Building is big. Just as everyone loves LEGO, the next huge craze might just take place in space--in a strange galaxy known only as Star Peace.The game works in a similar way to Sim City, where you work to establish a small town in order to please computer-generated residents. But the actual gameplay in Star Peace is quite different to that of its Sim predecessor, relying not only on your own economic acumen, but also that of other players.Once you've obtained a visa, you begin with the healthy sum of $100m. Of course, these riches soon dwindle away once you've built research factories, warehouses and chosen an industry in which to specialise on one of the many planets available. The key to this game, however, is its interactivity, as Star Peace is played entirely in online worlds containing hundreds of players world-wide.As well as allowing you to talk openly in chat rooms and to e-mail other players who are based near your territory, you can form alliances with them, undercut the computer's engineering firms, and use your allies to defeat your enemies--and eventually, maybe even help you run for mayor. The learning curve is quite steep, but the other players online are mostly friendly, and all are happy to provide advice to first-time would-be tycoons.The strengths of this game lie in the art of negotiation required, and the incredible wealth of options that are on offer. As you become more expert, you can specialise in anything from pharmaceuticals to fast food, TV programming to toy shops, in order to accumulate your assets. Intriguingly, this is just the start--the game currently available is labelled as Episode 1 (Rise of the Tycoons). Who knows what's to follow? --Andrew Losowsky