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MOO of course, meaning Master Of Orion.
Master Of Orion 3, to be exact. Release date: early 2002.
"Master of Orion 3 (MOO3) is a deep, easy-playing strategic-level game evolving the Master of Orion series by modeling the story depth of science-fiction epics like those you've read and seen in the movies or on TV."
So what is it? It's the only game I've really been excited about since Mario 64.Its a 5x space-conquest strategy game from Microprose. 5x? This means: explore, expand, exploit, exterminate... amd experience. The last one is new. Basically, though you are an all-poweful leader, your people just might not like the way you govern them. You will have to learn the social and political consequences of your actions. Doesn't sound too impressive on it's own, but a point to remember is that this is allegedly the most ambitious strategy game ever, in terms of the mechanics 'behind the scenes'.
So it's the third release in a successful series. So obviously it's going to be a dodgy dequel with little more than sharper graphics, right?
Nope. It's going places. It'll set the benchmark for future strategy games, with an unprecendented level of detail and a host of groundbreaking ideas. Notice I don't use the phrase 'real time strategy games'.
Yes, it's turn based - and no, that does not mean it will be slow and dull. If, like most people, you loved the civilisation series, you will love this. If on the other hand, like me, you didn't like the civilisation series, you will love this.
Any remote interest in strategy games will do.
So how is a turn based games not slow, dull and primitive? And what about multiplyer?
Firstly, each turn you may spend a number of what are called 'imperial focus' points. Think of them rather like time units. The catchphrase the developers coined, is "You can do anything, but you cannot do everything."
In particular, this can make large empires harder to maintain, so ensuring that one player does not 'run away and win' as soon as they have a small lead.
But of course I can hear some of you complaining. You want to be able to do everything in one turn. Design ships, watch battles, set planet spending, meet with other race leaders, send all your fleets on raids. Well, it can all still be done in one turn - and if you don't trust you leaders to do it, then remember that the number of Imperial focus points you get each turn is user definable.
Leaders are an excellent addition to the gameplay. Leaders are appointed to planets as your empire grows, so that they can take care of the more menial tasks whilst you deal with more important matters. You are an ovelord, as it were.
What this essentially means, is that you will never get bogged down in all the tedious little details, setting the production of every little planet in your empire, etc. It eases up on the micromanagement, so you get a game which will not bore you with trivialities - though if you like that sort of thing, they're still there for you.
One of the interesting aspects though, is that your leaders will not always act how you want them to. They will act in a way that is 'appropriate for your race', or 'in line with the view of the populace'. If you get a bad leader of course, then scrap him for a new one!
Time for some more info about the game itself.
There are 16 races, from 8 different species. For example, the humanoid species contains the Psilon race and the Human race - each with their own traits. In this case, the Humans are good traders and diplomats, whilst the Psilons are gifted technologists, and primarily pacifistic. 32 races were originally planned, but this was cut down to 16, in order to have '16 incredibly detailed and highly enjoyable races, rather than 32, some of which wouldn't have much appeal'.
The main aim is to conquer the galaxy, though there are several wasys to win.
1) Wipe out all opposition
2) Get voted in by the senate (2/3 majority, numbers of votes per empire is population based. Some races might be excluded from the high council - and some may not agree with the decision either)
3) Prove your right as heir to the throne of orion (not quite sure how this works, involves controlling the legendary planet Orion)
4) Solve the 'Antaran mystery' (this won't make sense unless your read the entire background to the game)
There are other 'hidden' victory conditions, too - and a point system is included to give you a rough idea of how well you did compared to everyone else.
The galaxy itself, that you are trying to conquer, is a three-dimensional map made up of up to 256 solar systems, each with up to 8 habitable planets, which may contain a number of moons. The galaxy is based on our very own Milky Way.
So there can be thousands of worlds to conquer - but obviously you can choose the size of the galaxy when you start. The 3D map is designed so that solar systems will never be hidden 'underneath' another, which gives an oppertunity for more experienced players to explore with the possibilities, whilst new players will not be confused.
