BSG1 vs BSG2

[WarRaven]

I'm an old timer so I'll freely admit bias, but I'm troubled this game is based on the soapy disfuntional version of BSG (2) instead of the original (True) version. Nukes and bullets in a space faring race ? Really? BSG2 totally ruined the storyline and lore of the original story. If the producers of the sickenly soapy BSG2 would have done their research properly they would have discovered that the cylons were a creation of an orgainic race called -Cylons - which died out ! They were not created by humans! another dysfuntional re-writre of the true cleaner story line. I would admit the BSG1 show was a bit corny compared to todays dark soapy story style of writting but at least they used proper weapons platforms and "hero based" writing instead of "as the world turns" style wtritting! So I have to say after all of these years of wishing for a good BSG game I'll have to pass (unfortunately) on this dysfuntional version based on the dysfunctional story line. This game can't help but FAIL since this GD is flawed due to the flawed storyline it was based on. Guess I'll have to write my own BSG game.

[Enderminion]

cannons have uses in space combat, they comsume very little power, and are very light weight, and you can shoot interesting shells out of them (semi-armour percing, nuclear, shrapnel) lasers get better the bigger they are, a 23.5m mirrior is better then a 10m mirrior with the same laser being focused by them. Vipers are not nearly big enough for worth while laser weapons

[WarRaven]

Not trying to be critical of anyone who expresses a physics (just the physiscs) answer here but again I have to say again the thinking is in 20th century or maybe even 19th century even. I can't concieve of a space faring race using something as primative as mirrors - after all microwaves are generated in devices that don't use primative mechanical devices such as mirrors and thier waveforms are not far from the same angular velocity as light waves. Klystrons and Magnatrons would be considered very primative to such a race. How can we apply our "limited" knowledge to futuristic energy weaponary. Its like school children appying simple addition to a flow distrubution problem - that thier scientist parents would smile at knowing the problem is better served through a calculus theorem(such as greens theorem for example).

[Aranador]

What we have here is a difference between science fiction and science fantasy. The OP expresses a preference for the latter, with the imagination running wild with the possibilities of technologies so far advanced that it is basically magic that breaks all our current understanding of physics.

Personally - I like both :)

[Cosmic Castaway A90]

Nothing about BSG's lore was "ruined" by the new series, it was a different interpretation on the material from the original series. Classic BSG exists in its own world, and the re-imagined series exists in its own world. They are not bound by one another, so the writers didn't get anything "wrong" when they wrote that the Cylons were created by humanity, they simply wrote their own story with those characters.

As fun and cheesy as the original series is, it didn't go anywhere near the high-concept writing that the reimagined series has. The new version surpassed the original in every respect when it came to it's storytelling. The show explored what it meant to be human, what purpose there is to faith and religion, the flaws of holding onto history that is incomplete, and it showed the viscious cycles of life and death affects any sentient life, be it man or machine.

If you're looking for the world of the classic BSG to be shown again, with its designs of the Cylon and human ships and its focus on lasers/blasters I could undestand that, but at that point, why not just watch the original series again? What would be gained from a remake that stuck so close to the source that it was equivalent to copying and pasting media that already exists?

As for wanting a game of the classic BSG, that wouldn't be easy to achieve either. How do you create the campy visuals and atmosphere of the original series with today's technology? Even if someone actively tried to make something as cheesy as they possibly could, it wouldn't come off with the right tone because they would probably be more than capable of surpassing the effects and acting of the late 70's.

When creating campy universes like the original BSG, or even the original Star Trek, the creators have to be trying their absolute best to create a serious world with the tech of the 60's and 70's. Otherwise it screams "bad" rather than "really good for its time." All media, particularly television, has matured greatly over the course of 60 or so years. Creating new versions of shows such as BSG or Star Trek that attempt to mirror their exact tones and effects would be more of a disservice than anything else.

I'm not saying that there definitely should not be new media that has the style of classic BSG. It has to be the right form of media though, and the creators need to be just right in order to pull it off. Above all else, there needs to be more of a reason to go back to that style than pure nostalgia. If nostalgia (or profitting from nostalgia) is the only reason a piece of media exists, the chances that it would actively hurt the franchise increases exponentiallly. That's when a lack of respect comes into play, and that will damage the lore to franchises more than anything else will.

