![]() You couldn't have cavemen inventing nanotechnology and ice cream before they worked out the printing press. Earlier Civilization games have promised specialization, but ended up demanding that most players are generalists, perhaps because they're predominantly set during real human history. It feels like there's genuine choice in how you play your colony. The sheer number of icons and resources will scare some players That could change - my games were played on a preview version of the game provided by Firaxis - but I soon found that the presentation didn't matter because the underlying economics were both solid, and satisfying. It's even complex for series veterans: I've found myself bleary-eyed in front of a Civilization game at 5 AM more times than I'd like to count, but my early attempts to decipher how resources interacted with each other were thwarted by an interface and help menu so dense and dull I found myself involuntarily alt-tabbing half-way through a unit description. It's a confusing array of numbers and icons that will scare Civilization first-timers off come the game's launch. The higher the production, the fewer turns it takes for me to finish my construction projects in that city. I can also increase my production, a separate measure that isn't displayed on the main UI, but squirrelled away in each city's own menu. I can buy buildings and units outright, but only if I have the "energy," a resource generated by specific buildings and represented by a yellow icon. To research, I need science points, which themselves are accrued by dedicated learning centers I can construct in my cities. Beyond Earth has a large number of economic variables: I can mine minerals, gas, and weird goo from the alien world, but only if I've researched the ability to do so on a sprawling research tree. I know my economy's going to take a hit by focusing on military might this early in the game, but I'm not yet sure how it'll shake out. I immediately cancel my building projects - two vital food silos to keep my growing populace fed - and start training two squads of space marines. It's still small, but it's already helped boost my production - I need to get rid of the Dune-esque monster tearing it apart before my economy is crippled and the evil Australians take their chance to invade. Those spaces are filled with food farms and power generators, things I built soon after I founded the settlement using one of Beyond Earth's trundling colony vehicles. I use the game's diplomacy options to reject the Polystralian leader's request and promise him that his tone will come back to bite him later, but for now I have more important concerns: the death worm is slamming through the hexagonal grid spaces around my southernmost city. Settling lands near your base? You just slammed an entire city down spitting distance from my base. There's real choice in how you play your colony They step out of their craft, and blinking against the new sunlight, before immediately demanding I stop settling lands near their base. The Australians - technically Polystralia in the 29th century in which the game is set - plopped their city-ship down just north of my own about ten turns into the game. They drop from the sky, thrusters slowing their descent, before unfurling into a prefabricated city on the alien planet. Beyond Earth lets you play as one of eight rival factions colonizing the planet, and those factions can still quickly develop petty quarrels with each other even hundreds of light years from Earth.Ĭities in Civilization: Beyond Earth start off as spaceships. The UI in this trailer is a really good example.The alien world marks humanity's first attempt at finding a new home after messing up our homeworld, but this isn't some harmonious sci-fi future. I also really love how the type is introduced by a pair of lines as a way of getting your attention prior to the text appearing. It separates the different layouts without having to add more elements on the screen to divide each section. It's nice to isolate each readout screen with a physical frame rather than have them all on one flat screen. The design of the console and the bevelled frames around the screens is a really lovely touch. The subtle glare on the surfaces help give the screens texture. The lighting and post production really make the UI look polished. ![]() The UI in this trailer is my favourite of the three. What's great about the UIs in this trailer is the finish on them. Below are three trailers each with different UI featured. The game is set in the future and involves space travel so naturally the trailers feature glimpses of FUI. Recently I stumbled upon the latest instalment of Sid Meier's award winning Civilization series, Beyond Earth.
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