Civilization-5
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Civilization Anonymous is here to help
At some point, every Civilization player has uttered the words: "Just one more turn." But, we all know that sometimes enjoyment of Civ can turn into addiction. For those who really need to learn that "one more turn" is already one too many, there's the Civilization Anonymous support group. Find an informational video about the organization after the break. Mainline Civilization V on September 21.
Civilization V trailer highlights new features
Trust us: Civilization V is no copy-paste of the previous iteration. It's made abundantly obvious in the trailer past the break, which highlights the fifth entry's overhauled engine, multiplayer features and modding support. This time around, players will be able to access advanced modding tools, Civilization fan sites and even fan-made scenarios, all from within the game. Ambitious stuff, to say the least. Civilization 5 builds a road to retail on September 21.
Preview: Civilization V
There's an email thread from 2K's public relations in my inbox with the subject: "So you want to touch Civ V, huh?" It's an ongoing joke I've got with the company -- how can you get a grasp of the latest entry in the epic Civilization franchise without actually touching it? Every hands-off demonstration we've seen of the game so far looks great, but touching Civ, spending eight hours with it, is the only way to get a real idea of the game players are in for. With that said, here's some of the stuff we saw in the latest hands-off presentation during E3 2010. Although the most diehard Civilization players refuse to acknowledge the console-based Civilization Revolution as a real entry in the franchise, Firaxis certainly took several lessons from the console game and quietly implemented them in Civ V. One such lesson is the user interface, designed by the same person who did Civ Rev's, that cuts or pushes everything it can to the sides of the screen, making the main screen the star, rather than a co-star to the menus. %Gallery-95796%
Civilization V stands the test of retail September 21
Civilization V will charge players to create an empire that will stand the test of time when it becomes available in North America and internationally on September 21 and 24, respectively. After a successful spin on consoles with Civilization Revolution, Sid Meier's epic franchise returns to its PC roots and tweaks the core gameplay -- casting a hex on the game board. Sid Meier's Civilization V will be shown next week at E3 2010 and we'll be sure to kick the tires ... er, the stone wheels -- depends on what era in the game we get to see. %Gallery-87799%
April Fools: Civilization V to feature 'Extreme Diplomacy'
Firaxis and 2K Games today announced "Extreme Diplomacy," a new feature for Civilization V, the upcoming installment of the tired strategy series. In an attempt to get the masses playing the turn-based snore fest, the series will add a fighting game death match arena: "two world leaders enter" ... "one world leader leaves." The victor is said to gain control of the defeated's empire. The publisher has also announced an Über Edition of Civ V, which includes an 8-button joystick "to bring the classic fighting arcade game feel to these Extreme Diplomacy battles." Each faction leader will also have a super move, and we've listed the first six moves to be revealed after the break. Finally, Civilization will have some action!
Sid Meier talks player psychology and the year of Civilization
The "father of computer gaming" gave the keynote at GDC 2010 this past week, and while we really hoped he would tell us a lot about the upcoming Facebook version of Civilization, it got only the barest of mentions during the hour-plus talk. Instead, Meier shared wisdom with the gathered crowd, talking about the lessons he'd learned in player psychology over his long and storied career in game design. First, he talked about what he called the "Winner's Paradox" -- "if you've played Civilization," he said, "you're an egomaniac," since anyone crazy enough to think that they can actually "build a civ to stand the test of time," as it says on the game box, must be pretty full of themselves. And because of that, Meier says his players always believe that if they don't win for whatever reason, fate or the random number generator or the crappy AI must be out to get them. As a result, his policy has become to let the player win -- the threat of punishment is enough to keep it interesting, but in the end, the player should win the game. He also talked about the "unholy alliance" between players and developers -- not only is the relationship beneficial for both parties (players offer their money, developers offer their time and talent), but it's also one of "mutually-assured destruction," as players can break contact with (or even just belief in) the game anytime they feel it's not fun any more, and developers can "really mess up the game, too." Everything in the game, said Meier, should be designed with an eye towards this alliance -- the AI should live to serve the player, the graphics and gameplay should engage imagination, and even options screens and load/save settings should be developed with an eye towards preserving the relationship. Civilization Network was mentioned under a section Meier called "my bad" -- along with the original ideas to make Civ real-time (whoops) and make the tech path random, he said that the CN team had considered letting players give gold to each other on Facebook, but during playtesting, found that players never actually did. He did say that the game is deep into testing currently, and that it will allow co-op, singleplayer, and competitive gameplay, and that it will be interesting whether players play for just "a little time a day" or more than that. At the end of the talk, in reply to a question about where he saw gaming going, Meier declared that "this is the year of Civilization!" With CN coming soon and Civ V due out this fall, we can't wait to send our Settlers out into the world.
