29th Nov 2009
From Scorpogee, "...Civilians play a big role now. They can become easily demoralized under a large number of conditions, so things can quickly get out of hand. For example, losing money will cause them to lose faith in your ability to rule. If things get out of whack badly, they might desert you altogether and join the first race that comes swinging by. This makes for some interesting changes in strategy since now players can just bring in a colony ship after clearing out what satellites that may be surrounding the independent planet and lay claim to it..."
27th May 2009
This expansion is simply the best expansion thus far in the SOTS universe. I'm surprised it's not more well known, as with this expansion and the addition of a more detailed diplomacy system, it rivals many other more well known games in my oppinion. The addition of multiplayer abilities makes it that much better. The lore of the universe is detailed and fascinating, all in all I simply can't put this game down!
3rd Jan 2009
I am a professional game developer - I own a million games, buying several a week - this is one of those games I just cannot stop playing. I buy something new, play it for 3 hours, and then go back to this. I've owned it for more then a year, but every game is different, and always brilliant.
30th Oct 2008
Sword of the Stars is a fantastic 4x franchise and A Murder of Crows continues to improve upon the stellar offerings of SotS and the first expansion, Born of Blood. Though AMoC expands the player's control over their empire's economy and population, and improves the diplomatic model, the core of the game still fleet combat.
Combat is gorgeous real-time 3D starring crisp weapon effects insanely customizable ships. AMoC lets the player field everything from tiny unmanned drones to massive dreadnoughts that will bombard planets with artificial asteroids. And each of these ships can be customized from the smallest weapon mounts to entire sections of the hull. Experiment with thousands of combinations and create whatever designs you desire.
I have to admit I am biased. 4x games are by far my favorite genre and the Sword of the Stars and its expansions is at the top of my favorites alongside Space Empires 4 and MOO2. If you are like me and enjoyed Gal Civ but was looking for more than computer controlled cookie-cutter combat, then try out the SotS bundle.
24th Oct 2008
this game was great, now with the amoc expspansion is AWSOME !
For those considering buying a new game who like sci-fi games that have turn based strategy turns mixed with real time combat for battles this one is for you - Just like in midevial total war you manage your colonies(cities) in strategy mode , then you do your battles in real time with your ships. Both Graphics and gameplay in battle have improved in performance dramatically with the amoc exspansion added. I highly recomend the upgrade as it appears to fix many bugs.
For those skepticul about the screenshots I can assure you from personal game experiance that the graphics are atleast as good as the screenshots if not better I give this game a solid 9 for graphics and a 10 for everything else - I know there are only 5 stars here but thats just how cool the game is.
15th Oct 2008
This is an excellent x-pack for an excellent and venerable franchise that really should get far more fanfare from the general gamer community - looking at you casual gamers...
You simply cant go wrong with a purchase of this title if you have even a remote interest in a space based strategy game.
12th Oct 2008
A nice expansion to the SotS franchise. I love the new additions, using drones and stations and developing new strategies to outwit your opponents. The new weapons balance with the old ones well, and there's always a counter to any type of ship the enemy is using. The new customizable handicaps make the already deep game setups even more fun.
However, with all these new non-combat oriented technologies and features (such as xeno-cultural techs and trading, spy ships, AI raiding fleets, multi-race populations and planetary morale) I think the game has lost the streamlined, simple experience that hooked so many of us in the first place. With all these new things to micro-manage, turns can take twice as long if not longer later in the game. This is fine if you're looking for more of a 'Total War in space' kind of game, but I found that it really detracted from the core game experience: the ship to ship combat. There are other games out there that blend combat and economy better than AMoC; this economy feels somewhat clumsy and more of a burden to manage than it should be.
That being said, the tactical improvements are stellar and add more depth to the real time combat strategy. There's nothing like releasing a dreadnought's worth of drones at a descending enemy fleet without adequate point defense. This expansion definitely adds more depth and fun to the game, but just don't expect it to be the simple, easy to manage, streamlined game SotS started out to be.
10th Oct 2008
Phenomenal game! Deserves to be up there with the Total War series, and easily the best space strategic game thus far. Strategic game is turn-based, with battles being fought between turns in gorgeous 3D with lavish explosions, weapons effects, and a vast array of weaponry and ship types that allows for a deep and immersive arms race between you and your opponents (A countered by B countered by C when used with D, ...)
5th Oct 2008
Sword of the Stars is a game that should be more well known IMO. The game is excellently designed and crafted, and shows an awesome level of attention to detail, caringly lavished on its backstory. The way the games story has been expanded over time through patches and expansions is unheard of in a non MMO game, and shows just how much thought the Dev's have put into this game.
The game has impressive sound and visuals, but where it really shines is the replayability. No 2 games are the same, due to the well thought out technology tree. A game all strategy fans must play.
5th Oct 2008
I don't usually buy if without the full bundle so i bought it all sight unseen due to positive 27 reviews on avg of 4.7 score.
SOTS+BoB+AMOC is an astonishingly good surprise and i can't wait to learn the game to play the multiplayer version.
Too soon for me to make a review on the specific game but by looking at the lighthouse dev website i've noticed another couple of interesting titles.
This dev house is DEFINITELY going up.
I will ask GamersGate to edit my review in a few weeks but the whole series is definitely a worthy purchase for space+rpg+empire management fans.
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