Just bought a bike, but once I get some more funds at the end of the month, I'll be sure to pick this up.

Doesn't bother me that the free fan-made version isn't included, as it's easy to find. I just want to play the original versions first, as I was unfortunate enough to miss playing these two games. I can play the updated version later.

Very excited to play these game for the first time. Looks to be as engrossing as something like X-Com, which is always a good thing when it comes to classic pc games. I'm planning on playing through the 1st one then going on to Star Control 2, but can anyone give me a ballpark estimate on the length of these games or at least the amount of content in each one? I know SC2 is huge but how huge?

THIS IS MY FAVORITE GAME EVER!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!
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For those who are unfamiliar, a medium lenght summary/review.

For a modern parellel, it's a little like Mass Effect 2 without the first person part and you get to build a fleet to take around with you. There are hundreds of star systems to visit (and you can visit them all) with multiple planets, alien races, alien homeworlds, ruins, and artifacts to explore. You start with a barebones alien vessel and start a quest to free Earth and the rest of the Alliance forces that were defeated by the Ur-Quan Battle Thralls prior to the games beginning.

You visit various stars, gather resources (a little Ala Mass effect 2 but the mechanic is different) to build upgrades, trade for tech, and build fleet ships. Each alien race has a sphere of influence in the galaxy and if you enter it they will intercept you to talk, attack, or trade. Some races are friendly, some are hostile, some you can make your allies, some will always hate you, but there is an over arching storyline to the mass sandbox of a galaxy game. You navigate by flying your mother ship in mainly a 2-d view of the galaxy, but when you enter combat its always 1 on 1 battle from a top down 2-d view. You can select any ship from your fleet to battle, and you can also do just fun 2 person melee against another human (which is actually awesome considering the variety of ships).

The game is basically a giant space exploration/sandbox/plot driven/space shooter game with very memorable alien species. My fave's are the Orz, the Pkunk, and the Traddash. The game starts a little slow as your ship is literally slow as hell, but once you get going it really opens up.


umm.. SC2. lenght... hard to say, because its one of those games you can beat in 5 hours if you know what you're doing, or if you explore every star in the galaxy you'll run like 100 hours. Have fun.

SC1 is really just a tactical overview map with battles, very very different from SC2.

Let me just try to clear up a few misunderstandings regarding The Ur-Quan Masters. It has been referred to in this thread variously as a "remake", an "updated version" and a "3DO-based version". All three are essentially correct, but don't say much about what it actually is.

What it is, is a source port of the game. The port is based on the 3DO code, because the PC code has been lost in the mists of time. However, the differences between the two versions are not very large, and, and this is the cruncher, every feature that differs between the two versions can be configured to use either the PC style or the 3DO style. All the assets are the original ones, so it is not what is traditionally considered a remake. It is simply a hassle-free way of playing the original game, with the added bonus that you get the best of both worlds. For instance, the 3DO version had voice acting, while the PC version did not. You can choose to play with the voices or not, as you see fit. Thus, you can play the game exactly as it was originally on the PC, or you can mix and match the features as you want. And because it is a source port, there is no emulation involved. No DOSBox, nothing.

That being said, I do encourage people to buy the game here, but play The Ur-Quan Masters instead. Here, you will also get SC1, and hopefully send a signal that these games still have lots of commercial value. The original creators have been trying to get permission to make a new game in the series for a few years now. Hopefully, this release will be a step towards that end.

Added to Wishlist :)

Never got around to Star Control . . . but I absolutely LOVED StarFlight I and II. So much. Actually still have both, on my "shelf of honor" for computer games, and I should pick them back up again . . . I think I even finished StarFlight I, but was still just enjoying interstellar trade and the occasional epic battle in StarFlight II without a ton of progress on the main quest line when I last left off.

Those really would fit right in at GOG. They were by Binary Systems and Electronic Arts, back when EA were cool . . . so if EA does get signed, there's totally hope!!

It's sad that nobody is able to replicate interaction like that anymore in games. It's almost as if being a developer means throwing your imagination out of the window. I can only imagine the development process for SC2 having been something like

"Dude let's have a game with cool, impactful dialogue!"
"Okay we'll add these bad guys called the Ur-Quan who will be huge menacing badasses!"
"Dude we're taking things way too seriously!"
*into the game goes every other race*

or

"You want soap opera? We'll give you soap opera! There, now you have soap opera! Not enough? What about comedy? We'll give you lots of it! Satire! Irony! Slapstick! Does that please you lot? Do I see some Lovecraft fans back there? Yes we have acceded to those of you who want factions too!"

Yeah, I sadly can't imagine a modern developer inventing something like the Pkunk for a AAA space exploration title :-(

Never really got into Star Control 1, but number 2 is one of the greatest games in all time in my opinion. The dialogue between the aliens is amazing, being witty and interesting at the same time. The scope of the game is huge too - there are thousands of planets to explore for resources. Ultimately once you know what you're doing it boils down to an adventure game with combat added but it is still incredible. I play it every 2-3 years and enjoy it just as much each time.

For those mentioning the free updated version of SC2, for me the original SC2 is good enough. I don't really like the voices in the 3DO one, much easier to play without them. The original music was top notch too.

For me, SC2 is what GOG is all about - delivering good old classics to a modern audience. This along with Realms of the Haunting has always been 2 games GOG must include in their catalogue, and now they have both in the space of a couple of weeks. Well played GOG, well played.

And that's why I'll be picking this up. I enjoyed the PC version of the game; I'm not interested in the Ur-Quan Masters; as an enhancement (of a different platform of the game, even), it's not the game I once played. To those who enjoy UQM, more power to you--I've never seen a version of SC2 that you could go wrong with, but SC2 was one of the three games I really wanted to see on GOG that I feared they would never get; this bundle makes me quite happy.

Alright, I have to withdraw my earlier statement...

I just fired this baby up and once the intro was rolling and I could hear the music a huge nostalgia bomb explodeted in my chest. I had forgotten how great the music was!

Damn good work GOG! If this keeps up, you certainly delivered on your promise.

yea... I'll probably have to get this just for SC1, I was a little too young to appreciate it when I played, and I do love me some SC2. Not a fan of #3 though... it was missing something I coulnd't put my finger on

See my earlier post. It's exactly the same game, if you want it to be.

Sounds like I should pick it up then!

as a commercial release this is a bit odd, considering Ur-quan Masters is free and enchanted version of SC2. But it is genuine classic, despite SC1 isn't as good as the sequal.

So kudos for GOG for bringing them here just because the fame of these classics will spread further.