Another big gameplay-influencing idea, is the presence of 'star lanes'. Essentially, they are 'roads' in space which allow faster than usual travel. By controlling many of them, you can seriously hamper your opponents movement, and create a very definite 'border' to your empire.
Of course there are many other interesting things in the galaxy, each with their own unique effects - worm holes, asteroid belts, nebula clouds, double planets.
And then of course, there are unknown 'things' from outside the galaxy. This helps to balance the gameplay. What so I mean by this? Fighting with you back against the wall is easiest. Same with the galaxy. It's a lot easier if you're at the edge, with only one 'front' to defend. To bring things in line with the mammoth task of the players in the middle, you will get a great many 'suprises' when playing at the edges.
What haven't I mentioned yet?
Ah! Multiplayer!
Multiplayer was always planned as a 'big thing' for Master Of Orion 3, and as such, it was incorporated into the design at the earliest stages, not tagged on at the end.
To quote an official comment..
"Most people STILL play solitaire (myself among them), and we won't get gypped, I promise you. However, there have been numerous advances in the state-of-the-art for multiplayer play that we will be taking full advantage of. The most important of which, from a design standpoint, is PACING. That's the killer bugaboo in a turn-based game. MOO 3 will feature excellent PACING elements that will help ensure that multi-player games KEEP MOVING."
It won't get slow, and it won't get dull. Combat will not take ages, and neither will the rest of the turn. In the case where there occasionally will be some spare time, why not take the oppertunity to fine tune your ship designs, or take a more detailed look at the rebellion problem in that planet of yours?
There is so much more I haven't mentioned here... the technology tree, planetry and space combat, the AI, and so on.
All I've done here is scratch the surface enough to give you a reasonably detailed overview, what the game is about, and some of the features that make it special. If you want to find out more, the address of the official Master Of Orion 3 website is:
moo3.quicksilver.com
I'll keep you posted with any new developments.
Master Of Orion 3, to be exact. Release date: early 2002.
"Master of Orion 3 (MOO3) is a deep, easy-playing strategic-level game evolving the Master of Orion series by modeling the story depth of science-fiction epics like those you've read and seen in the movies or on TV."
So what is it? It's the only game I've really been excited about since Mario 64.Its a 5x space-conquest strategy game from Microprose. 5x? This means: explore, expand, exploit, exterminate... amd experience. The last one is new. Basically, though you are an all-poweful leader, your people just might not like the way you govern them. You will have to learn the social and political consequences of your actions. Doesn't sound too impressive on it's own, but a point to remember is that this is allegedly the most ambitious strategy game ever, in terms of the mechanics 'behind the scenes'.
So it's the third release in a successful series. So obviously it's going to be a dodgy dequel with little more than sharper graphics, right?
Nope. It's going places. It'll set the benchmark for future strategy games, with an unprecendented level of detail and a host of groundbreaking ideas. Notice I don't use the phrase 'real time strategy games'.
Yes, it's turn based - and no, that does not mean it will be slow and dull. If, like most people, you loved the civilisation series, you will love this. If on the other hand, like me, you didn't like the civilisation series, you will love this.
Any remote interest in strategy games will do.
So how is a turn based games not slow, dull and primitive? And what about multiplyer?
Firstly, each turn you may spend a number of what are called 'imperial focus' points. Think of them rather like time units. The catchphrase the developers coined, is "You can do anything, but you cannot do everything."
In particular, this can make large empires harder to maintain, so ensuring that one player does not 'run away and win' as soon as they have a small lead.
But of course I can hear some of you complaining. You want to be able to do everything in one turn. Design ships, watch battles, set planet spending, meet with other race leaders, send all your fleets on raids. Well, it can all still be done in one turn - and if you don't trust you leaders to do it, then remember that the number of Imperial focus points you get each turn is user definable.
Leaders are an excellent addition to the gameplay. Leaders are appointed to planets as your empire grows, so that they can take care of the more menial tasks whilst you deal with more important matters. You are an ovelord, as it were.
