Civilization IV

By Sam Waldron

‘80s band Tears For Fears claimed that ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’. I know that I do. And with Civilization IV coming out this summer, it looks like the chance is at hand.

For the uninitiated: Sid Meier’s Civilization is turn-based strategy on a truly epic scale. The basic point of the game, which hasn’t changed throughout the sequels, is to build up an empire from scratch, leading you people from ancient times into the modern era, and, ultimately, to conquer the world. Spanning the period 4000 BC to 2050 AD and playing differently each time, giving it immense replay value, every Civilization game to date has offered a huge number of gaming hours (time you probably should have spent doing other things, but who cares?)

The latest in the series, Civilization IV, makes a bigger leap forward in terms of the visuals than any of its forerunners. Firaxis have opted to use a 3D engine (the ‘Gamebryo’ engine of Sid Meier’s Pirates!), and to animate terrain objects like rivers, in order to make the world seem more alive, and less like it is simply a map. On the downside, though – in my opinion at least – they have gone for a very cartoon-like style, following the vein of Civ III’s animated national leaders.

It’s not just the view of the world that has been upgraded: senior producer Barry Caudill claims that Firaxis have really “ramped up the production values” for Civ IV. There will be movie clips for every Wonder of the World (Civilization II had these as well, but they we dumped for Civ III), and Firaxis have apparently hired voice actors for parts of the game as well.

While the basic principle of Civilization has remained constant throughout the series, each new title has brought new ideas and gameplay changes as well as graphical overhauls. Civ IV will continue with the system of culture and the tradeable resources of Civ III, but it also introduces new game concepts, like religion. Interestingly, the fixed Government types have been abandoned in favour of a system whereby you customize your regime based on a number of different ‘civics’, with choices hinging on five main areas: government, law, labour, economy, and religion.

Numerous other tweaks are promised as well. There will be slightly fewer types of military unit in Civ IV, but there will be more strategy involved in waging wars – Firaxis say they are trying to move players away from simply stacking up piles of their best unit. Rivers can now be used as trade routes, just like roads. Scientific progress will be freer than in previous Civ titles, as it is no longer necessary to research every technology from one era to move to the next. This means that you can forego whole avenues of advancement, concentrating on non-military technology, for instance. The 18 different playable civilizations will be largely familiar to Civ veterans – although there will be some additions to the usual line-up, like the Mali.

Unlike its predecessors, Civilization IV will be multiplayer capable right out of the box. Obviously Firaxis have learned from the criticism of Civ III, which controversially left multiplayer gameplay until its first expansion pack.

Civ IV promises to be a worthy addition to the franchise. It is certainly the prettiest Civ game so far. Hopefully it will also prove the most enjoyable.

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