Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack includes the original Alpha Centauri and the expansion, Alien Crossfire.
Very Positive
550 Steam reviews
| LANGUAGE | AUDIO | SUBTITLES | INTERFACE |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Y | Y | Y |
I have a lot more hours than the time play shown here because I initially got a version from GOG. Alpha Centauri is wonderful 4X strategy game that might be dated but still does a lot better than any Civilization game and ngl I love the many clips for each factions. and especially the chinese ones, oops, I meant the Human Hive:
[i] "Learn to overcome the crass demands of flesh and bone, for they warp the matrix through which we perceive the world. Extend your awareness outward, beyond the self of body, to embrace the self of group and the self of humanity. The goals of the group and the greater race are transcendent, and to embrace them is to achieve enlightenment." [/i] — Chairman Sheng-ji Yang, "Essays on Mind and Matter"
Classic 90s banger that has a steep learning curve comapred to many modern games but is still loads of fun (bugs and all)
I love this game, but it won't run on my windows 11 PC. Therefore I cannot reccommend until fixed.
Games shouldn't be allowed to be sold here if they aren't current enough to run on the current hardware/software.
"Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master."
Finding Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri on Steam was an instant nostalgia hit for me. I spent so many happy hours playing this back in the 90s, and jumping back into it felt like reconnecting with an old favorite. The atmosphere, factions, and storytelling still hold up surprisingly well.
If you enjoy turn-based strategy and thoughtful world-building, this game is absolutely worth playing. It’s one of those classics that reminds you why the genre became so addictive in the first place.
Definitely recommended for anyone who loves classic strategy games or anyone who wants to experience one of the best from the era
An old game but even now full of ideas and atmosphere.
Good adaption of the original game, still a lot of fun especially when limited to a computer without high end performance.
Important: Install some overhaul mode like Thinker for example and don't play it as is on Steam. It's legendary game indeed, but it aged like milk, especially on UI and graphical compatibility front.
Other then that, there is not much to say. If you came to this page you probably already know what are you looking for. Just one advice, give yourself time to read the story and text in this game. This is one of the impressive example of good game writing. The dystopian horror of day to day existence is impressive. It would be years until current "hollywood writers rooms" level of writing that infesting game dev is to be flushed. So, it's good idea to check what capable writers can do.
I’ve been playing this game on and off since 1999, and honestly, nothing else comes close. I still remember the first time I heard Chairman Yang’s voice talking about "Recycling Tanks" as a kid and thinking it was just a cool building, only to realize years later as an adult the horrific implications of "every citizen's final duty." That is the magic of SMAC; it’s a strategy game with a soul that is simultaneously brilliant and dark. Unlike Civilization, which feels like a big high-five to human progress and imperialism, Alpha Centauri is a haunting meditation on how we’d probably just export our worst impulses to the stars the moment we got the chance. The many new approaches this game pioneered have still not been repeated. The terrain with height. The custom unit workshop, the complex social engineering, the terraforming that actually lets you rise or lower terrain, change the climate and drown your enemies by melting ice caps—it’s all there. It’s clunky by modern standards, sure, but once you get past the 90s UI, you’re looking at a masterpiece of narrative design that most modern AAA studios are too afraid to even attempt. Good that it is now at steam because there are no modern games like this and thrust me I have been looking for them. For anyone wondering, it runs perfectly on Linux through Proton—I’ve had zero issues, it’s snappy, stable, and just as addictive as it was twenty-five years ago.
It is still a fun older game that I enjoy playing.
This has the best writing of any 4x game I've ever played. Gives you something to think about as you play. The emergent narrative is fairly strong, especially since the ai leaders actually converse with you in a human way. If you can deal with the dated ui, this is well worth your time.
Firaxis published the best-written strategy game to ever exist and the only Civ game that isn't explicitly and aggressively pro-colonialist and then said "Let's never ever do that again"
I am also disappointed but not surprised to see that a third party mod pack makes the AI-controlled players smarter than the ones in Civ 6. somehow a guy on the internet making a mod for a game released nearly 30 years ago manages to make smarter opponents than Firaxis itself, a company worth millions of $
Also, very important note: Beware if you're running Windows 11, it doesn't play nice and you might need to fix it before it can run properly.
