Startopia :: Education by Design Store

Customer Reviews

Simply Fantastic Fun!

2008-08-09
Hands down, this was one of the best games I've ever played! And I play a TON of games from Call of Duty to Super Mario. You'll get addicted BIG TIME to this game right away. The missions are a lot fun to work through a few will take a little strategy. There is just nothing else out there like this.
You will NOT regret playing this one!

Fun Strategy Game

2008-05-11
I remember getting this game when it first came out and playing it for hours on end. I replayed it in just the last couple weeks, and I remembered how much fun it was and so completely addictive it is!

I do, however, want to mention that this CD is for 95B/98/ME. I have it running on Windows XP, but after a certain point the computer locks up and I can't get past it. I will restart the game and once it gets to the same spot again it locks up again.

I know that MuckyFoot is no more, so there won't be any 'official' updates, but if there was ever a game to be re-released for current software and hardware, this would be the one.

A Great Beginning

2004-12-07
This game is easy to like. The slick graphics and interactive feel make it modern and appealing. The quirky techno soundtrack helps too. The only complaint I can levy is that it's easy to finish all the "training" levels, and go straight to the open ended "sandbox" mode. After you control the entire station, there's nothing else to shoot for!
I bought this game pre-9/11, and I think something must've happened to stopo production on a sequal, or an improved newer version....I mean come on....Sim City got a second, third and fourth chance, and spun-off countless times....why not Startopia?

I love this game... all 10 minutes of it.

2004-04-06
I have to give this game a rating of 4 stars, even if it is short. The game design and camera angles alone are worth it. I played the demo of this game when it first came out, and I remember just playing with the camera features for 10-15 minutes.

In a free play mode this is basically superb RTS world management game. With all the different features you can beat a level in at least 5 different ways.

The missions are great for learning the ropes, however they will only take about 2 days to beat, most of this time being spent in the last 3 or 4 missions.

This wasn't the most disappointing part though, because at the end of the origional missions there appears to be more, but they just do not work, or were a teaser for a never made sequal.

But, back to the positive side. This game's level design is open source, and anyone who can use a spreadsheet (Excel) can modify and create custom campaigns. So, if you've got some hardcore gaming buddies you can keep each other entertained for at least a couple months trading levels back and forth, or you can simply try your hand at game design solo.

With top rate graphics (for it's day) and a new look at an old game format, I have to go with 4 stars.

-- nemo54321

Fun at first but wears off fast

2003-10-25
I'm sorry to say that I got pretty board of this game pretty fast. It was worth about 10 hours of "fun" play time for me, but from then on out it was just too repetitive, and confining. The animations are great, but the gameplay itself was lacking for me, and the storyline was really dumb in my opinion.

Awesome ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

2002-04-16
Startopia takes gamers to a once thriving galactic network of starships, space stations and planets left lifeless with redundant scars of the apocalypse. As stationmaster, your mission is to rebuild the abandoned space stations, reunite the surviving alien races, and restore the old empire.

Great game, if not a little predictable...

2002-02-10
This was a very interesting game. It was kind of like Dungeon Keeper 2 but with more interesting items. I only wish that there could be a wider variety of objects that you could place in the houses and bars. I was surprised at the running speed of this game. Many of the games I have purchased have been as slow as anything, therefore significantly taking away from the excitement of the game. Not this game though... it ran really smooth until I put tons of buildings in my space station, and then it only slowed down a little game. Great Game for those that don't like gory monsters jumping out from every corner. Highly Recommended!

Imbalanced, Monotonous

2001-12-29
The key element to have a successful real-time strategy game is to keep the player busy. In StarCraft and Command & Conquer, players constantly have to scurry across the map in order to maintain their units and building properly. Startopia instead keeps the player waiting, bored, instead of rushing, hoping for a break.

Startopia is a brilliant idea. Ever I thought it was a wonderful idea to make a spaceship simulator somewhat similar to SimCity with a bit of StarCraft combat elements mixed. Yet, whe I first played Startopia I was playing exactly what I had hoped. The graphics were brilliant, and viewing the spaceship very cloesly was a great benefit. The gameplay itself had many different dimensions, including combat, trade, hiring, and create tree unique decks to satisfy the population. Game missions were a pleasure to play, yet not too difficult to handle. Music and sound were a work of art, even the opening cinematic set a humorous tone to the game.

Yet Startopia's entertainment value dwindles as players march into the game further. This is mainly because the game is imbalanced. Players can't make enough money to stay above the artificial intelligence's competition. Instead, after spending my entire treasury, I was forced to wait until a trade ship entered my space port, or my entertainment facilities made a large profit. Thus, Startopia is a great game to play and scratch its surface, but to become deeply involved in it is an exasperating experience.

I would recommend games like Civilization 3 and Empire Earth to those who wish to have an entertaining experience with a game similar to Startopia's gameplay.

Fun while it lasts 2001-11-09
When Startopia first arrived at my house, I eagerly tore open the box and installed the game at once. I had played the demo already and was very impressed, and I was extremely anxious to get my hands dirty with the full version. Everything--the graphics, the gameplay, the theme--impressed me from the get go. Before the day was over, I was hooked.

Basically, Startopia is a city-building simulation, except that instead of a city, you're building a space station. There are three decks for you to dedicate your attention to; the first is like your main level, where aliens can board your station and where the most basic facilities are; the second is the "pleasure deck" where aliens can spend their leisure time. The third is basically a biodome, where you can grow crops and where aliens can get a breath of "fresh" air.

As I already said, the gameplay of Startopia is excellent. The three decks, along with the trading and combat systems, provide for a relaxing and enjoyable gaming experience. The problem with the game is that it simply doesn't have lasting power. After completing the ten single player missions and playing one or two "sandbox" games, where you get to do pretty much whatever you want, the game just isn't that fun anymore. I'm sorry to say this, because there's really nothing wrong with the game; it's very good, but, alas, it's not destined to be a classic.

I still recommend at least trying the demo for this game. It should keep most people occupied for several days and perhaps even weeks (the game, not the demo). After that, it will most likely collect dust for a few years. Then maybe you'll play it again once or twice and finally put it down for good.

Basically, what it comes down to is this: are you willing to buy this game just to be entertained for a week or two? It may be worth the money, it may not. That's for you to decide.

If you're just looking for an ephemeral way to kill time and have fun, Startopia may very well be a smart purchase.

Dungeon Master in Orbit 2001-10-03
When I was buying this game, I kept on thinking of how my copy of the Sims was gathering dust on my shelf. I'd played the demo of Startopia and thought that it was a very humerous, immersive experience. Although there's a heck of a lot going on during gameplay, I get the overall feeling of not really being involved in the whole party. Sure, all the structures and decor has been provided by me, but terrorists plant bombs, electrical blackouts occur and aliens die randomly regardless of how much security, energy or medical resources I buy. Even though you can 'possess' aliens a la Dungeon Master (although it's called shoulder cam), you can't then take control of him and go where you want. Instead, you just get to walk around in circles.
Anyway, a great looking game, albeit a bit buggy, but when the push comes to the shove, I'd imagine that it has a fortnight's appeal (I bought it yesterday after two days worth of demo playing, and I was getting tired of it after a few hours.)