No One in the 90s Expected This as Our Future

Author

Stephanie Liu
January 31, 2025

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Welcome to “Siliconera Speaks Up,” our newsletter for the site! This’ll be a summary of the past week’s anime or gaming news, a little reminder of things to come, and our insight on what games you should pick up next. Without further ado, let’s get into it!

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I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seeing a lot about Civilization VII lately. Every time I open up Steam, I get an ad for it. Every time I sit down to watch a YouTube video on my Switch (which sadly does not have AdBlock), I get an ad for it. I get it, Firaxis! I’ll play Civilization VII. To prepare me for the endeavour of constructing a civilization that’ll stand the test of time, I started playing some Civilization V again in my spare time. It was a bittersweet moment when I finally finished building the last bit of my rocket ship and installed it, and scored myself a science victory. My civilization was so beautiful and perfect… I wanted to keep on playing in space.

Actually I can if I wanted to, provided that I have Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri. This game came out in 1999, and was really well-received by critics at the time. While it plays like the mainline Civilization games, Alpha Centauri stood out for its hard science fiction plot, unique leaders with their own ideaologies and factions, and voice acting. Its message of humanity’s progress and future was an inspirational one, and I highly recommend anyone who can get this game to play until the end.

Of course, it’s not without its flaws. No game is perfect, after all. Alpha Centauri could start getting tedious in the late game when you have a lot of cities to micromanage. The combat and warfare were the weakest parts, and I don’t think that this was supposed to be commentary. I think that the programming for the game just dropped the ball a little there. Nowadays, I feel like Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri is a game that you would play for the plot, rather than the gameplay itself, which is horribly outdated for 2025.

While we’ll likely never see a sequel or remake of Alpha Centauri due to issues of ownership, you can at least get the game on GOG if you’re interested in trying something out before Civilization VII comes out.

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Top 10 Stories From the Past Week

  1. Sony Will Stop Producing Blu-Ray Discs in February 2025 - Going full digital and losing physical media on the way is pretty bad for future preservation.

  2. See the 50th Anniversary My Melody Squishmallow - Anything small and round is bound to be cute.

  3. FFVII Sephiroth Song “One-Winged Angel” Is in Louis Vuitton Show - Sephiroth is haute couture. Who knew?

  4. Here’s the Palworld Future Roadmap and Popularity Poll - You can also send in any feedback or requests you have when filling out the popularity poll.

  5. Genshin Impact Lantern Rite 2025 Rewards Shared - This year, we can get a free Liyue character (including new girl Lan Yan) and a free skin for Xiangling.

  6. Giant Cinnamoroll Plush Returns to Build-a-Bear - Exceptions to the above “small and round things are cute” rule includes when something is GIANT and cute.

  7. TeeTurtle Reveals Valentine’s Day Sanrio Reversible Plushes - Perfect for a significant other, or for yourself.

  8. PSN Accounts Becoming Optional for PS5 PC Game Ports - This rule went into effect on January 30. While you won’t NEED to sign in anymore on some PC ports of PS5 games, doing so will net you some exclusive in-game rewards.

  9. Buy a Dino Crisis 1 and 2 PC Bundle at GOG - This is part of the GOG Preservation Program, and it’s really more important than ever that we don’t let a lot of retro classics become lost media. We have the technology to do so.

  10. Trump Taiwan Chip Tariffs Would Affect Games, Phones - Just not a great year so far for NVIDIA.

Upcoming Games

  • Rift of the Necrodancer - Switch, PC (February 5)

  • Civilization VII - PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, macOS (February 11)

  • Urban Myth Dissolution Center - PS5, Switch, PC (February 13)

  • Trails Through Daybreak 2 - PS4, PS5, Switch, PC (February 14)