Civ if it actually had engaging lore
secretly the best civilization game, and certainly one of the all-time greatest 4x games. i've loved it since 1999 and i still love playing it. alpha centauri has what modern civ and its pretenders lack - actual FLAVOR and PERSONALITY, not to mention a pretense of thinking critically about its speculative future that still resonates. the mechanics are a bit crusty and the ux is very much of its time, but the game still holds up if you give it a chance - and maybe read the manual.
the steam release unfortunately needs patching to work properly with modern windows, so do look up PRACX and other various patches on the pc gaming wiki to make it play nice.
Ive enjoyed more than any other game ive played
Longtemps considéré comme le meilleur 4X de tous les temps, ce jeu ne failli pas à sa réputation, j'ignore la conjecture qui a permis à la création de ce bijou vidéoludique, mais elle est de celles qui permet la création d'un tel jeu une fois tous les dix ans.
Il est très appréciable de voir ce jeu enfin disponible sur Steam, par contre, il est moins appréciable de voir que l'éditeur se fiche de nous en n'ayant pas ajouté d'éléments qui auraient pu améliorer la qualité de vie, comme un support pour la taille et l'affichage des écrans modernes, un ajout de succès aurait été un bonus aussi appréciable et surtout les francophones sont encore ignorés puisque le jeu est vendu sans la VF écrite et audio, alors que les voix françaises sont infiniment meilleures que celles en V.O.
Bien évidement, on peut trouver cela via des mods, mais c'était quand même la moindre des politesses que d'avoir cela dans le jeu de base.
Je recommande toutefois le jeu à tout fan de 4X et notamment à ceux qui ont découvert le genre avec des jeux plus moderne, afin qu'ils puissent constater la perte de qualité (non graphique, mais de contenus) qu'a subi le genre au point que certains jeux de maintenant ont le niveau "stratégique" (sic) d'un vulgaire jeu mobile.
10/10 pour le jeu 5/10 pour le travail de cochon de l'éditeur et encore, je suis gentil
I still have my original copy and can't tell you how many hours I put into this game over the years. It was always the first game I reinstalled whenever I upgraded my tech and it's nice to see it dutifully recreated on steam. Alpha Centauri is the pinnacle of Civ games as it always felt deeper and more serious than its cartoon caricature counterparts.
i wipe them all in the map in this game.
This plays like 500 times better and more interesting than Stellaris. Patch with SMAC and whatever patch you read up on for modern systems.
It is like Civilization in space. I loved this game when it first came out and I'm so glad it has been fixed up and running on modern computers.
I’ve been playing 4X games since first or second grade, when a friend introduced me to the original Civilization. Between Civilization and Civilization II, I must have sunk hundreds of hours into conquering, optimizing, and reshaping the world. My favorite victory was always the science victory—launching a spaceship to Alpha Centauri—but it also came with a frustration: the game ended just as things felt like they were really beginning.
When Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri released in 1999, it finally delivered on that promise.
Unlike Civilization: Call to Power, which came out the same year and largely stuck to the classic Civ formula, Alpha Centauri fully committed to the question of what comes after Earth. Where Call to Power experimented with new ideas that never quite clicked for me, SMAC doubled down on deep systems, long-term planning, and obsessive optimization—and did it with confidence.
Terraforming in Alpha Centauri remains unmatched. You can raise and lower terrain, drill for aquifers to create rivers, plant forests or alien flora, and even manipulate rainfall and elevation to squeeze out every last unit of nutrients or energy. Planet doesn’t just feel occupied—it feels engineered over centuries.
Another major strength is the game’s tighter timeline. By focusing almost entirely on the space age and beyond, SMAC avoids many of the coherence problems that plague 4X games spanning thousands of years. Mechanics stay relevant, systems don’t need constant reinvention, and the experience feels remarkably consistent from start to finish.
