MOO 3 on GoG.com

[jpublic]

Just so y'all know. $10. I know most people think it's the worst of the lot, but it had its moments.

[Panthera]

Moo3 had its problems, but I think it's vastly underrated, especially modded. I prefer it and the original Moo over Moo2.

[Shadowmage952]

Moo3 had its problems, but I think it's vastly underrated, especially modded. I prefer it and the original Moo over Moo2.

Blasphemer.

[Arphahat]

I really wanted to like this game, but in the end, could not. If anyone wants to buy my old copy instead, let me know. :)

[CappinCanuck]

I actually liked it a lot, especially modded. Very underrated mostly by uninformed opinion.

[jpublic]

Which mods did you run?

I tried it out today, but still couldn't figure out what the heck I was doing. I just felt I was hitting the next-turn button over and over, and the game was playing itself. I didn't feel like I was really in control of anything.

[Arphahat]

I actually liked it a lot, especially modded. Very underrated mostly by uninformed opinion.

Actually, reading through the reviews, it seems pretty spot on. The game was obtuse, confusing and broken, and the publisher refused to patch it beyond an arbitrary three times, after which it was still broken.

I never got to the point of installing any mods, but I'd say an average rating of 2 that it has is very generous for the base game.

That said, I'll still be willing to sell my copy of if anyone wants it. :)

[BlackPete]

This. Game. Never. Existed. :mad:

[ShivaX]

I actually liked it a lot, especially modded. Very underrated mostly by uninformed opinion.

Underrated? The entire game was a giant scam.

And you can't include mods in a comment like that.

MoO3 is one of the greatest disappointments (if not outright lies) in the history of gaming.

[CappinCanuck]

Which mods did you run?

I tried it out today, but still couldn't figure out what the heck I was doing. I just felt I was hitting the next-turn button over and over, and the game was playing itself. I didn't feel like I was really in control of anything.

Try here:

http://www.moddb.com/mods/master-of-orion-3-master-mod


I can't note any specific ones, I would grab packs that contained 100's of mods/bugfixes. There are other sites with varying dates for last update.

Keep on hating, haters.

[Arphahat]

Keep on hating, haters.

Hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate!

No, it is not enough. It does not sufficiently express my loathing of the impostor that stole the position of sequel to MOO2 from that which could-have-been.

Though, I'm glad that someone enjoyed it. :)

[jpublic]

I'm running the tropical mod, and enjoying it a lot.

[CappinCanuck]

I'm running the tropical mod, and enjoying it a lot.

Yeah! :D

asdf

[Xydarc]

Try here:

http://www.moddb.com/mods/master-of-orion-3-master-mod


I can't note any specific ones, I would grab packs that contained 100's of mods/bugfixes. There are other sites with varying dates for last update.

Keep on hating, haters.
What does that say about the core game when it has to be heavily modified in order to be playable?

[Panthera]

What does that say about the core game when it has to be heavily modified in order to be playable?

Eh, I found it playable enough unmodified. The only real problem is that it once you get over the learning curve you find that the AI doesn't really stand a chance. Even then, I had some good fun multiplayer in the month after release.

[Xydarc]

Eh, I found it playable enough unmodified. The only real problem is that it once you get over the learning curve you find that the AI doesn't really stand a chance. Even then, I had some good fun multiplayer in the month after release.
I found it unplayable from the get go. I admire that modder's dedication; however, I'll stick with MoO II and give III a pass.

[CappinCanuck]

What does that say about the core game when it has to be heavily modified in order to be playable?

Not sure, I haven't played vanilla since a couple weeks after release. Can't say I really care what it says though. I have a great time with it :cool:

I found it playable, but mods sure made it play better, but that's true for a lot of games and mods.

[jpublic]

I'd personally skip the Master Mod and go with the tropical. Better screen layout, 1024x768 resolution, windowed mode (16-bit), better race modifcations, it's a lot better.

Only thing I don't like is the fact that it starts everyone at tech level 0, so you don't have any scout/colony ships.