Impressions: Civilization V or 'I Wanna Hex You Up'
We already told you that Sid Meier's Civilization IV was finally getting a sequel with Civilization V later this year, and then we showed you the trailer that contained absolutely no gameplay. But now we've actually seen an early build of the game, and we can tell you how hexy it is. That's right, forget about old Civilization games which had four cardinal directions plus diagonals to choose from when moving your units; this installment ramps that down to to six. That's right! Two less directions! It's a brand new game! In all fairness, it is Civilization but Firaxis made plenty of substantial changes to it. Besides hexing it up, they've also added ranged units (think archers, artillery, ICBMs, etc) and taken out the ability to stack units up into an army. Also, only one unit can occupy a spot at any given time, meaning you won't be able to bulldoze your opponent from one hex. They've also built an entirely new engine for this game, meaning you'll see some really nifty stuff ... provided you have a DX11 card and a multicore processor. %Gallery-87799%
Take-Two may delay major 2010 release; L.A. Noire, Mafia, Max Payne and Civ V named
Take-Two's financial results briefing today suggests that one of its upcoming titles could be subject to a delay. "L.A. Noire, Mafia II, Max Payne 3 and Sid Meier's Civilization V are all planned for release in the fourth fiscal quarter [August–October, 2010]," the announcement confirms, "however, the Company's fiscal year 2010 guidance reflects the potential movement of one of these titles into fiscal 2011 [beginning November 1, 2010]." If Take-Two is already adjusting its financial estimates based on one of these titles being delayed, it sounds like more than just potential. Folks have been waiting a long time for pretty much all of these games. Max Payne 3 was already moved from winter 2009 to "late 2010"; L.A. Noire has just been given a expected September date after an extraordinarily lengthy development time; and the very fact that Mafia II is said to release between August 1 and October 31 already represents a delay from its last known release window. That leaves Civilization V, which was just announced two weeks ago, and thus hasn't had time to be delayed yet. This could be its first, people!
Civ V trailer lacks mind-blowing turn-based action sequences
The trailer for Civilization V features what's quite likely the opening cinematic for the game. We can sort of feel 2K Games and Firaxis on the decision not to show in-game footage, as clips of the venerable turn-based strategy game don't really deliver a very sexy initial impact; however, some videos exploring the hextreme overhaul of the map and other changes implemented in the stalwart series' gameplay would be nice for the future. Now to console some of the guys on staff. They were really hoping for Civilization Revolution II this year.
Sid Meier's Civilization V coming to PC this fall
In its latest, unyielding attempt to subvert societal productivity, 2K Games has announced Sid Meier's Civilization V, the latest entry in the venerable strategy series. Set to debut on PC this Fall, Civilization V brings "an astonishing new engine" to the polite, turn-based proceedings and promises to excel the franchise with "the introduction of hexagon tiles allowing for deeper strategy, more realistic gameplay and stunning organic landscapes for players to explore as they expand their empire." Most hexcellent news indeed. "Each new version of Civilization presents exciting challenges for our team," said Sid Meier of Sid Meier's Civilization fame. '"Thankfully, ideas on how to bring new and fun experiences to Civ players never seem to stop flowing. From fully animated leaders and realistic landscapes, new combat tactics, expanded diplomacy and shared mods, we're excited for players to see the new vision our team at Firaxis has brought to the series." And expect to share your vision with others, as 2K notes that Civilization V will feature an "extensive suite" of community, modding and multiplayer components. It just wouldn't be an accurate model of civilization if you couldn't diplomatically destroy your online friends. %Gallery-85934%