What this essentially means, is that you will never get bogged down in all the tedious little details, setting the production of every little planet in your empire, etc. It eases up on the micromanagement, so you get a game which will not bore you with trivialities - though if you like that sort of thing, they're still there for you.
One of the interesting aspects though, is that your leaders will not always act how you want them to. They will act in a way that is 'appropriate for your race', or 'in line with the view of the populace'. If you get a bad leader of course, then scrap him for a new one!
Time for some more info about the game itself.
There are 16 races, from 8 different species. For example, the humanoid species contains the Psilon race and the Human race - each with their own traits. In this case, the Humans are good traders and diplomats, whilst the Psilons are gifted technologists, and primarily pacifistic. 32 races were originally planned, but this was cut down to 16, in order to have '16 incredibly detailed and highly enjoyable races, rather than 32, some of which wouldn't have much appeal'.
The main aim is to conquer the galaxy, though there are several wasys to win.
1) Wipe out all opposition
2) Get voted in by the senate (2/3 majority, numbers of votes per empire is population based. Some races might be excluded from the high council - and some may not agree with the decision either)
3) Prove your right as heir to the throne of orion (not quite sure how this works, involves controlling the legendary planet Orion)
4) Solve the 'Antaran mystery' (this won't make sense unless your read the entire background to the game)
There are other 'hidden' victory conditions, too - and a point system is included to give you a rough idea of how well you did compared to everyone else.
The galaxy itself, that you are trying to conquer, is a three-dimensional map made up of up to 256 solar systems, each with up to 8 habitable planets, which may contain a number of moons. The galaxy is based on our very own Milky Way.
So there can be thousands of worlds to conquer - but obviously you can choose the size of the galaxy when you start. The 3D map is designed so that solar systems will never be hidden 'underneath' another, which gives an oppertunity for more experienced players to explore with the possibilities, whilst new players will not be confused.
Another big gameplay-influencing idea, is the presence of 'star lanes'. Essentially, they are 'roads' in space which allow faster than usual travel. By controlling many of them, you can seriously hamper your opponents movement, and create a very definite 'border' to your empire.
Of course there are many other interesting things in the galaxy, each with their own unique effects - worm holes, asteroid belts, nebula clouds, double planets.
And then of course, there are unknown 'things' from outside the galaxy. This helps to balance the gameplay. What so I mean by this? Fighting with you back against the wall is easiest. Same with the galaxy. It's a lot easier if you're at the edge, with only one 'front' to defend. To bring things in line with the mammoth task of the players in the middle, you will get a great many 'suprises' when playing at the edges.
What haven't I mentioned yet?
Ah! Multiplayer!
Multiplayer was always planned as a 'big thing' for Master Of Orion 3, and as such, it was incorporated into the design at the earliest stages, not tagged on at the end.
To quote an official comment..
"Most people STILL play solitaire (myself among them), and we won't get gypped, I promise you. However, there have been numerous advances in the state-of-the-art for multiplayer play that we will be taking full advantage of. The most important of which, from a design standpoint, is PACING. That's the killer bugaboo in a turn-based game. MOO 3 will feature excellent PACING elements that will help ensure that multi-player games KEEP MOVING."
It won't get slow, and it won't get dull. Combat will not take ages, and neither will the rest of the turn. In the case where there occasionally will be some spare time, why not take the oppertunity to fine tune your ship designs, or take a more detailed look at the rebellion problem in that planet of yours?
There is so much more I haven't mentioned here... the technology tree, planetry and space combat, the AI, and so on.
All I've done here is scratch the surface enough to give you a reasonably detailed overview, what the game is about, and some of the features that make it special. If you want to find out more, the address of the official Master Of Orion 3 website is:
moo3.quicksilver.com
I'll keep you posted with any new developments.
*Shamelessly, VenomByte popped his topic in a vain attempt to interest more people in MOO3, or at least get a decent relpy*
I'll pop this for you.
I would've replied only I've not got a decent PC to play this on.