The Social Engineering system was also far ahead of its time. By setting policies across Politics, Economy, Values, and Future Society, you effectively design the ideological backbone of your civilization. These choices meaningfully affect everything—economy, research, diplomacy, and warfare—and allow for wildly different playstyles. It’s hard not to enjoy the fantasy of trying to build a “perfect” society, even knowing the trade-offs will eventually catch up with you.
Then there’s the Workshop. Designing your own units—choosing chassis, weapons, armor, and special abilities—added a level of customization I still haven’t seen properly replicated. You could automate it if you wanted, but for players who enjoy that depth, it was (and still is) incredibly satisfying.
By modern standards, the graphics are undeniably dated, and there are technical issues today. The Alien Crossfire expansion currently fails to launch on Steam due to a recent Windows update (though the base game still works, and the expansion may function on GOG). Even so, SMAC has lost none of its pull. I still return to it regularly, and the “just one more turn” feeling is very much alive.
A kind of spiritual successor, Civilization: Beyond Earth, arrived in 2014. It’s competent and far better-looking, but it never captured the same magic. The depth of terraforming and social engineering simply isn’t there—even fifteen years later.
More than two decades on, Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri remains an extraordinary game. In my view, it’s not only the best Sid Meier title, but one that still outshines later entries in the Civilization series—including Civilization VI. It represents the genre at its most ambitious, uncompromising, and inspired.
For a longer, more detailed version of this review, see my blog post here:
https://hmpublishing.blogspot.com/2026/01/sid-meiers-alpha-centauri-still-high.html
Klassiker!
Crashes on startup. The GOG version works perfectly.
Decades later, this remains one of the most well-written games of all time.
Just like the old CD/DVD that I bought years ago, great game then, great game now!
One of my favourite Civ-type games. Great back story and interesting game play.
love it, iconic
Alien Crossfire is NOT included. But being able to play the original game is still worth it
Hyvä klassinen rakenetaan maailmaa ja vallataan se, periaatteessa Civilisaatio avaruudessa missä maastoa voi muokata enemmän
Ce jeu me ramène loin en arrière... Il m'a marqué à tel point que mon pseudo provient du leader de la faction des Peacekeepers : Pravin Lal (à la différence près que je mets le second L en majuscule). Je ne peux donc tout simplement pas être objectif dans cette évaluation, vous le comprendrez.
J'y retrouve quelque chose qui touche presque à une forme de philosophie et qui quelque part me ramène à Dune (autre oeuvre majeure constitutive pour une petite partie de ce que je suis aujourd'hui). Pourtant le jeu peut paraitre un civ un peu basique mais l'équilibre est présent partout dans le jeu de base (cela sera moins vrai dans l'extension Alien Crossfire qui viendra après).
Les citations prêtées à chaque protagoniste de l'histoire que l'on découvrent à chaque recherche scientifique sont un pur chef-d'oeuvre ainsi que les particularités de la planète qui la rendent vivante et en font un protagoniste unique à part entière. Ce jeu avait des années d'avance !!
L'interface a malheureusement beaucoup vieillie et aurait méritée (peut-être mais ça m'aurait enlevé quelque chose personnellement) d'être remise au goût du jour. Faite l'effort de passer outre et d'entrer dans le jeu, vous en serez alors récompensé. Je garde précieusement mes CDROM collector (qui étaient devenus inutilisables) et soupire d'aise à l'idée de pouvoir à nouveau y jouer.
Is SMAC
Superb Nostalgia
Simply the best. Unfortunately though some weird bugs will crop up over time that wasn't present in the original... and yes I still have my original CDs and keys! Still though, great game - recommend higher difficulties, base game versus crossfire. The AI is much more fun to play against in the base game.
Alpha? nah I only play sigma games
Alpha Centauri is one of my all time best games. I got it on a whim on steam, and worked fine for about a week. However, as of the latest Win11 update it crashes on starting a game. Ill update this review when I can get it working.
Do NOT buy this - Alien Crossfire does NOT work since a Windows 11 update!
This is the pinnacle of civilization, the game not the concept. It's just a well fleshed out game. The faction leaders have personality. The storyline is intriguing. The sci-fi is crunchy. Factions will actually surrender under the right circumstances! I've played this game a hundred times and still get enjoyment out of it.
crossfire doesn't work though.
