So this is gonna be my first buy in the X series in my gaming life.
I'm hesitating between X3 : Reunion and X3 : Terran War Pack.

I've watched the trailers of TWP but not Reunion's.

What do you guys think? Which one is better for new players of the X series?
thanks!

Terran Conflict has eased how to do missions A LOT so that is a viable way to play and it also has a lot more plots, one for every race, faction and corporation. Compare that to Reunion's one plot and then the Bala Gi missions later on leaving the sandbox play as the main attraction, that is: trading and fighting. The Albion Prelude addon to X3TC has its war and more I do not know (yet. will play it later). Me personnally find Reunion satisfying enough but only with at least the bonus pack mods installed. Oh and in Reunion you cannot capture capital ships, only buy. In X3TC they added boarding with marines for capital ships.

Forgot: The Stock Exchange was added in X3:Albion Prelude. A lifeless way to earn money (honestly, an alternative to cheat-scripting in the dosh).

Terran War Pack = X3:TC + its addon/DLC Albion Prelude

Also, in an earlier thread about the same question everyone but me said Terran War Pack

First off, I've played all of the X3s (and X2, in fact). In essence it's the same base game that has been refined in X3TC and further refined in X3AP. If you ask me, X3AP is the crown jewel of the X3 universe, and its only downside is a lackluster campaign (but even that can be corrected with mods).

X3AP is also the best suited to fully tap into the power of modern systems, as it has a much needed extended view range option which is missing from the other X3 games.

So, in essence if you're in it for the story and you're planning to go through with the campaign, I'd recommend X3TC. If you're aiming for the ultimate learn-it-yourself sandbox experience, go with X3AP. The learning curve will be steep in any case, but ultimately it's worth it if you're into space-sim empire buliders.

Are any of the prior games (before X3) even worth playing for any reason? What's the learning curve for a game such as Terran Conflict?

Only if you're an enthusiast. By today's standards they're outdated both graphically and gameplay-wise when compared to any of the X3 games. That's a tough question. Imagine if you were a rookie to both 4X games and flight simulators and had to learn both at the same time.

When I started with X2, I hadn't played anything similar to it before (well, I had finished Freelancer but that only prepares you for so little of the game). I spent about 2-3 days figuring out how to fly and use the auto-pilot, how to trade, stuff like that. The finer points of the game may take weeks to figure out - then again I'm the kind of guy which doesn't read the manual (at least not from day 1) and likes to figure out things by doing them.

Hell, I'm even running into new things today and I've been playing the games (on and off) for years now. That's part of what makes them so darn interesting.

Sorry to correct your, in general, good English but this spelling was too far off; though means something completly different than tough.
I know my English is not perfect either.

I think part of the fun is in the learning and you do not have to know all to start playing nor do you need a joystick, unless you want one.

No worries, I'm quite aware of the difference, I had just missed it, that's all (I tend to type a lot and very fast so it's not uncommon to see me err :). You missed one too: "completly" :P.

:-D touché
forgot an e

I figured as much. I just picked up a copy of the Terran War Pack. It can't hurt to go with the one that seems to be considered the best of the franchise. Let's just hope I don't bounce off of it too hard when I eventually come around to playing this one. ;)