We weren't able to nail down Brian Reynolds for an interview before we finished our preview, but the designer of Alpha Centauri was kind enough to answer a few questions for us after the fact. Reynolds answers a few tough questions, including why he decided to restrict gameplay to one planet, why he chose a near future rather than a far future setting, and how he would respond to critics who think his game might just be another Civilization II.

GameSpot: How long have you had the idea for Alpha Centauri?

Reynolds: I've had something kind of percolating ever since around July of 1996, back when Sid was working on the early versions of Gettysburg. So many of our previous games have been history based, which was certainly a strength, but I wanted to try my hand at some science and science fiction. One of the best parts of designing games like this is getting to dabble in different fields. So I got to take off my "historian" hat and put on "science fiction writer," "astronomer," and "philosopher."

GameSpot: Was this idea something you brainstormed with Sid?

Reynolds: Not particularly, although we did talk about it. For our central game design ideas and topics, Sid tends to come up with his ideas and prototypes and I come up with mine; most of our collaboration occurs in the gameplay and game-balance process after a prototype is "in play." We tend to spend the first month or so of a project shut up in our offices bringing the initial prototype together. I see your next question scrolling up, and it's related, so I'll continue there.

GameSpot: Why do your games carry Sid Meier's name? Does Sid help in the design process at all?

Reynolds: So basically you're asking me, am I the Bernie Taupin of the computer gaming industry, or McCartney to Sid's Lennon, or just what the heck is going on here, anyway? And the real answer is we have absolutely no idea either, it's just something we've always done. If you like, think of it as a stamp of approval, saying that we Firaxis guys all believe in the same game design philosophy, first articulated by Sid and now practiced by us all.

And to answer the second part of your question, yes, we both collaborate a great deal on each other's products. Sid plays my games, and I play his. Sid is a radical innovator, thinks outside the box, and has, I suspect, the highest IQ of anyone I've met. I think inside the box, but I can hold the whole box in my head all at once, and I'm good at taking a comfortable genre and really nailing it to the wall.

Next: A look at the changes and additions to basic gameplay