[Doogie2K]

Is it sad that my best memory of MoO III was when my friends and I would spend two hours trying to get a random map configuration that would put is within fewer than five systems of each other?

[ClannerDelta]

What does that say about the core game when it has to be heavily modified in order to be playable?

That it's made by Bethesda?

[jpublic]

I actually went and reinstalled my game to release adn then dropped on Vanilla 1.6.

Just a quick FYI, the big mod groups of MoO3 are Vanilla, Strawberry, and Tropical.

Vinalla tries to remove bugs and improve the core experience. Strawberry tries to improve some game mechanics. Tropical goes even further.

[CappinCanuck]

I actually went and reinstalled my game to release adn then dropped on Vanilla 1.6.

Just a quick FYI, the big mod groups of MoO3 are Vanilla, Strawberry, and Tropical.

Vinalla tries to remove bugs and improve the core experience. Strawberry tries to improve some game mechanics. Tropical goes even further.

I'll have to reinstall and give Tropical a try. Strawberry was my mod of choice a few years ago.

[jpublic]

My problem with tropical was the bugs and some other odd things.

1) For some reason the research matrix is screwed up, and Beam can only scroll to 50 even though they spread out research to 100. (Which is silly, because it just means it takes longer to get anything.)
2) The Military and Demographics tabs in planet screens hose the UI (until you hit next turn) unless you turn off UI animation.
3) The Tropical incorporates the 1024x768 mod, which has some weird mouse-click behavior.
4) I hate the fact that you start with no ships.

[CappinCanuck]

My problem with tropical was the bugs and some other odd things.

1) For some reason the research matrix is screwed up, and Beam can only scroll to 50 even though they spread out research to 100. (Which is silly, because it just means it takes longer to get anything.)
2) The Military and Demographics tabs in planet screens hose the UI (until you hit next turn) unless you turn off UI animation.
3) The Tropical incorporates the 1024x768 mod, which has some weird mouse-click behavior.
4) I hate the fact that you start with no ships.

Not too shabby of bugs, but they do sound annoying. I guess there's no reason to expect this mod is still in development?

[Cit Phil Cit]

I don't know if I can play it. I remember abusing a corporate printer of my mother or father somewhere, printing out dozens - perhaps a few hundred pages of documentation trying to figure out how to run all those different.. management tools.

The game was a box of rape for the MoO franchise.

[CappinCanuck]

I don't know if I can play it. I remember abusing a corporate printer of my mother or father somewhere, printing out dozens - perhaps a few hundred pages of documentation trying to figure out how to run all those different.. management tools.

The game was a box of rape for the MoO franchise.

Really? :P I didn't find it that complicated...

[Cit Phil Cit]

Really? :P I didn't find it that complicated...

I'm talking about the programmable governors and your ability to setup between 20 and 50 templates of development for your worlds be selecting its primary function, etc.

It was stupid, badly documented and tedious. And the beta-grade combat sim, was just peechy keen.

[jpublic]

Actually, I just ignore the planet management for the most part, unless I want one of them to pump out something in particular, like a Planetary Genetic Decoupler if I want to sterilize one of my planets which are getting Ithkul'd, or a 10-pack of Colony ships to initiate a wave of colonization faster than the game would normally.

I spend all my time managing my numerous battles, building ships, and giving my people a *direction*. The built-in planet designs are fine for the most part.

[Bad Wolf]

MoO2 is still so much better in every respect compared to MoO3 (modded or unmodded). That alone testifies that a lot of hearts were broken when the series was killed thanks to the shitfest that was MoO3.

Like many here, i pretend it never existed and pray someday we'll get a worthy sequel.

PS: inb4 starlanes suck!

[Panthera]

MoO2 is still so much better in every respect compared to MoO3 (modded or unmodded).

I disagree completely.

[BlackPete]

I disagree completely.

I disagree with your disagreement.

I remember being on Quicksilver's forums when this game launched, and I've never seen so many fans get their heart broken at the same time, with many people desperately trying to find good things to say about the game.

