I finally realised what bugs me about #TerraformingMars. Compared to Kim Stanley Robinson's #MarsTrilogy all the stuff on Earth and most of the social commentary is missing. There is no ecological crisis even alluded to in the cards. All the corporate ass-holery is solely up to the players (and not all that useful often) and generally being ultra-capitalist (whether plant-based or traditional) is the only way to win. There are no alternate victory conditions - not even flimsy ones like in #SidMeiersAlphaCentauri (which did the ecology part much better and got what the books were really about).
Not sure whether this is by design or whether the techno-nerd reading that this is just a technological problem is becoming the mainstream. Either would be sad.
