All the same?

Hmmm. A few reasons why this isn't the case:

1. Different maps play very differently. A small, tight fight in one system over a handful of planets is very different from a large map with several star systems and 100 planets. Map design also influences game experience a lot -- some creative maps create choke points and central areas to fight over, which can give a particular war a very different feel from a differently arranged map.

2. Different factions play quite differently. Each faction has its strengths and weaknesses, and it takes a good deal of playing them, again on various kinds of maps, to get anywhere near mastering all of them, and/or learning how to master one and counter the others. Which leads to ...

3. Multiplayer. The multiplayer aspect, rather than being a sidelight, is where the game shines. But in order to perform decently there, you need to cut your teeth on quite a few maps, getting a handle on overall strategy, factional strengths and weaknesses, and counters.

Yes, a campaign would have been very nice. But to say that it's all the same after one map kind of misses the point of a game like this.

Ok "The Same" might be a bit strong. But it's not giving you anything new. In strategy games campaigns usually gradually introduce new units and progress a story. It makes you want to play the next level.

But as it stands now, we are given every unit. Thats what I mean by "the same". The only thing we are givin is TIME, just how long we want to play is what differs here.

Sins is an RTS (Real Time Strategy) Civilization is only a Strategy Game, the realtime addition makes it able to have a really good stroyline. Just look at Supreme Commander Forged Alliance (And Origional). Im sure many of you out there am fimiliar with it. The point is RST's have really good stories. All except Sins, if sins does manage to get a storyline it will be not a good game but a great game.

I think this game should have a campaign. It has such a great back-story and if they have a lot of missions, maybe incorporating each race. It could not only keep fans interested in the game longer, it could introduce noobs to the finer aspects of the game. I actually had to ask my friends about fleet logistics, capital ship crews, and colonizing planets, which wasn't explained in the tutorial.

Plus they could teach you things like capturing asteroids, star travel, wormhole travel, each race's super-weapon and super-ability, culture, and introduce each race's ships abilities. It would have been a great way to introduce Sins as a whole instead of the whole "learn by yourself" method. Also, it could make new players play all the races and see their advantages and weaknesses so they can pick what race they want to play.

I would have really wanted an Age of Mythology style campaign. Really long, and having you play each race. An obvious story-line would have you start out as TEC fighting the Vasari, then after immersing you in all things TEC, and after lot of good cut scenes, you ally with them and play them, and learn everything about them. Do the same with the Advent, probably fighting a common enemy, like the things chasing the Vasari. (through teamwork, all the races beat them and start an alliance) But this is just off the top of my head and they can probably find better writers than me.

I would just like three seperate campaigns for each race where you fight off the other two, or one where you fight as all races and end up fighting a common enemy, like Kronos in Age of Mythology. As long as they have the cut scenes to tie over the story, like at the beginning of the game, make sure to make each race is shown with their strengths and their weaknesses, Stardock could have had a great campaign. (Once again, I am not a writer and they could have come up with a lot better stuff than me)

They could have made Sins a really great game instead of a great game if they had an exemplary campaign.

The only issue with a campaign is that it could have ended up being like EAW where you ended up preparing for a fight in space only to afterwards have another 15 planets show up for you to conquer.

Starcraft 1.3? Wow. Must have been a big improvement...

I didn't play GC but I do play both Starcraft (which I cannot believe you are comparing it to) and Empire At War/FOC and I can tell you that they are completely different games. Which one is better is another story, though.

Starcraft = legendary RTS period
EAW = rather semi successful fusion of ground and space RTS elements with a Galactic mode thown in to have it all make sense
Sins = Great SPACE RTS getting almost everything right in an open ended game.

What I'd like to see in a campaign is either something like EAW OR SC. A separate campaign for each race. The difference is either have it all in the same time period and with the events intertwined (EAW) or play each race one after the other like 1, 2, 3 (3 being the climax as in SC).