Master of Orion 2: Battle At Antares (Jewel Case)

by Atari

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004VXAV
• Product Dimensions: 4.9 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: January 30, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (89 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,919 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Forge an empire to span a universe. Colonize unknown planets and trade with other races for their knowledge. Conquer alien star systems by war or diplomacy to secure their resources. Only then can you guarantee your galactic supremacy. Multiple game settings let you select such factors as your adversaries' intelligence, the size and age of the galaxy, and the level of civilization. There are multiplayer options for up to eight players. You can play using modems, a network, a hot seat, or TCP/IP. The game also includes 13 predesigned races, each with its own abilities, and the means to create your own.

Product Description

Forge an empire to span a universe! You will colonize unknown planets and trade with other races for their knowledge, and conquer alien star systems by war or diplomacy to secure their resources. Only then can you guarantee your galactic supremacy.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The power of the ancients is now yours to command.., November 9, 2000

By 

Yossarian (Durham, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Master of Orion 2: Battle At Antares (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

This game is wonderful. Those of you who played the original MOO will find gameplay similar but with expanded options, while folks new to the series will likely enjoy the politicking and pestering that goes on in the average game. A few general comments and then some specifics:

MOO:2 is a galatic strategic adventure game. You pick from one of nearly a dozen races, each with its own benefits or drawbacks (The klackons, industrious space-ants, excel at production but are as dumb as bricks; ethereal Psilons float about learning with amazing rapidity but struggling to produce the ships necessary to defend themselves, while charming and wily Humans play folks against one another). A new feature allows you to customize your own race from the scores of options characterizing the pre-packaged ones. Want enormous planets? Make your race Aquatic and Subterranean. Insanely productive? Cybernetic, Tolerant (ignores pollution effects), +2 Production. The possibilities are staggering, and by buying a lot of negatives, one can afford an equal number of wonderful positives.

Each star system, unlike MOO:1, has a number of planets, most of which you can land on initially. Unlike MOO:1, you will not need to learn different _types_ of colonization for different planets (radiated, barren, toxic, etc.). However, you still need to research how to make them more fruitful. Along the way you receive the option to hire both planetary governors and ship leaders, effectively Heroes for your forces. Placing a good planetary leader in a system with a half-dozen habitable planets can double your empire's food, research, and/or industry production.

Other additional features such as multiple 'special' worlds guarded by nasty beasts, in addition to Orion itself, as well as the ability to purchase (eventually) robotic workers allows for great customization, and lets races rebound from setbacks. MOO:2 even allows you the option to let the computer calculate all the fleet battles nearly instantly, so you don't have to sit through a 2 hour fight involving stasis fields and boarding parties. However, you may only choose this option _before_ starting a given game, and cannot turn it off afterwards. Long fights may get annoying, but I find it far more useful to know _why_ you lost, not just that you did.

All in all, MOO:2 is a very engrossing strategy game, particularly for sci-fi buffs. Note however that while it has aged well, you may need to turn down the graphics accelerator on your computer to keep it from freezing up if you have a new one. Details on how should be included in the help files that come with the game.

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Deserves to be #1 Game of All Time, October 22, 2000

By 

"xangryscotsmanx" (Harrisonburg, Virginia United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Master of Orion 2: Battle At Antares (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

MOO2 is (almost) everything that a serious sci-fi gamer like myself could want in a game. But let's break it down, shall we?

1.)Combat-The only flaw in the game occurs here. Ground battles are not fought and commanded by the player; the results are dice-rolled with modifiers. Being a fan of RTS like StarCraft, I would have much preferred to personally lead my armies to sweeping victories. Aerial combat, however, is acceptable, if not amazing. You should also be able to give orders to groups of starships. During one titanic battle, I actually took an hour for my first turn, there were so many ships and so many targets.

2.) Diplomacy-The one little flaw in this is the multi-player facet, in which you can't simply "chat" with other players. Otherwise, very practical. I especially enjoy the "Threaten" option as a way of bullying smaller empires into giving me some tribute. New players, keep in mind-it's VERY hard to bluff with this.

3.) Economics-Again, a very practical, realistic approach was taken to this. You can conceivably build one of each building you've researched on a planet, but the maintenance costs drives your taxes to new heights so you can stop yourself from going into negative values. This was my only recurring nightmare until I realized my flawed startegy, and began using some planets as foodstuff-producers and others as industrial magnates.

4.) Science-Research of new technologies is what will really tilt the game in favor of one race or another. "Creative" races have an extreme advantage in that they research every possible venue in a field, whereas normal races have to pick one and "Non-Creative" races don't even have a choice. I tried playing with a regular race once, and it was tough enough even on "Easy" that I decided to stick with "Creative" races.

5.) Spies-My one argument with the spy system is that, like ships and buildings, you have to "build" spies, whereas in the first one, that sort of micromanagement doesn't take place. You just say, "Ok, spy on them." Otherwise, it is an excellent engine with little room for improvement.

6.) Overall-Like I said above, a Must-Have for any hard-core gamer. But unlike games like The Operational Art of War and Jane's Fleet Command, MOO2 has a good re-play value. The amount of variety you can introduce by changing the variability in using the race-customization engine, number of races, the size of the galaxy, the difficulty, and the starting tech level all contribute to the game so that no two games can ever really be alike. I've had this game for years and keep coming back for more.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Civilization in the Stars, December 29, 2000

By 

W. Kepley "Armycardinal" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Master of Orion 2: Battle At Antares (Jewel Case) (CD-ROM)

I purchased this game well over three years ago. It still is one of my favorite games. I always go back to it for a good time. MOO2 is one of those games that you aren't guranteed to win just because you are playing. If you don't carefully balance production, ship-building (you have to play tactical combat rather than strategic), and expansion, the AI will stomp a mudhole in you. If for that reason alone, the game is great. It is never the same. Each of the different races CAN win, but I'm sure you'd like to create your own race. You have to get this game, it will never play the same twice. You'll lose more than once; it's great. Especially today, I bought it when it first came out... Now it's a bargain and a steal... If you throw in for the "Official Strategy Guide" you have it made. The Strategy Guide won't help you win, but it can help guide you in the right direction. Enjoy !!