so the release can be simultaneous (?)...it's a PITA whatever the reason.
MOO II I did not like as well since you could only learn one new tech advancement at a time.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I was very disappointed in MOO2 (I know a lot of people liked it though). Mainly I hated the way they changed space combat and how tedious micromanagement became late in the game. Supposedly both problems have been fixed for MOO3 so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
Click to expand...

Actually, one of the Previews listed in the original post said that the Queue Build List can only hold like 5 items. WTF? I always though MOO2 could have been twice as good if you could create your own "Custom Build Queues" so you didn't have to micromanage all 150 star systems in your empire.
 
Actually, one of the Previews listed in the original post said that the Queue Build List can only hold like 5 items. WTF? .
Click to expand...
That does suck, no doubt. 🙁 Would it have been that hard to have a longer build queue? Geez.

Luckily the reviewers are all saying that the viceroys are pretty good at managing construction themselves, particularly if you direct them using development plans. You can classify your planets and then set (on the empire level) the policy you want each type to implement. For example, you could set up "Mineral Rich" planets to concentrate on Mining, Infrastructure, and Manufacturing in that order of priority. Or you could tell "Newly Acquired" planets to work on Farming, Military, and Infrastructure in that order. Sounds like those dev plans are indispensible for cutting down on that PITA micromanagement.
 
From the site:

Technical Specifications for Master of Orion III

Windows® :

* 300 MHz Pentium II or better
* 128 MB RAM
* 8X or faster CD-ROM
* 400 MB Hard Drive Space
* Direct X 8.0 Compatible Video Card (must be able to display 800x600x16bit)
* DirectX 8.0 Compatible Sound Card
* 8 Player Network Play via TCP/IP (LAN or Internet)
* Windows 98/ME/XP

Macintosh® :

* G3 Macintosh - 300 MHz or Better
* Macintosh OS 8.6 or Better
* 128 MB RAM
* CD ROM 8X or Better
* TCP/IP Internet capable connection for Multiplayer Play
Click to expand...
 
Originally posted by: murphy55d
I wish they'd come out with another Master of Magic. God I loved that game.
Click to expand...

For all intents and purposes Age of Wonders 1/2 can be considered sequels. They are very similar to Master of Magic. Age of Wonders 2 is a phenomenal game. Down right phenomenal.


 
Originally posted by: Sunner
From the site:

Technical Specifications for Master of Orion III

Windows® :

* 300 MHz Pentium II or better
* 128 MB RAM
* 8X or faster CD-ROM
* 400 MB Hard Drive Space
* Direct X 8.0 Compatible Video Card (must be able to display 800x600x16bit)
* DirectX 8.0 Compatible Sound Card
* 8 Player Network Play via TCP/IP (LAN or Internet)
* Windows 98/ME/XP

Macintosh® :

* G3 Macintosh - 300 MHz or Better
* Macintosh OS 8.6 or Better
* 128 MB RAM
* CD ROM 8X or Better
* TCP/IP Internet capable connection for Multiplayer Play
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

Cool, I should be able to run it then.
 
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