Unfortunately, it's not the sort of game that'll make it to a console.
I would've replied only I've not got a decent PC to play this on.
Unfortunately, it's not the sort of game that'll make it to a console.
MOO of course, meaning Master Of Orion.
Master Of Orion 3, to be exact. Release date: early 2002.
"Master of Orion 3 (MOO3) is a deep, easy-playing strategic-level game evolving the Master of Orion series by modeling the story depth of science-fiction epics like those you've read and seen in the movies or on TV."
So what is it? It's the only game I've really been excited about since Mario 64.Its a 5x space-conquest strategy game from Microprose. 5x? This means: explore, expand, exploit, exterminate... amd experience. The last one is new. Basically, though you are an all-poweful leader, your people just might not like the way you govern them. You will have to learn the social and political consequences of your actions. Doesn't sound too impressive on it's own, but a point to remember is that this is allegedly the most ambitious strategy game ever, in terms of the mechanics 'behind the scenes'.
So it's the third release in a successful series. So obviously it's going to be a dodgy dequel with little more than sharper graphics, right?
Nope. It's going places. It'll set the benchmark for future strategy games, with an unprecendented level of detail and a host of groundbreaking ideas. Notice I don't use the phrase 'real time strategy games'.
Yes, it's turn based - and no, that does not mean it will be slow and dull. If, like most people, you loved the civilisation series, you will love this. If on the other hand, like me, you didn't like the civilisation series, you will love this.
Any remote interest in strategy games will do.
So how is a turn based games not slow, dull and primitive? And what about multiplyer?
Firstly, each turn you may spend a number of what are called 'imperial focus' points. Think of them rather like time units. The catchphrase the developers coined, is "You can do anything, but you cannot do everything."
In particular, this can make large empires harder to maintain, so ensuring that one player does not 'run away and win' as soon as they have a small lead.
But of course I can hear some of you complaining. You want to be able to do everything in one turn. Design ships, watch battles, set planet spending, meet with other race leaders, send all your fleets on raids. Well, it can all still be done in one turn - and if you don't trust you leaders to do it, then remember that the number of Imperial focus points you get each turn is user definable.
Leaders are an excellent addition to the gameplay. Leaders are appointed to planets as your empire grows, so that they can take care of the more menial tasks whilst you deal with more important matters. You are an ovelord, as it were.
What this essentially means, is that you will never get bogged down in all the tedious little details, setting the production of every little planet in your empire, etc. It eases up on the micromanagement, so you get a game which will not bore you with trivialities - though if you like that sort of thing, they're still there for you.
One of the interesting aspects though, is that your leaders will not always act how you want them to. They will act in a way that is 'appropriate for your race', or 'in line with the view of the populace'. If you get a bad leader of course, then scrap him for a new one!
Time for some more info about the game itself.
There are 16 races, from 8 different species. For example, the humanoid species contains the Psilon race and the Human race - each with their own traits. In this case, the Humans are good traders and diplomats, whilst the Psilons are gifted technologists, and primarily pacifistic. 32 races were originally planned, but this was cut down to 16, in order to have '16 incredibly detailed and highly enjoyable races, rather than 32, some of which wouldn't have much appeal'.
The main aim is to conquer the galaxy, though there are several wasys to win.
1) Wipe out all opposition
2) Get voted in by the senate (2/3 majority, numbers of votes per empire is population based. Some races might be excluded from the high council - and some may not agree with the decision either)
3) Prove your right as heir to the throne of orion (not quite sure how this works, involves controlling the legendary planet Orion)
4) Solve the 'Antaran mystery' (this won't make sense unless your read the entire background to the game)
There are other 'hidden' victory conditions, too - and a point system is included to give you a rough idea of how well you did compared to everyone else.
The galaxy itself, that you are trying to conquer, is a three-dimensional map made up of up to 256 solar systems, each with up to 8 habitable planets, which may contain a number of moons. The galaxy is based on our very own Milky Way.
