turn based

I love strategy and reading the reviews here for MOO3, thought it would be really bad. Then I bought MOO2 and 3 at a low price to se what it was all about. First I played MOO2 to later compare MOO3 and...

... First: MOO2 is really good, turn based battles are just fun and construction of ships is engaging... (needless to say the year it was released and all the graphical issues), ok. I beat the game twice an then installed MOO3...

...Now, we are in front of a 100% different interface, ok, let's play , In strategy games I always choose the HUGE maps, fine, in MOO3 the time it takes to play in a small galaxy equals huge maps on other games due to the micromanagement required, I'm not complaining, just is the first game that I play on small maps, ok...

story short:
After a week and sleepless nights I coul finally understand the Game and I came up with one conclusion: IF YOU REALLY LIKE STRATEGY GAMES (including chess)and you understand the meaning of PATIENCE you'll be very entertained by this software (my case).

If you can't use your imagination, don't like to read, and your patience rating falls below 70% (minimum required) you won't enjoy MOO3 !!!

THE BIGEST FAULT BY THE DEVELOPERS WAS TO SELL THIS AS A GAME, IF ONLY THE BOX HAD WARNED YOU THE REAL COMLEXITIES OF MOO3, another story would be written on the reviews here ! IT'S A VERY CLEVER AND ENTERTAINING TOOL !. :)

I was really looking forward to this when it came out - I'm still a huge fan of MoO2. The third MoO game, however, was a huge letdown. In trying to save the player from having to micromanage, the developers created a horrible AI that never doew what you want. Very frustrating, not worth buying or playing.

The main problem with this game is that despite the graphical updates and some gameplay tweaks it just feels over 5 years out of date. The amount of micromanagement you can do is astounding. If you are a control freak and like to count grains of sand on a beach, then this is the game for you. For the rest of us mere mortals, the management detail required to really get the most out of this game is just WAY TOO MUCH. The manual is not only worthless, it is a complete waste of time to read it (140 pgs plus) as it tells you absolutely nothing that you can discern just by looking at the various in-game screen interfaces. I don't really need a manual that tells me the Unload All Ordinance button means you unload all of your ordinance (140+ pages of stupid drivel like that). Updates from the previous game include real-time space combat. On the surface this would seem great, however the graphics aren't even as good as an old Asteroids arcade game and the interface is limited to Move, Attack, Stop, and Retreat. What astonished me was the additional levels of complexity added to the strategy aspect of the game. MOO2 had copious, if not excessive, micromanagement tasks. MOO3 has increased the level of micromanagement detail by a factor of 10. For diehard fans of MOO2, this is probably fantastic. However, for the vast majority, it renders the game incomprehensible. Yes, you can opt to switch on the AI and let the computer management the detail stuff but you may soon find yourself just pushing the turn button to watch the computer play itself - where is the fun in that?

This game takes what made MOO2 successful and expanded upon that - greatly. Normally this would be a good idea, however in MOO3's case it is so complex, most people new to the game will find it like trying to decipher an encyclopedia written in a foreign language. In fact, I would warn anybody that hasn't played MOO2 to shy away from MOO3 - you are likely getting in over your head. For people who are extremely detail oriented and controlling this may be the game for you. For the rest of us, you are better off getting an old copy of MOO2 and trying it out first. If you don't like it, you certainly aren't going to like MOO3.