Alpha Centauri Quotes: Intro and Tech's 0-24
uvwar3 HN recommenders · recommended in 3 months, 2016–2020
other · general · evergreen · 2016–2020 on HN
Audio clips of the intro and technology quotes from the 1999 strategy game Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, in male and female voices, covering techs 0 through 24.
HN fans share it as a way to hear the game's philosophical, sci-fi quotes in sequence.
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4 comments from Hacker News
The special projects videos in that game are some of the best science fiction creative work ever made, IMO. Also, something I still think is predictive and sends chills up my neck, "as the Americans painfully learned in Earth's final century" (presumably the 21st): link Text of the whole spoken: "As the Americans learned so painfully in Earth's final century, free flow of information is the only safeguard against tyranny. The once-chained people whose leaders at last lose their grip on information flow will soon burst with freedom and vitality, but the free nation gradually constricting its grip on public discourse has begun its rapid slide into despotism. Beware of he who would deny you access to information, for in his heart he dreams himself your master." -- Commissioner Pravin Lal, "U.N. Declaration of Rights"" All special projects video text, starting with 0-24: ▶ this video Cutscene vids start here: link Although a bit dated, I still don't see this kind of intellectual quality in most games. Paradox Interactive's Stellaris is about the closest thing to a spiritual successor to SMAC, but it's also its own beast and next-gen 4X.
Some how Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri was a 4x game that had one of the most interesting stories / atmospheres in video game history, even if it was just from a few clips and quotes. ▶ this video
Some thoughtful sorts put all of them into a series of YouTube segments. I find them to be timeless, and quite heady when listened to in sequence. ▶ this video
Yeah it did. You can find the technology quotes on youtube: ▶ this video > “He held his arm too stiffly, and so was thrown back repeatedly, until at last I seized his forearm and snapped it back against itself. His training suffered while the arm healed, of course, but I felt this was a lesson he must learn early, and well.” I know that my brother had difficulty with this quote. The mental image of someone's arm being jui-jitsu'd off is pretty powerful. My brother would click "OKAY" as fast as possible to avoid listening to the quote.