So there can be thousands of worlds to conquer - but obviously you can choose the size of the galaxy when you start. The 3D map is designed so that solar systems will never be hidden 'underneath' another, which gives an oppertunity for more experienced players to explore with the possibilities, whilst new players will not be confused.
Another big gameplay-influencing idea, is the presence of 'star lanes'. Essentially, they are 'roads' in space which allow faster than usual travel. By controlling many of them, you can seriously hamper your opponents movement, and create a very definite 'border' to your empire.
Of course there are many other interesting things in the galaxy, each with their own unique effects - worm holes, asteroid belts, nebula clouds, double planets.
And then of course, there are unknown 'things' from outside the galaxy. This helps to balance the gameplay. What so I mean by this? Fighting with you back against the wall is easiest. Same with the galaxy. It's a lot easier if you're at the edge, with only one 'front' to defend. To bring things in line with the mammoth task of the players in the middle, you will get a great many 'suprises' when playing at the edges.
What haven't I mentioned yet?
Ah! Multiplayer!
Multiplayer was always planned as a 'big thing' for Master Of Orion 3, and as such, it was incorporated into the design at the earliest stages, not tagged on at the end.
To quote an official comment..
"Most people STILL play solitaire (myself among them), and we won't get gypped, I promise you. However, there have been numerous advances in the state-of-the-art for multiplayer play that we will be taking full advantage of. The most important of which, from a design standpoint, is PACING. That's the killer bugaboo in a turn-based game. MOO 3 will feature excellent PACING elements that will help ensure that multi-player games KEEP MOVING."
It won't get slow, and it won't get dull. Combat will not take ages, and neither will the rest of the turn. In the case where there occasionally will be some spare time, why not take the oppertunity to fine tune your ship designs, or take a more detailed look at the rebellion problem in that planet of yours?
There is so much more I haven't mentioned here... the technology tree, planetry and space combat, the AI, and so on.
All I've done here is scratch the surface enough to give you a reasonably detailed overview, what the game is about, and some of the features that make it special. If you want to find out more, the address of the official Master Of Orion 3 website is:
moo3.quicksilver.com
I'll keep you posted with any new developments.
Master Of Orion 3, to be exact. Release date: early 2002.
"Master of Orion 3 (MOO3) is a deep, easy-playing strategic-level game evolving the Master of Orion series by modeling the story depth of science-fiction epics like those you've read and seen in the movies or on TV."
So what is it? It's the only game I've really been excited about since Mario 64.Its a 5x space-conquest strategy game from Microprose. 5x? This means: explore, expand, exploit, exterminate... amd experience. The last one is new. Basically, though you are an all-poweful leader, your people just might not like the way you govern them. You will have to learn the social and political consequences of your actions. Doesn't sound too impressive on it's own, but a point to remember is that this is allegedly the most ambitious strategy game ever, in terms of the mechanics 'behind the scenes'.
So it's the third release in a successful series. So obviously it's going to be a dodgy dequel with little more than sharper graphics, right?
Nope. It's going places. It'll set the benchmark for future strategy games, with an unprecendented level of detail and a host of groundbreaking ideas. Notice I don't use the phrase 'real time strategy games'.
Yes, it's turn based - and no, that does not mean it will be slow and dull. If, like most people, you loved the civilisation series, you will love this. If on the other hand, like me, you didn't like the civilisation series, you will love this.
Any remote interest in strategy games will do.
So how is a turn based games not slow, dull and primitive? And what about multiplyer?
Firstly, each turn you may spend a number of what are called 'imperial focus' points. Think of them rather like time units. The catchphrase the developers coined, is "You can do anything, but you cannot do everything."
In particular, this can make large empires harder to maintain, so ensuring that one player does not 'run away and win' as soon as they have a small lead.
But of course I can hear some of you complaining. You want to be able to do everything in one turn. Design ships, watch battles, set planet spending, meet with other race leaders, send all your fleets on raids. Well, it can all still be done in one turn - and if you don't trust you leaders to do it, then remember that the number of Imperial focus points you get each turn is user definable.
