Utopia: The Creation of a Nation
| Developer: Celestial | Graphics: |
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| Publisher: Gremlin | Sound: |
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| Year: 1991 | Difficulty: |
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| Genre: Strategy | Lastability: |
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| Number of players: 1 | Rating: |
8/10 | |
The Galactic Senate of Whatchamacallit has chosen you, Commander Pacharelli, to lead the colonization campaign of the Rhebus system. Ten cozy planets, prime location, great neighborhood vibes, a colourful assortment of extremely hostile alien races, and, oh yes, plenty of fixer-upper work required! Do you sign on the dotted line?
It’s essentially a Sim City in space, with a militarized twist and an isometric 3D look reminiscent of Populous. There are ten levels (one per planet). Thankfully, each level is quite lengthy to complete, and the difficulty scales exponentially!
The basic idea: freely build your city, buy and place structures, manage resources and finances at a glance, and meet the needs of your colonists (air, food, energy, jobs, and yes, even entertainment)—all while keeping them safe. Your main goal (besides surviving the constant battering from your aggressive neighbors) is to raise your inhabitants’ “Quality of Life” (Q.O.L.) above 80%. It was hard enough keeping everyone happy as a mayor in Sim City, but just wait until the missiles start raining down on your head!
To defend yourself, several options are available: compulsively planting defense turrets, deploying tank patrols, and indulging in a bit of espionage. There’s even a system for semi-automated vehicle movement using ground markers—an early nod to artificial intelligence and pathfinding (does that word trigger anyone else’s anxiety?).
In essence, the gameplay isn’t too different from typical strategy games: organise, plan, fight. The main distinction lies in its execution, which is quite cleverly designed. It’s a bit of a shame, though, that you’re limited to defense, as the enemy base remains perpetually invisible and untouchable…
An expansion disk, Utopia: The New Worlds, followed the next year with ten new scenarios. This was succeeded by K240 (1994), which later got a remake: Fragile Allegiance (PC-DOS, 1996).
For a spiritual successor, check out Space Haven, available in early access since 2020.
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