The classics need to be respected, and their stories shouldn't be completely tossed aside or discounted as worthless. Classic BSG and Star Trek are still incredibly important pieces of culture. But creators can expand far beyond those boundaries and create their own interpretations on those worlds. Allow remakes and new interpretations to distance themselves from their original works. Otherwise, they could end up on a collision course with each other, and both could become ruined. Or even worse, the remake could completely overtake the legacy of the original, and leave it to be forgotten. But, if they are at a safe distance from each other, and the remake respects the classic, they can bounce back and forth and share their success with one another.

[Igorok]

I'm quite young (21), but the first time i saw something related to BSG was "Saga of a star world" and found it amazing. Then i discovered the reboot. And finally, last month I saw all the reboot (including Caprica, Blood & Chrome and movies) plus the original. I have to say the original has aged very bad and has the stigma of being an intended Star Wars rip off (it even used the same designer, Ralph McQuarrie) soft sci-fi/space magic style. Instead, the reboot is unique in the way that its one of the most hard sci-fi series I have ever seen.

Still, i think both are great series. Althoug, to be honest, the original had the best main theme:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACsXSwZB7H8

Its still used in the reboot as the "Colonial Anthem" so I really hope the developers will add it in some future patch/DLC or at least that we will get a mod with it.

If you want an "Original Battlestar Galactica" game, check out this mod: http://www.moddb.com/mods/battlestar-galatica-cylon-empire-at-war
Its still in development, but it might be what you are looking for.

[WarRaven]

Again not trying to be personally critical. Just the definations . Science fiction means Fiction not fact ! and I know of no definition for science fantasy whatever that is. There is no science fact in science fiction. BSG was considered science fiction. The drives in BSG that could go to light speed is fiction not fantasy. The cellphone was considered science fiction until it wasn't. There are numerous things right now such as uses for dark energy and dark matter that verge on the side of fiction today but could become fact once we know more about the Physics. Scientist in llos alamos a decade or so ago in an experiment were able to lase light without the use of mirrors, crystals, or other typical laser components - just an example. Portable Lasers we like led devices we have today themselves were once considered fiction. Just because some people don't understand emerging techologies doesn't make that tech fantasy.

[Igorok]

Science fiction has the word "science" attached for something. It mean it intends to be based on scientifical facts. Then, depending on how strict its with those facts, its called to be more "hard" or "soft". If it gets too soft, it starts to enter the "fantasy" area. You can argue that scientific nonsenses might apply to very advanced technology, but then, you also need to take into acount the Arthur C. Clarke third law "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic". For the same reason, some weeks ago I had a discussion wheter Star Wars should be considered as science fiction or fantasy.

For better description of the difference between hard and soft, you have this article about the science fiction hard/soft scale: http://freehauleralcione.com/2015/12/07/scale-of-science-fiction-hardness/

PD: Starships fliying like planes and the need of fuel to mantain an speed on space can't be explained with advanced technology. As can't be explained why Galactica and its convoy seem to travel at sublight speed althoug being capable of traveling between galaxies in mere days.

[WarRaven]

Cosmic Castaway A90 , I totally agree that BSG needed a remake to be contemporary with the newier movie tech and such or don't do it at all. I actually was looking forward to the new series when it came out. But I was sorely disappointed with the dark style writing and I don't agree that the story had to be totally redone in that "smash all of your faults in the audiences face every 5 minutes" approach. I might just relate to the original starbuck and company characters better but I thought they did explore those characters (without the day time soap opera approach that BSG2 had). I was totally disappointed in the technology remake and the story / lore remake. To me its the same criticism that many people have of the stargate series as compared to the original movie I guess. BSG was corny but to us old farts that had to put up with really corny crap like ... do I say it...Adam West as batman? Lawerance welk, etc.. BSG1 was good watching!

[WarRaven]

Igorok
actually (with BSG1 anyway) the Battlestar was capable of light speed, just not any of the cillvian ships in the convoy even though they used the same fuel resource.

[WarRaven]

I'm sorry I can't as much as I try except the term science fanasty. Perhaps I'm just riggid mathmatical minded that way, but to me fantasy is wizards and dragons & science fiction is totally un-magical based on therortical concepts or proofs such as Alcubierre's mathmatical proof of a warp drive.

[Larkis]

The dark style writing is exactly what battelstar Galactica means.

Cause BSG start with a GENOCIDE on humans. Both series start with Cylons attacking and destroying the colonies. Millions of people are dead. Every person on the ships lost there familiy.

The new show show how the people try to handle that.

In the old show, they just have fun in a casino right after the genocide and the cylons are just funny robots without any danger.

