Talk:Civilization (computer game)

From Academic Kids

When we have a Civilization III article, we should move the link to the Civ III website to it. Anyone want to take a stab at writing that one, along with all the changes between it and Civ I and Civ II? Also, we should come to a consensus on how to name the versions. Should we name them with arabic numbers (i.e. Civilization 1, 2 and 3) or with roman numerals (i.e. Civilization I, Civilization II, etc.) like the series does? Currently it's represented both ways in the article. I lean towards the roman numerals since that is the way the series depicts them. -Frecklefoot

I think using Roman numerals is better. The official web-site seems to prefer Civilization III but Civ3, but the article doesn't use the abbreviation. In any case, I have changed all the Arabic numerals to their Roman equivalents. Ambarish

---

Early in the game, the player's towns may be harassed periodically by "barbarians", units with no specific nationality or leader.

Is this really correct? I vaguely remember coming across some way in Civilization II of seeing them as being called names like "Goths" or "Vandals" or something like that. Crusadeonilliteracy 05:57, 3 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Although the barbarians are given the name of a tribe, it's irrelevant, as you cannot conduct trade or diplomacy with them nor do they own cities. As such, the quote above is substantially correct, IMHO. --Ambarish 21:32, 3 Feb 2004 (UTC)

In the original Civilization they are just barbarians, maybe it was changed in Civ II and III. They can own cities in Civ I, but only if they capture them from someone else (and then they start producing a lot more annoying barbarian units...) Adam Bishop 21:36, 3 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Ah, I'm afraid I've never played Civ I. In Civ III, barbarians own camps, which spew units. AI/Human military can destroy the camps and gain some gold. As such, a barb camp is a barb camp, and it's lable (tribe name), which appears once it's destroyed, doesn't mean anything. --Ambarish 23:29, 3 Feb 2004 (UTC)

In Civ2, barbarians can capture cities and make scientific advances plus produce units. They're not very good at it though. I suspect many things were only half-finished in that game, such as the horrible terrain graphics Crusadeonilliteracy 14:30, 5 Feb 2004 (UTC)

I wasn't aware that any of the Civ games had been released for Linux (Call to Power was not a Microprose/Firaxis game).

Civilization wasn't ported to Linux, so I removed it.

Civilization's introduction

What has happened to the intro's text? And is 'movie' really the correct term to describe it?

As I recall, it was axed because it may be considered copyvio and it is not essential to the article's text. I don't think it'd be considered a copyright violation, myself (it is almost certainly fair use), but I certainly don't feel the text was necessary, so I'm not inclined to restore it. I haven't seen the introduction for the PC version, only the SNES version, so I don't know if "movie" is the right term. I think it's doubtful, though. - furrykef (Talk at me) 11:03, 14 Mar 2005 (UTC)

Perhaps a new article for the text or possibly a link to a source which has it? The PC intro was a "slide show" with some palette animation - I'd call it merely intro not intro movie. (for that matter...and completely irrelevant here...there's no article for intros, limited demos, here)

Civilization

One of my favorite pc games. This article should also list similar games that were/are not produced by Sid Meier (I remember at least one, but forgot the name). Decius 07:07, 17 Apr 2005 (UTC)

---

Strategy Guide review

Why is there a glowing review (advertisement) for a civilization strategy guide on this page?

Good point. It should be NPOV'ed and moved to an article on the guide itself. It doesn't belong on the article about the game. — Frecklefoot | Talk 17:48, May 12, 2005 (UTC)

I got sick of it, it is hopelessy POV, so I moved the content here:

==Books==

• Rome on 640K a Day by Johnny Wilson and Alan Emrich, Prima Publishing ISBN 1-55958-191-3

By far the most useful and entertaining of all the strategy guides published, (even the title offers a taste of the humor the reader will enjoy throughout the book), it is a well researched guide and provides a wealth of information on actual formulae used by the software to perform various calculations. Knowing the EXACT method that the computer uses to perform a specific function or feature allows the player to optimize that particular area of their gameplay and produce more efficient results. The prolonged discussion with the development team and getting the "inside" information on the game practically guaranteed that the book would remain superior to all later competition.

In a game with thousands of details and decisions requiring constant reassessment in order to derive maximum benefit to the player in accomplishing both the player's personal goals as well as the supposed "point" of the game, such information is vital in making sensible choices and adds immeasurably to the player's skill and thus, their experience of enjoyment of the game. The game is a practical demonstration of the principles of "compound interest", in that all effects can potentially be magnified to several tmes their intitial size, giving the player that practices micromanagement skillfully an unbeatable advantage in dealing with any and all competition. No other strategy guide has so effectively provided as great a percentage of useful and directly implementable information as this one. If you were silly enough to limit yourself to purchasing only ONE such manual besides the one provided with the game, this one would be it!

Interestingly, the book is marred with several dozens, if not hundreds, of typographical errors. An early effort by Prima Publishing, this guide added so substantially to their revenues and reputation, that the company clearly modified the direction of their publishing efforts to focus more closely on the computer gaming industry. Though annoying, the errors do not seriously mar the work, as the information presented more than compensates for the lack of perfection.

This benefit has an interesting feedback effect, in that by allowing players to devise more efficient strategies, they then taught other players what they knew (perhaps only unintentionally by example at times), and this then caused an even greater popularity for the game, producing yet more revenues for the software publisher, inducing them to continue to produce even more features and versions of the game, which then continues the cycle. It is worth noting that the game itself offers unexpected benefits to the player, in terms of practical lessons applicable to dealing with society and other people in general.

While only covering version 1 of Civilization, this guide would nevertheless be useful and informative to players of ALL versions of Civ, if for nothing else, the history of the development of Civilization and general priciples of skillful gameplay.

Clearly a labor of love, these two game masters have provided an example of what goes into a successful strategy guide of a successful game.

Do with it what you like, but please don't put it back in the article. It could be a basis for an article on the book itself, but needs a lot of NPOVing. — Frecklefoot | Talk 17:58, Jun 13, 2005 (UTC)