Got the same problem as many others: Alien Crossfire crashes when making planetfall.
Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack, developed by Firaxis Games and published by Electronic Arts, remains one of the most ambitious and intellectually rich 4X strategy experiences ever created. Combining the original Alpha Centauri with its expansion, Alien Crossfire, this collection transports players far beyond familiar historical settings into a future where humanity, fractured by ideology, attempts to rebuild civilization on an alien world. What makes this game endure is not simply its mechanics or its scope, but its philosophical depth — the sense that every choice, every advancement, and every conflict reflects a struggle over what humanity should become rather than what it has been.
The narrative foundation is immediately gripping. As the starship Unity breaks apart en route to Alpha Centauri, its passengers — scientists, militarists, fundamentalists, idealists, and industrialists — form splinter factions, each guided by a charismatic leader who embodies a distinct worldview. When you choose a faction, you aren’t just picking a gameplay bonus; you’re adopting a philosophy that shapes your entire approach. From the eco-centric Gaia’s Stepdaughters to the militaristic Spartan Federation, the survivalist Hive, or the technocratic University, each group has strengths, weaknesses, and ideological tensions that evolve naturally throughout gameplay. This ideological framework becomes the emotional engine of the game, and watching these factions argue, negotiate, threaten, and adapt as the world around them unfolds lends Alpha Centauri a gravitas largely unmatched in the genre.
Gameplay builds upon the core foundation established by the Civilization series but extends it in daring and inventive ways. Bases function similarly to cities, but the alien environment forces long-term ecological planning: terraforming becomes central, allowing you to reconfigure terrain, raise mountains, divert rainfall, construct sprawling farm networks, or even irreversibly damage the planet if you’re careless. As you expand, the native life — mind worms, spore launchers, and more — challenge your dominion, operating less like traditional barbarians and more like a living immune response from the planet itself. This interplay between human ambition and alien ecology gives the game a unique strategic tension. You can suppress the native life, coexist with it, or attempt to harness its psychic power, but every path carries risks and unintended consequences.
The technology tree stands out as one of the most imaginative ever designed. Instead of merely unlocking stronger weapons or production buildings, each discovery reframes the universe’s metaphysics and your society’s moral direction. Advances in genetic engineering, ethical philosophy, nanotechnology, social theory, and metaphysical science do more than expand gameplay options — they challenge you to think about what a post-Earth humanity might prioritize when freed from the constraints of its old world. The often poetic and haunting quotes that accompany each breakthrough reinforce this tone, giving the sense that your civilization is evolving intellectually as well as materially. Over time, your faction feels less like a collection of units and more like a living ideology growing toward a transcendent future.
The unit design workshop is another hallmark feature, enabling players to craft military and utility units by pairing chassis types with armor, weapons, modules, and special abilities. This deep customization allows you to tailor forces to specific threats or terrain conditions, ensuring that your army feels like a natural extension of your faction’s philosophy. Combat itself is straightforward but loaded with strategic nuance: morale, terrain, technology, and native interference all influence outcomes, demanding foresight rather than brute numbers.
The Alien Crossfire expansion expands these systems meaningfully by introducing new factions — including alien species — along with fresh technologies, native lifeforms, and victory paths. These additions heighten the strategic diversity and give repeat players a reason to rediscover the game’s depths. Alien factions in particular shift the tone, offering perspectives that transcend human ideological conflicts and framing the planet’s ongoing evolution in more cosmic terms.
Still, Alpha Centauri’s age is visible in certain respects. The interface, while functional, lacks the sleekness of modern 4X titles. Graphics are dated, and some players may find the presentation archaic. The game’s pacing can lead to lengthy, micromanagement-heavy sessions, especially in large-scale campaigns. Balancing quirks occasionally emerge, especially when exploiting the unit workshop or certain social engineering combinations. Yet these limitations pale next to the extraordinary creativity, freedom, and thematic ambition on display.
