While this game is not a stand-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller or an action-packed shoot em up, it is ultimately fun for anyone with a need to beat the pulp out of computer generated players repeatedly. :) It sticks with a simple routine and the basic rules of supply and demand, and throws in a couple curveballs now and then, like finding an ancient gaming computer (a commodore) and selling it for money to an antique collector, to space pirates, acid rain, sunspots, meteors, and mules gone wild (and not in a sexy way).
While this game is not a stand-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller or an action-packed shoot em up, it is ultimately fun for anyone with a need to beat the pulp out of computer generated players repeatedly. :) It sticks with a simple routine and the basic rules of supply and demand, and throws in a couple curveballs now and then, like finding an ancient gaming computer (a commodore) and selling it for money to an antique collector, to space pirates, acid rain, sunspots, meteors, and mules gone wild (and not in a sexy way). Quite simply the purpose is to both positively influence the planet through sale of goods and production, and to generally own more stuff than your three co-settlers. Every turn, you select a piece
of land on the game grid (cursor moves across the screen, and you hit the button to select), and any land auctions then take place.
There is the player phase. It sometimes starts with random occurrences for both human players and computer competitors, and leads to the move around part, where you can buy a robot mule to work your land, upgrade it with the land-specific software and hardware needed for mining, farming, or energy-collecting, then place the mule. During this phase as well, you may hunt for wild creatures in the mountains, gamble in the pub to end your turn, and even survey your land for precious crystals in higher difficulties. At the end of all players turns, another special event is likely to take place. Then the game shows the fruits of all these labors; you see all lands begin to fill with goods produced that turn.
On to the next area, the market. Here you "battle" to get the best price, whether buying or selling, by moving up and down to signify price; you can buy what you need, try to corner the market, or invest in goods in the hope that the price will go up. An important note: goods can affect things greatly, no food means no time to move about and do things, no energy affects your goods output, no mining smith ore makes for higher priced mules. And finally, you get the totals screen, where you can compare scores with the other players, in goods, money, land, and total amounts. This sets the order for the next round; rinse and repeat. :)
