Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar
Encyclopedia
Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar is the first expansion pack
to the turn-based strategy
game Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords
. It was released by Stardock
in February 2007, both as a separately downloadable expansion and the combination retail box Galactic Civilizations II: Gold Edition.
, driving the Terrans back to Earth
who then set up an impenetrable defence around the homeworld. The Drengin on the other hand move their attention to the other races conquered. Krindar I'Agohl, leader of the Korath clan, a specialist military faction feared in combat even against the Terrans, urges for the utter annihilation of all non-Drengin species. When few used to survive against the Korath in battle, now none survive at all.
However there is something mysterious about the Korath, they even look different from normal Drengin species, but yet without slavelings the Drengin Empire is weaker, genocide is not their way. You, as the Drengin Dark Avatar, are sent to enslave the universe, find out the truth about the Korath and stop the extermination of it.
However as the Drengin warlords begin to turn on each other, another faction called the Krynn Consulate tries to convert the other races in a crusade to spread its religion.
In the expansion, two races will die, two more will rise.
New features include:
. A retail version of Dark Avatar is available for purchase at retail locations worldwide as Galactic Civilizations II: Gold Edition, which also includes Dread Lords and "Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar".
. Both GameSpy
and IGN
gave it Editor's Choice awards, while UGO
rated the game an A. Reviewers cited the significant increase in customization options, a better artificial intelligence
, and an improvement in graphics quality as decisive factors. GameSpy later named it their Game of the Month for February 2007. Criticism revolved around "uninspired" ground combat, a generic tech tree, and the continued lack of multiplayer support.
Expansion pack
An expansion pack, expansion set, or supplement is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game or video game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, and/or an extended storyline to a complete and already released game...
to the turn-based strategy
Turn-based strategy
A turn-based strategy game is a strategy game where players take turns when playing...
game Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords
Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords
Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords is a 4X turn-based strategy computer game by Stardock...
. It was released by Stardock
Stardock
Stardock Corporation is a software development company founded in 1991 and incorporated in 1993 as Stardock Systems. Stardock initially developed for the OS/2 platform, but was forced to switch to Windows due to the collapse of the OS/2 software market between 1997 and 1998...
in February 2007, both as a separately downloadable expansion and the combination retail box Galactic Civilizations II: Gold Edition.
Plot
The Drengin Empire has conquered most of the galaxyGalaxy
A galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
, driving the Terrans back to Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
who then set up an impenetrable defence around the homeworld. The Drengin on the other hand move their attention to the other races conquered. Krindar I'Agohl, leader of the Korath clan, a specialist military faction feared in combat even against the Terrans, urges for the utter annihilation of all non-Drengin species. When few used to survive against the Korath in battle, now none survive at all.
However there is something mysterious about the Korath, they even look different from normal Drengin species, but yet without slavelings the Drengin Empire is weaker, genocide is not their way. You, as the Drengin Dark Avatar, are sent to enslave the universe, find out the truth about the Korath and stop the extermination of it.
However as the Drengin warlords begin to turn on each other, another faction called the Krynn Consulate tries to convert the other races in a crusade to spread its religion.
In the expansion, two races will die, two more will rise.
New features
On October 9, 2006, Stardock owner Brad Wardell announced that the release of Dark Avatar was being pushed back to February 2007.New features include:
- New parts to re-customize the player's ships.
- Certain species can thrive on worlds otherwise uninhabitable to other races until advancements in terraforming technology.
- Asteroids are mineable and give resources.
- EspionageEspionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
and sabotageSabotageSabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
. - New AIAiAI, A.I., Ai, or ai may refer to:- Computers :* Artificial intelligence, a branch of computer science* Ad impression, in online advertising* .ai, the ISO Internet 2-letter country code for Anguilla...
options. - Diplomatic treaties.
- Visual make-over.
- Mega-events that can be set to intentionally destabilize the playing field from time to time, to keep things interesting.
- Race-specific super abilities.
- A streamlined tech tree that adds a few technologies and groups variations together on the tree view, so that e.g. technologies "Sensors" through "Sensors mark IV" take up one slot instead of four.
- Ship templates.
Release
Dark Avatar is being distributed by electronic download, however one has the option of ordering a disk as well to negate the need to re-download should it need to be uninstalled for whatever reason. Currently all purchase options are priced in US dollars, although international customers can pay using a credit card or a service such as PayPalPayPal
PayPal is an American-based global e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Online money transfers serve as electronic alternatives to paying with traditional paper methods, such as checks and money orders....
. A retail version of Dark Avatar is available for purchase at retail locations worldwide as Galactic Civilizations II: Gold Edition, which also includes Dread Lords and "Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar".
Reception
Initial reviews of Dark Avatar were highly favourable. The game received an aggregated score of 91% from MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. Both GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
and IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave it Editor's Choice awards, while UGO
UGO
UGO Entertainment, Inc. is a website providing coverage of online media in entertainment targeting males age 18–34. The company is currently based in New York, New York, United States. On July 24, 2007 it was announced that Hearst Corporation would acquire UGO Entertainment...
rated the game an A. Reviewers cited the significant increase in customization options, a better artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
, and an improvement in graphics quality as decisive factors. GameSpy later named it their Game of the Month for February 2007. Criticism revolved around "uninspired" ground combat, a generic tech tree, and the continued lack of multiplayer support.
Further reading
- PC GamerPC GamerPC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
#152, pg. 59. - Chat log with Dark Avatar developers at the GalCiv Wiki