Bigbang is a simple, menu driven program. It's simplicity hides some really nasty capabilities that can give your players the challange then they crave (even as they moan about how nasty you are).
Unfortuneately the TWSYSOP.DOC file from Martech gives you almost no information on the use of BIGBANG.EXE. I intend to forward a copy of this web page to them after I've gotten some input from other sysops.
All figures are quoted for a 1000 sector universe, it's easy enough to factor from this size to the universe size you wish to use.
A) Universe Size - in a registered game of TW2002 V3 (without the gold extensions, haven't got back my Gold reg as yet) universe size can be varied between 100 and 5000 sectors. For some reason every game I've seen in the last 4 years has been 5000 sectors - which is totally ridiculous. Why not a game of 4444 sectors? Odd sized games tend to throw even good players for a few days. Sure they'll get used to it - but remember that you are dealing with sharks, not humans. Be merciless.
B) Maximum Course Length - choices range from 20 to 255 sectors. The longer the max course length, the "larger" the universe. Bigbang fills up less of the sector warps, so you have more 2 and 3 warp sectors, instead of 6 warp sectors. Uping the Universe "size" also causes more "bubbles" to be formed, which players absolutely love. I like varying this wildly from game to game, going from 20 to 255. It keeps them on their toes, and a 20 max course length gives you a nice small universe where there's no where to hide... Remember, if the players like things too much, you probably haven't made the game challenging enough.
C) Maximum Possible Star Ports: This is the number of ports in the game. The total number, allowing for players to build some. The percentage figure displayed to the right is ports/sector. Changing this figure can have major effects on the game, however it has to be used in conjunction with "D". Note that you enter the percentage, note the number of ports.
D) Initial Star Ports to Build: This is usually set at 380, or 95% initial port density (for a 1000 sector universe). This allows the players to build 20 ports (more if ports get destroyed). I prefer dropping this figure to 348 ports (87% density) to allow the players to build their own ports. This has two effects. First it causes the richer players (those who can afford to build ports) to burn cash. Second, it gives the game an extra dimension tactically.
E) Maximum Number of Planets: This figure is very important. With the advent of new planet based tactics, the acquisition of planets is a major aim of many players. Planet Trading, Mega Robbing, Planet Bombing, etc. all depend on the availability of planets. Set this figure low, and you'll have a really bloody game on your hands (especially if you set photons to long durations, like 30 seconds - see TEDIT for notes on this). Set the figure high, and you'll have planets all over the place. The players most inconvenienced by a lack of planets will be the evils. Goods can hide in Fed Space, Evils have to have a L3 or higher citadel to be safe.
F) Two Way Warp Density: This has effects on the complexity of the universe. The lower this figure is, the more one way warps the players will encounter. This has implications for paired port trading, SST, SDT, SSM, & SDM, etc. I prefer a complex universe - even the experts have to work harder. If you want a really insane game (NO two way warps at all, see TWLAVA in the Sysop Utils page).