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Hi, my question is in the title.

Thanks.

Nope. Far better game.

I am asking because on screenshots it looks like a SE clone. It might be better than SE but stil a clone, as compared to a new original concept:-)

One question: Is it possible to design my own ships?

For example, in one of this games (maybe MOO? not sure ...) I designed my own ships, I called them "microns". They were so tiny that I could produce millions of them very easily in a cople of turns. I loaded them with bacteriologal weapons and cashed them on enemy planets. I quickly became Master of a devastated universe )) Was great fun. (it was probably with MOO)

Is this kind of strategy possible with A2526 ?

It was with MOO - and that was a great feature of MOO - but in reading through the other threads for this game it seems like this game has lots and lots of ship types instead of a "ship designer" so no ship designing in this one.

It has far more depth and playability than SE, but the financial model so far seems perfectly designed to establish that war does not pay.

I.e., no big sweeping camapaigns. You'll be lucky to have one decent battle per war, and you'll have to work like the dickens to set up a short, sharp war with well a defined and very limited objective every 30-40 turns. Plus you absolutely must pay attention to alliances among the AI's as those may result in boycotts which will ruin you financially if you make surprise attacks on AI empires.

There's a good game in there, but right now its financial model plain sucks.

If you want to have any fun with the game, do not play the humans. They're crippled with unrest.

More depth than SE, I don't know that, but SE V is not a working game, this is however...the AI is better aswell, economic model is interesting, even if I question the economic model.

ORIGINAL: Tom_Holsinger
It has far more depth and playability than SE, but the financial model so far seems perfectly designed to establish that war does not pay.

More playability, yes. More depth, no.

Janster, SEV is perfectly 'working' if far from perfect, even without mods. Have you actually tried patching it?

I tried Space Empires 5 for awhile. I used to think it was great; now it is a chore to me and not fun.

It has so many choices. It has nearly everything from all science fiction...except FTL.
It uses old game style warp point travel lines. The user interface is annoying. Nice huge technology tree but a it's bit unorganized. Some weapon techs are redundant and useless compared to another similiar tech. You can get bogged down in micro management and setting combat strategy options.
The AI is mostly non existent...unless you get one of a couple popular mods. I don't prefer to use mods. Too many other good games to focus on instead.

A few SE5 pros:
-has nearly every tech in all science fiction
-somewhat organized and nice to look at ship design that's not too complicated
-one of the most (if not the most) "modable" 4X space strategy games

A few SE5 cons:
-nearly non existant AI that isn't programed to use nearly every tech in all science fiction or to fight well...or to manage planets well. A couple of popular mods are available to improve this if you are into mods
-No faster than light travel in open space. Travel is in system and instantly via warp point lines connecting various systems.
-Unorganized, annoying user interface that consists of several layers of sub screens in some places.

How can it be a clone when there are no starlanes?

Armada 2525 (to which this game is the spiritual successor) came out in 1991. Space Empires 1 came out in 1993, so maybe your question is the wrong way round

ORIGINAL: Flaviusx

Nope. Far better game.

Well hate to say it so far I would have to lean towards SEV. Seems ARM is a SEV 5 "light".....might be your thing mind you. Early still so you never no. I have played only about 2 hours. Not all that impressed at the start.

Armada 2525 (to which this game is the spiritual successor) came out in 1991. Space Empires 1 came out in 1993, so maybe your question is the wrong way round

Oh ! this is a good answer BTW !

Thanks ! Might be that in fact SE is a clone of A2526?

ETF, SE is a pretty dreadful game, but mileage definitely varies. I'll stick to Armada, the issues it has can be fixed, SE is beyond salvation in my estimation.

Armada is very different from SE4-5, much less mm oriented. The closest comparison I find for Armada is BotF, the Trek 4X from Microprose in 99.

I agree, I don't see all that much similarity between Armada 2526 and SE, except in a more general sense, but I do see the BOTF comparison.

The SE similarity is a biggie in one respect - population transport.  BOTF and MOO3 convinced me this feature can be lived without, and I prefer doing so as it involves too much player time.  I very much dislike Armada's population transport system.  While this is mostly a personal preference issue, the Armada/Space empires population transport method is especially cumbersome given the example of MOO2's much simpler method.

Is the SEV balance/AI mod any good?

http://www.captainkwok.net/balancemod.php

Just wondering if I should buy the game after all and try it patched & modded? Is it good for singleplayer now? In the forums they say the AI is bad atleast in the regular unmodded game.

Allthough now I have armada, birth of federation ultimate mod, empire at war mods (many) and sins of solar empire 7sins mod to play out so Im not really desperate for 4x games here. Im just looking for good SP 4x games.

Beware of SEV. I had Vista and it ran very, very choppy and slow on that. I haven't tried on Windows 7 yet but I suspect it will still be just as bad. On a happier note, SEIV works just find under Windows 7. [:)]

As far as I know, Space Empires V is a multi-player version of Space Empires IV, with no improvements whatever in the enemy AI's or the domestic AI ministers.

ORIGINAL: Tom_Holsinger

As far as I know, Space Empires V is a multi-player version of Space Empires IV, with no improvements whatever in the enemy AI's or the domestic AI ministers.

Not really, SE4 had has much MP than 5, the difference is that the game engine has been redone (in cheap 3d instead of 2d), some fetaures added, plus races and stuff, amongst which bugs..
SE4 shone because of its huge mod database, there's much less material for SE5, partly because it's harder to mod 3d stuff.