Leaders are an excellent addition to the gameplay. Leaders are appointed to planets as your empire grows, so that they can take care of the more menial tasks whilst you deal with more important matters. You are an ovelord, as it were.
What this essentially means, is that you will never get bogged down in all the tedious little details, setting the production of every little planet in your empire, etc. It eases up on the micromanagement, so you get a game which will not bore you with trivialities - though if you like that sort of thing, they're still there for you.
One of the interesting aspects though, is that your leaders will not always act how you want them to. They will act in a way that is 'appropriate for your race', or 'in line with the view of the populace'. If you get a bad leader of course, then scrap him for a new one!
Time for some more info about the game itself.
There are 16 races, from 8 different species. For example, the humanoid species contains the Psilon race and the Human race - each with their own traits. In this case, the Humans are good traders and diplomats, whilst the Psilons are gifted technologists, and primarily pacifistic. 32 races were originally planned, but this was cut down to 16, in order to have '16 incredibly detailed and highly enjoyable races, rather than 32, some of which wouldn't have much appeal'.
The main aim is to conquer the galaxy, though there are several wasys to win.
1) Wipe out all opposition
2) Get voted in by the senate (2/3 majority, numbers of votes per empire is population based. Some races might be excluded from the high council - and some may not agree with the decision either)
3) Prove your right as heir to the throne of orion (not quite sure how this works, involves controlling the legendary planet Orion)
4) Solve the 'Antaran mystery' (this won't make sense unless your read the entire background to the game)
There are other 'hidden' victory conditions, too - and a point system is included to give you a rough idea of how well you did compared to everyone else.
The galaxy itself, that you are trying to conquer, is a three-dimensional map made up of up to 256 solar systems, each with up to 8 habitable planets, which may contain a number of moons. The galaxy is based on our very own Milky Way.
So there can be thousands of worlds to conquer - but obviously you can choose the size of the galaxy when you start. The 3D map is designed so that solar systems will never be hidden 'underneath' another, which gives an oppertunity for more experienced players to explore with the possibilities, whilst new players will not be confused.
Another big gameplay-influencing idea, is the presence of 'star lanes'. Essentially, they are 'roads' in space which allow faster than usual travel. By controlling many of them, you can seriously hamper your opponents movement, and create a very definite 'border' to your empire.
Of course there are many other interesting things in the galaxy, each with their own unique effects - worm holes, asteroid belts, nebula clouds, double planets.
And then of course, there are unknown 'things' from outside the galaxy. This helps to balance the gameplay. What so I mean by this? Fighting with you back against the wall is easiest. Same with the galaxy. It's a lot easier if you're at the edge, with only one 'front' to defend. To bring things in line with the mammoth task of the players in the middle, you will get a great many 'suprises' when playing at the edges.
What haven't I mentioned yet?
Ah! Multiplayer!
Multiplayer was always planned as a 'big thing' for Master Of Orion 3, and as such, it was incorporated into the design at the earliest stages, not tagged on at the end.
To quote an official comment..
"Most people STILL play solitaire (myself among them), and we won't get gypped, I promise you. However, there have been numerous advances in the state-of-the-art for multiplayer play that we will be taking full advantage of. The most important of which, from a design standpoint, is PACING. That's the killer bugaboo in a turn-based game. MOO 3 will feature excellent PACING elements that will help ensure that multi-player games KEEP MOVING."
It won't get slow, and it won't get dull. Combat will not take ages, and neither will the rest of the turn. In the case where there occasionally will be some spare time, why not take the oppertunity to fine tune your ship designs, or take a more detailed look at the rebellion problem in that planet of yours?
There is so much more I haven't mentioned here... the technology tree, planetry and space combat, the AI, and so on.
All I've done here is scratch the surface enough to give you a reasonably detailed overview, what the game is about, and some of the features that make it special. If you want to find out more, the address of the official Master Of Orion 3 website is:
moo3.quicksilver.com
I'll keep you posted with any new developments.