One guy even wrote up a "How to have fun in MoO3" FAQ. And the Quicksilver reps posted a link to that FAQ every now and then whenever someone complained the game wasn't fun.

It was bizarre.

[Panthera]

I disagree with your disagreement.

I remember being on Quicksilver's forums when this game launched, and I've never seen so many fans get their heart broken at the same time, with many people desperately trying to find good things to say about the game.

One guy even wrote up a "How to have fun in MoO3" FAQ. And the Quicksilver reps posted a link to that FAQ every now and then whenever someone complained the game wasn't fun.

It was bizarre.

Tons of fans of the previous games were disappointed. That's inarguable, and not what I'm disagreeing with.

Saying that Moo2 is better in every way is silly - it's hardly the same kind of game, and that's why I like it and others don't like it. You can't just line up the features row by row, because they're not trying to accomplish the same things. A lot of the features just aren't analogous.

For that matter, I never really enjoyed Moo2 all that much. I thought it missed the point of the original MOO and drifted too far into Civilization territory. But, that's beside the point. Moo3 is hardly accessible and not what people wanted, but that doesn't mean it's worthless. Far from it.

[Bad Wolf]

I disagree completely.

That is perfectly fine. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes. I didn't mean to imply there weren't any people that enjoyed MoO3.

Though it does boggle my mind how anyone could enjoy what was a spreadsheet with space imagery.

MoO2 wasn't a replica of MoO, it expanded on the gameplay and shifted focus onto certain areas but it was definitely MoO at heart.

MoO3 turned a game into a chore! Again, this is my opinion but after the game was released i was under the impression that it was opinion all around.

Everyone at the time was either upset because deep down they knew their favourite franchise had been effectively killed or were desperately hoping that patches would miraculously make the game fun.

Suffice to say, for many it did not. Though you may be in the small minority that did enjoy the game and good for you.

[jpublic]

Well, I just finished a game using the Taichidi (one of the insects). Cripes I can't imagine actually playing through the game on conquest, that'd take years. I won via Senate, although I was 4/5th of the way to the Antaran X win too, and I was *still* over 1000 turns, and I was on a fairly small (150 star) galaxy.

I'm done with that game for now. Gah.

I think I may try out FreeOrion just to see how it's shaping up.

[Cit Phil Cit]

I disagree with your disagreement.

I remember being on Quicksilver's forums when this game launched, and I've never seen so many fans get their heart broken at the same time, with many people desperately trying to find good things to say about the game.

One guy even wrote up a "How to have fun in MoO3" FAQ. And the Quicksilver reps posted a link to that FAQ every now and then whenever someone complained the game wasn't fun.

It was bizarre.

Heh. Thanks for bringing that up! I had probably forgotten all of that on purpose. What I really enjoyed was the absolute trainwreck of a competition they offered:

Design a flag and Write the History of the MoO universe.

Apparently, the same team that saw fit to include cow udders as a flag, violently disagreed that any fledgling star empire would ever use a sun, star or a stylized galactic geography themes in their flags.

Also, let's not forget they included "bling" shots of all of the aliens with gold chains and pimp hats.

To win the Quicksilver story writing competition, you had to write the most long-winded convoluted story ever. A submission that dared you to try and read the entire thing.


I remember theorionsector.com was a bastion of hope trying to find some depth in the Moo3 craziness.

[jpublic]

FreeOrion is actually pretty badass, although the GUI is a bit odd. It also uses starlanes, for those of you that hate them.

Also found a remake/sequel being done to the Star Trek Birth of the Federation game being done, called 'Star Trek Supremacy'. It looks decent, I don't know how playable it is.


You know what GoG needs to get on their store? Ascendancy. I loved that game.

[biosc1]

MOO 1 & 2 are now available on Impulse for a few pennies more than the GoG version.

Could this mean it may be coming to Steam soon? GoG is good, but I like to have all my games in one place and Steam would be best for me :)