What continues to make Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack resonate long after newer games have come and gone is how seamlessly it binds narrative, mechanics, and philosophy into a unified whole. Every decision feels like a small piece of a larger ethical experiment. Every research breakthrough feels like a step toward understanding humanity’s place in the universe. Few strategy games manage to evoke not only tactical satisfaction but also introspection — a sense of participating in something speculative, profound, and unsettling. Alpha Centauri accomplishes this effortlessly.
For players who value deep worldbuilding, emergent storytelling, ideological conflict, and complex systems that reward long-term planning, this remains a masterpiece of the genre. It may look modest by modern standards, but its ideas remain towering. The Planetary Pack serves not just as a nostalgic revival but as a reminder of how daring and thought-provoking strategy games can be when they aspire to more than conquest — when they aim to explore the very future of the human species.
Rating: 8/10
A totally absorbing scenario.
Janky movement controls, graphics straight of out the windows 95 era, brutal and / or braindead AI controlled rival factions, neutral mobs that seem to be heatseeking towards formers and colony pods, obscene levels of unit customization that leads you to the same 3 - 4 archetypes and game diversity that forces you into either blood thirsty warlord or heavily armed hippy.
9/10 best x4 ever would recommend to anyone that is also on the spectrum
alien crossfire does not run properly and crashes before you start turn 1
Learning and getting used to the UI is a fat pain in the balls, and best of luck keeping track of all your stuff in late game. However, if you can deal with all that, this is an AWESOME strategy game and quite possibly the best science fiction video game ever made.
A great classic.
Whatever hours you see that I have on steam by the time you read this is a fraction of the time I've spent in this game. I owned it back when it was new. I bought crossfire.
The mind worms have long since captured me. I am one with planet now.
Join me.
(Seriously - this is one of the best 4X games out there. Period.)
Sadly despite the misleading 2024 release date, this just crashes immediately on planetfall (alien crossfire). Why bother doing a fake rerelease if you won't even fix it to work. Shame on you Firaxis.
tacticle uses of materials, men, and equipment, supplemented by your technology will determine victory.
The Pregame before Beyond Earth. A fun, futuristic look at humanity, on a new planet, seperated by Idology. Wonders, Terrorforming units and quickly upgradable unit, make the game fun and moves quickly.
This is the best RTS I've ever played. Sure I do love galactic battlegrounds, starcraft, aoe, warcraft, but none of these games get even remotely close to the "amazeness" of Alpha Centauri.
What an absolute legendary gem. I don't even know where to begin. If you gave unlimited money to a developer with a dream this is what I imagine would become of his project.
It's just perfect on so many levels, I can't even describe how much I love this. Please buy this and play it, if you love RTS this will make your day, hell maybe even a year.
Alpha Centauri is simply genious. From the idea to the execution there is literraly no flaw.
The game has an extraordinary harcore sfi-fi atmosphere. The introductory cutscene just immediately pulls you into the carefuly crafted absolutely fantastic story, supported by simply flawless soundtrack (nothing complex but scratches the sci-fi itch SO WELL). The game is complex enough to make nerds like me just drown in the gameplay. There are multiple factions (SMAC and SMAX have different factions ! So there's even more than 7 !) you can play as, each with it's own leader and oh my god every faction and their leader is just so well created, and all the leaders have full voice acting on everything they say.
The game makes you lift up your civilisation form a few colonists to a thriving faction, there are many things to keep an eye on so your civilisation develops properly. Many things to build, many units to produce. The options of research are lovely, there are so many cool things that can help you but also hurt you in some way or your neighbours. There are also secret projects that can make your civ go extinct or turninto crazy cyborgs, perfect for a nerd like me.
Everything you research, find, build or just learn to do is described in such a fancy and impressive way, these things are described so mysteriously and majestically, everything is read out loud by the faction leaders, everything is dubbed, some texts are quoted by famous philosophers, writers, historians, scienstis, there's just this extraordinary emphasis on making everything sound as majestic as possible and it fits the hardcore sci-fi atmosphere this game has so well, it's just pure perfection.
The SMAX expansion is a nice addition to the story and most players I figured play this instead, because there is more tech or something, however do play SMAC first and then the expansion, the story is more than worth it.
