

The twin Viking landers of 1976 were NASA’s first life detection mission, and although the results from the experiments failed to detect life in the Martian regolith, and resulted in a long period with fewer Mars missions, it was not the end of the fascination that the Astrobiology science community had for the red planet. However, the exploration of Mars has been intertwined with NASA’s search for life from the beginning. A really great strategy title.Astrobiology is a relatively new field of study, where scientists from a variety of disciplines (astronomy, biology, geology, physics, etc.) work together to understand the potential for life to exist beyond Earth. And the slew of positives outweigh them anyway. Then finally defeat the oppressive rule of the crown and gain independence. You choose from one of the four major European powers at the end of the 15th century. If you love turn-based strategy or are even slightly interested in the colonial era of history, definitely give this a go. A decade and a half later, we get the same addictive gameplay with updated graphics, a superb point and click interface and a whole medley of great add-ons/tweaks.

Going back, the original 1994 Colonization was already chock-full of unique and innovative design elements. The gameplay remains as compelling a ever, with a wealth of options available for the armchair strategist, so if you're a fan of the genre and don't have this, then rectify this sad fact immediately. There are subtle changes to the mechanics, but everything feels authentic and in keeping with the flavor of the original, while the improvements to things like the visuals are noticeable and much appreciated. Colonization really is a cracking update of the classic original, and a bona fide piece of entertainment in its own right. From there, you can gather resources, develop your town, start trading and all the other sorts of things which will take you towards to goal, including playing at politics and of course, engaging in war with your enemies. Depending on which nation you choose, you get different bonuses which can help you out, but your chief goal to start with is simply to build up your first settlement. The idea of the game is that, as viceroy of one of four nations in the year 1500, you're trying to achieve independence and make it to 1800 without suffering too much from the Indendepence War.


It's as enjoyable as ever though and whether you're a newcomer or an old hand, there's much to enjoy here. Colonization is actually a bit of an oddity as not only is an add-on for the fourth installment, it also stands as a remake of the original game. The Civilization series will always a special place in the hearts of strategy fans, and stands alongside the Age of Empires franchise as one of the best examples of the thinking man's game.
