Master of Orion 3 comes with 16 races (some familiar and some new) and each has its own set of distinct strengths and weaknesses. For example, Humans are great moneymakers and are good at research, but suffer from frequent unrest and tend to heavily pollute any planet they colonize. The squid-like Nommo, on the other hand, are masters of diplomacy, bio-harvesting, and research, but their military is terribly weak. The races (and you may also customize a race of your own) vary greatly in what they can and cannot do -- the best part is that there doesn't seem to be one truly dominant race. Sure, some are more challenging than others, but each has a significant weakness that can be exploited.