We all know they are out there. Games that we never heard of or played, but we should have. In the first of a multi-part series, we will focus on a game that hardly anyone I know has actually heard of, much less played: Startopia.
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Created by a team of ex-Bullfrog employees and released in 2001, Startopia focuses on you building and administrating space stations. It takes place after a massive galaxy-wide war (likened to an intergalactic WWIII.) It is up to you to rebuild the space stations that remain in an attempt to get commerce, industry, and culture on the rebound. There are a huge number of different alien species, and each individual alien that comes seeking employment on your space station has various things that they excel at. The game was dedicated to the memory of Douglas Adams, who wrote the classic Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series. As such, Startopia actually contains a lot of the same style of humour found in the Hitchhiker series.
There are three different "decks", or levels, on each space station. Each deck has a different ecological environment and purpose, so what you can build on each one changes. When the game first starts out, you are able to build in what appears to be a small room. As your money stash grows and your workforce increases, massive doors will slide open and increase the size of that deck. While not only enabling you to build more on a deck, this will also give the ability to build different types of structures and rooms. Beyond normal folk that come in with the intention of working for you, there are enemy spy agents that come in that must be caught and eliminated as well.
Since the game came out in 2001, the system requirements are extremely low. Minimum Requirements are a 350 MHz CPU with 64MB of ram, 350MB of hard drive space, and a 32MB video card. Suffice it to say, the chances of not being able to run this game on your computer are extremely slim. While it can be found on eBay, if you have a GameTap Gold Subscription you can also play it on there. With an outstanding soundtrack, deep strategy, and graphics that still look good even today, Startopia is a game that you definitely should not miss.
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So there you have it folks! Got a game of your own no one has heard of but you love? Discuss it in the forums! Also, be sure to keep an eye out for our next installment of Games You May Have Missed!
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