I love this game so much, there is no way of describing how spectacular Alpha Centauri is. The devs absolutely nailed this one, finding this game for me was like finding a diamond on a street. People nowadays keep saying how games are getting better and that in the future we will have better games but this GEM released in 1999 and in my humble opinion nothign else I've ever played does even remotely compare to Alpha Centauri. Nothing I've ever played had so much work put into it as Alpha Centauri. Well done.
I can't recommend this enough ! PLAY THIS IMMEDIATELY !
Played without issue on Windows 11. Definite recommend, especially if you have memories playing it as a kid/teen. In terms of gameplay, it doesn't have some of the modern polish but it is a solid game. The story is interesting and and fun to explore the different endings. Feels like the story should be referenced in an episode of X-Files. Overall fun experience.
Fun to playu
One of the best games of all time if you specifically enjoy future/space-based builder sims and turn-based-strategy, which I do. :)
Many say that the game no longer works but it works fine for me on Proton 10 beta.
Fun game.
♥ #fufiwashere ―
Klassisches rundenbasiertes Strategiespiel, macht süchtig. Spiele ich seit > 10 Jahren.
truely classic , formers rule!
Crossfire is broken on Windows 11, the Thinker mod on Github got it working again. Did try the open source version but that didn't seem to have gotten very far.
I've though about this game off and on since I first played it on a demo disk in 1999, safe to say I am obsessed. The controls and UX are definitely circa 1999 and clunky as all hell but there is so much going on both openly and under the hood that it remains an impressive game nonetheless. By far the best story I have ever encountered in a 4x game, which, to be fair, is a low bar, but SMAC absolutely blows all others out of the water. Modern Civilization games wish their leaders had this much personality.
"You waited so long to heed us, EarthDeirdre, Almost we pruned you, as we may yet prune your branches."
I have this placed as my all time favourite game since I was a kid watching my father play it when it first came out. However, it does not work on Windows 11 and it deserves to have a remaster that does work. I will keep it in my library, but a real shame they cannot seem to get this game to work properly for what is otherwise a small community of people that have been enjoying it for 25+ years. If anyone knows how to force it to work on Windows 11, please direct me as I cannot seem to find any answers that work.
I have played it since it was new. Best Civ game ever!
This is the original Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, with updated graphics and support for modern PCs. In my opinion, SMAC is a cornerstone of 4x games and it is a genre-defining experience, even more so than Civilization. The factions are all unique and differentiate themselves very well, and the Secret Projects and Research have extremely memorable quotes. The only negative thing I have to say about this game is that the Alien Crossfire expansion, which is included with this purchase, does not work as of the latest patch.
My favorite Civ game :)
I'm 41 years old and played this game for the first time way back in 1999. I STILL play through it at least a couple times a year to this day. If I had to make a list of the best games of all time, this easily hits my top 3 personally. Enjoy!
loved the secret projects. Best Civ game they made.
I bought this game because it had so much praise, but after installing it and the patch that is mentioned somewhere here in the discussion forums, I found the controls to be so clunky that I uninstalled after 6 minutes and requested a refund. I'd be looking forward to playing a modern remake of this, but the state this game is in, I won't play it again.
The best Sid Meier's game by a long shot, long overdue for a remake
Old, classic pc game.
The greatest execution of science fiction in the 4X genre; maybe in the entire games medium. It's true that the dated UI and mechanics require some investment on your part, but it's worth it for the flavor and world immersion. One of the clearest candidates for a modern remake that ever existed.
The GOAT
Best of the Civ-likes by a league. Factions with distinct personalities, art, and voice acting, secret project (wonder) videos, many from Baraka, infinitely customizable units, and more aggressive AI on harder difficulty levels rather than mechanical advantages. I finish 90% of my SMAC games compared to probably 10% of any Civ game. The planetary threat, continued discovery and unit/facility evolution, and terraforming keep you busy into the late game. Highly recommended.
Good game but the Alien Crossfire expansion doesn't work.
Legendary Game. 1000 % recommended
crossfire is broken won't run on windows I believe as of last update.
