So much to blog about, so little time

Our regular readers have probably noticed a marked decline in post quantity lately, as everyone here at SRV is currently struggling with a massive set of overlapping deadlines which have left very little time for even playing computer games, much less blogging! On the other hand, these same regular readers have probably also noticed that we've finally upgraded to the new version of Blogger, so you should expect some gradual changes through the spring and summer as we discover Blogger's new features.

Some quick news items of note:

• The extremely exciting news that another expansion pack for Civilization IV entitled Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword is on the way. This pack will apparently include a number of general upgrades to the core gameplay. The Civilization Fanatics Forum (among others) has a more lengthy product description here. Although it appears like this pack won't address some of what we regard as the most glaring omissions from Civ IV (namely, the lack of "Future Tech" items like solar system space colonization and ocean floor resource development), all of the changes we've heard about are extremely welcome. As you might expect, we're the most excited about the new changes to the space race victory, which definitely seem like a return to the Civilization II style of space race victory.
  
• A new version (0.62) of the timeless classic The Ur-Quan Masters (aka Star Control II) has been released, including support for multiplayer SuperMelee! Go download it! Still no word on whether Activision has greenlighted a proper sequel yet, though.
  

The Real Star Control III: Update

Some recent news on the Star Control front. First, the long-overdue news: the soon-to-be-departed Computer Gaming World finally inducted Star Control II into its Hall of Fame. Talk about sneaking one in at the last minute. It's 14 years late, but better late than never, I guess.

Second, the incomparable Pages of Now and Forever brings news from Toys for Bob, the current home of famous Star Control developers Fred Ford and Paul Reiche. Apparently, they have received approximately 3000 messages supporting a new sequel to Star Control II after their initial plea for support earlier this year, and they still want a new PC version of Star Control to be their next game.

There's still time sign the petition supporting a new Star Control here, show your support by emailing Toys for Bob at the address here, and of course play the best PC game ever made yourself by downloading the open-source Star Control II release The Ur-Quan Masters by from here.

Call 1-800-PKUNKRA for a Star Control II Sequel

Hey, here's some good news from The Pages of Now and Forever: The company run by the creators of the original Star Control is interested in doing a true sequel...and may have somehow acquired the legal rights to do it. Alex Ness, a producer at Toys for Bob, is asking fans of Star Control II to either sign an online petition or send him an e-mail asking for a sequel, in order to convince The Powers that Be to get one started. Not sure how much momentum this has, but it's good news nonetheless. The lackluster Star Control 3 was produced by different developers and thus wasn't really that good (although PC Gamer gave it a 90%....). A sequel done by the original developers, Fred Ford and Paul Reiche, would be better--and they've had fourteen years to think about it. I would heartily encourage everyone to both sign the petition and send an E-mail. Star Control II is the best PC game ever made, and its high time that it had a proper sequel.

In other news, a new version of The Ur-Quan Masters, the free open-source release of Star Control II, has just been released, and features a searchable starmap and assorted stability improvements. If you've never played the greatest PC Game of all time, then it's definitely worth the free download.