Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri is a turn-based 4X strategy game developed by Firaxis Games and published by Electronic Arts for Windows on 9 February 1999 in North America. Brian Reynolds led the project, and he and Sid Meier wrote the first playable prototype. Firaxis itself had been founded by Reynolds, Jeff Briggs and Meier after they left MicroProse.
Development began in July 1996, and the game was announced at E3 in May 1998. Before release, Michael Ely wrote 35 weekly episodes of the story Journey to Centauri. The expansion Sid Meier's Alien Crossfire followed on 20 October 1999 in North America.
Aspyr Media published a Mac version in 2000, and Loki Software released a Linux version in August 2000. US sales reached 224,939 copies by the end of 1999.1
Names and releases
| Region | Title on the box | Platform | Date | Publisher | Src |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri | Windows | Feb 9, 1999 | Electronic Arts | 1 |
| NA | Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri | Mac | Feb 3, 2000 | Aspyr Media | 1 |
| EU | Sid Meier's Alpha CentauriUnited Kingdom. | Windows | Feb 19, 1999 | Electronic Arts | 1 |
| EU | Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri | Mac | Mar 10, 2000 | Aspyr Media | 1 |
| WW | Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri | Linux | August 2000 | Loki Software | 1 |
Also known as: Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack WW1
Box art by region
NA Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: Wikipedia.
Version differences
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ContentAlien Crossfire
The Alien Crossfire expansion adds seven factions, two of them non-human, plus new technologies, facilities, secret projects, native life and a Progenitor victory.1
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ContentPlanetary Pack
Electronic Arts bundled the game with Alien Crossfire as the Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack in 2000.1
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ContentGOG (Mac)
GOG warns that its Mac version is 32-bit only and does not work on macOS 10.15 or later.2
Where to play legally today
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GOG Purchase
How to run it today
GOG's Planetary Pack, with Alien Crossfire, is verified on Windows 10 and 11 and is DRM-free; its Mac version is 32-bit only and does not run on macOS 10.15 or later.2
Reception
PC Gamer's 98% review is its highest score as of 2019, shared with Half-Life 2 and Crysis. The game won the Origins Award for best strategy computer game of 1999 and PC Strategy Game of the Year from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, yet it sold the fewest copies of any game in the Civilization series.1
Sources
Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13
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