Though both games are similar, I prefer SMAC to Civ: Beyond Earth. It's faster paced, and there are several ways to win, Try it, it's worth it.
the best game ever
This game was great 25 years ago, it is still great today.
My main critic is that the AI is too aggressive, which makes games to resolve rather early. Anyway - terrible graphics (it was bad even when the game was released, quater a century back) - but great atmosphere, amazing character build-up only through quotes from them.
en klassiker jeg har spillet rigtig meget, og det er stadig en af mine favoritter, et perfekt spil til afslapning men også ret vanedannende, har ofte spillet den halve nat selv om det ikke var min mening,
i have been playing this since it came out... lol... love it!
Not much on graphics, but the gameplay makes it worth it
One of the most addictive turn-based games I have ever played. First time I played after installing it, I got caught in the "just one more turn cycle" till after the sun came up. Could use a graphics update, but only if they largely leave the game play alone.
A classic, updated to work on modern hardware. The game runs well, and fullscreen borderless is supported. I dominated the economy so hard that I got bullied into submission by wave after wave of mindworms. Would get thought-policed again.
It is totally unplayable, crashes after a few minutes!! Total waste of money!!
Negative review to remove prompt on steam to leave a review
amazing
This is the premier Civ in space, the game is as good as it ever was! (not as hot on the expansion) This game deserves a modern sequal or refresh.
25 years ago I got the demo and played the first 100 rounds. I started at 6 pm, then next time I looked at the clock it was 1 am. I have no idea where the time went. It was amazing.
I reinstalled and played it today, lost 4 hours to winning my first play in at least 15 years.
for 3 dollars on steam sale? this is worth every penny!
id recomend civ 1 thru 3, call to power 1 and 2, alpha centauri. i have loved them all. good luck finding a system that can play civ 1 and 2 anymore. id play it for longer than 6 hours, but after i reviewed it, the game broke :( funny how that happens.
As a new player, i can attest to the fact that this game is pretty good. The gameplay feels like civ 2 if it were polished, the graphics are a bit dated (but who gives a ♥♥♥♥). The only complaints are that you need to download patches so it doesn't crash and also the ui is a little strange.
Love this game. It was far ahead of it's time with smart aggressive AI and the most amazing tech tree I've ever seen. I'd love to see this game updated. Long overdue!
One of the best games ever made, back when developers focused on mechanics and atmosphere.
Not even giving money to EA is going to keep me from owning this on every platform. Especially other platforms without DRM. Where the game is best enjoyed as.
I've been playing this game since it came out 25 years ago. It's a great game if you like the genera. I can't recommend it enough. I wish there were other games like it. I'm talking about the original. Cross fire is okay but not my cub of tea.
The GOAT
Slept on this one way too long. Deeper and better then most recently released titles.
The best civ game
본편은 잘되는데 확장팩은 실행불가
Great game! Nothing boring about it. A lot to learned, but it makes the game more interesting.
The product is modernized and interesting enough to be tolerable to contemporary consumers despite its few graphical errors and technical gameplay. What stands out most is the faction dialogue, both verbal and written, further reinforcing the theme of planetary conquest, high-tech societies, and dangerous alien lifeforms native to the planet. Still, players must never forget that they have to truly commit to learning every mechanic and faction if they are to have fun and get the most out of their playthroughs.
So good - all the nostalgia. Working fine for me on Windows 11 Home (contrary to other reviews I've seen).
Edit: have now updated Windows 11. And now the game crashes straight away :(
Edit 2: the OG game still works with Windows 11. But Alien Crossfire does not.
5/10
Alpha Centauri is still one of my default games to play. It has yet to be eclipsed in gameplay and style.
This was a beloved classic of my childhood, but be aware that the version being sold on Steam doesn't seem to work on modern Windows. It will crash randomly within a few minutes of starting a game. I've tried various suggestions online around compatibility modes and patches, but I haven't been able to resolve this. Alien Crossfire has an even odder bug where the game will start with no initial city, and you can't do anything. Thankfully I didn't spend much on this, but if a game is being sold I expect it to be at least playable! If anyone finds a fix for this, I'd love to hear it.
