Alpha Centauri was awesome, but so were a lot of the other games. Colonization was a lot of fun. Call to Power is the civ game I want a real sequel to. Going way into the future tech was a lot of fun, and being able to build cities at the bottom of the ocean.
Of course, I think the whole franchise has gone downhill since Civ IV, so take my opinion as you will.
Don’t confuse the old school glass flat tops with the induction ones. They use different methods and work very differently even though they look alike.