I just remember a few episodes.

The episode where they go in the casino right after everyone they know died.

The episode where starbuck (i think) "won" a sherrif-medal, and insteat of ignoring it they land and try to help him with his duty.

The episode with asterix where they save children.

The old series feels like the 70er good movie shows where nothing bad happened and all are friends and the bad boys are ugly helpless people.


The new series handle the genocide much bether. Also there are not just single episodes, you have a arc arc where actions in the first episodes also matters in the last episodes.

Maybe you just shoudl give the new series a try and view it with an open mind.

Also dont forget that the news series has a lot respect on the old series and found a way that both series are canon. YOu also have the old cylon models in the new series.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfyNUhomMoU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbKdUacn-tI

Also Michael Hogan is a much much much bether Colonel Tigh as Terry Carter.

And dont forget Admiral Cain. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_q6MsCu6Y7U

[WarRaven]

Actually I did see a most of the episodes (like a moth to the flame) . I'll agree that the acting (in most cases - except odoma ) was better in the new version. The problem I have is I hated the story line, and to me, dark writing means tearing down the heroes constantly "in the sake of being more realistic" I find that dark and disturbing , my generation wanted to look up to our heroes! we knew that they had faults off screen but we didn't want those faults blatenly smashed into our faces on screen 80-90% of the entire episode! Its like hooliwood went into a deep depression. I didn't want to be depressed watching a dreery show. You can say thats more honest, I say its dark, sickly, and honestly more like a horror show. Sizzor hands, Night of the living dead stuff. Boring! I wont even go into the super flawed technology stuff! Odoma was very poorly played! being in the military at one time I know what a leader should be - Odoma was NONE of those things. He was more the town drunk than a leader whoes main purpose in life should be to inspire and lead his/hers troops!

[evilestkhan]

I don't have the game yet, but will at the end of this month..

I'm looking forward to having a epic punch up..

[mcfly666]

The old 30mm viper weapon system were called laser torpedo's' they are capable of quite a bit of damage. A Battlestar's weapons would be many times more powerful than that

"On the TV series, it was seen that this weapon had an exposive effect upon impact and could cause almost any ship to explode if one had a solid lock. Primary explosion was most likely the reactor or on-board fuel tanks being struck during the fight. Given that the gun ports on the Vipers were roughly 30mm, it is likely that the Laser-Torpedo were able to bring at least 1,000cm^3 to its boiling point. If the aforementioned mass was made of iron, with a boiling point of 3,000° C, each individual Laser Torpedo gun would have a power of 12.5 gigaawatts (12,489,028,920 watts), giving them a combined, low-end power output of approximately 25 gigajoules per volley."

In comparison the vipers weapons in the reboot are much weaker, though I think that they would still damage a capital ship as it seems the only way for galactica to take the hit's and still be repairable would be some sort of modular layered disposable armor.

Nukes are a bit different, from what I've read it's safe to assume that a nukes power would be weakened by a factor of 10 in a vacum and the only damage caused would be from direct heat and radiation

[TheDutchGhost]

Hello WarRaven (I had wanted to PM this to you but that is not possible at the moment)

I just saw your post and wanted to respond on your question if there are any games based on the original Battlestar Galactica.

The first possible titles are probably old home computer/console tie ins that just have the BSG brand on the box and title screen so you probably don't miss much by ignoring those.

But there is a Battlestar Galactica game for the Playstation 2 and Xbox that was released in 2003. Unlike this game that is a fighter sim/space shooter game with a single turret level.

It is an interesting tie in title to the new BSG series that was developed by Warthog which setting/universe was a sort of hybrid between old Galactica and new Galactica.
The Cylons for example were created by the colonials as soldiers and workers and not by a reptilian Cylon race but there were also other space faring species in this universe or at least one.

Aesthetics/art style (clothing and such) and the idea of the level of technology was much closer to that of the old BSG series, Vipers, Raiders, and other ships firing energy weapons and missiles, there being plasma cannons and pulsar cannons.

There was also a leading villain who was clearly not human, being somewhat like Count Iblis from the old show who according to the description was a fallen lord of Kobol who has weird telekinetic powers

I would not say that this game was perfect, the difficulty curve sometimes jumped ridiculously up and the controls may not be for everyone, but perhaps this is a game that you would enjoy if you want to play something that has the old Galactica atmosphere.

I rather liked the game at the time and really liked some of the new Colonial and Cylon ship designs the artists of Warthog had come up with.