| Galactic Empire | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Brøderbund |
| Publisher(s) | Brøderbund |
| Platform(s) | Apple II, Atari 8-bit family, TRS-80 |
| Release date(s) | 1980 |
| Genre(s) | Strategy |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Galactic Empire is the first game in the Galactic Saga.
This video game launched Brøderbund's lineup of software software. Although this game is little-known today, it exerted a seminal influence on modern space conquest games such as Spaceward Ho! and Master of Orion. Doug Carlston wrote it while working as a lawyer. After finishing Galactic Empire he left his job to begin work for Brøderbund.
Originally written for the TRS-80, Galactic Empire was also ported to the Apple II and the Atari 400/800. A Macintosh port was developed by Cary Torkelson, with permission from Doug Carlston.
Subsequent games in the Galactic Saga are Galactic Trader, Galactic Revolution, and Tawala's Last Redoubt.
The game navigation uses a list of planets with names beginning with a unique letter of the alphabet for easy access. The 'R' key is reserved for 'Return', and 'Q' for 'Quit.' The player has one fleet which travels from planet to planet, beginning with the home world 'Galactica.' Conquered planets can be taxed and produce troops used to take other planets. Each planet has a technology level above or below Galactica standard, which makes it easier or harder to conquer. It takes time to travel between planets to collect taxes and troops to conquer new planets. The player has 999 years to take the galaxy.