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Civilization World launches on Facebook, global productivity threatened
Like chocolate and peanut butter ... no, that's too positive. Like meth and heroin, two of the world's greatest time suckers have combined to possibly (and with a hint of dramatic irony) destroy civilization as we know it. This is all to say that Civilization World for Facebook is available now. The freemium app attempts to get you checking Facebook more than you already do, by heaping on the addictive "just one more turn" qualities of the Civilization franchise. Some recently featured videos should give you an idea of what makes this game different from your regular Farmville-esque fare. Your journey into lost time begins on the CivWorld's Facebook page. Don't have a Facebook account? Stay strong, you mighty warrior, for you have resisted what 750 million people could not. %Gallery-127025%
Civ World screenshots and video will conquer your curiosity
The two videos (and gallery) below will give you a good idea of what it's like to play Civilization World, the Facebook variant of everyone's favorite 4X strategy title. Think Civ, with cartoonish looks and more involvement from your friends.
Civilization World walkthroughs kick off with the basics
Beyond the name and developer, Civilization World shares more than a few traits with the series from which it was spawned. The first in a planned series of walkthroughs from Firaxis cursorily details those similarities, just below the break.
Civilization on Facebook aiming for summer launch
Civilization World, the Facebook incarnation of the epic strategy series, is expected to launch this summer. A recent piece by CNN, in which Firaxis emperor Sid Meier called Civ World "the most dramatic stretch" the series has seen so far, as Meier expressed a typical Civ multiplayer game can easily span 12 or more continuous hours, but the Facebook version can start and stop over days and weeks. The last major "stretch" for Civilization -- if you don't consider hex-based boards totally crazy -- was the console-based Civilization Revolution. Despite taking the core elements of Civ and doing a great job of bringing it to consoles, it apparently wasn't good enough for a sequel.
Facebook Civilization game now called 'Civilization World', closed alpha starts Jan. 12
Civilization Network, Take-Two Interactive's first "social network game," will now go by the more global, less techie-sounding Civilization World. The Facebook title is expected sometime in 2011, and a closed alpha test will begin January 12. Interested parties can apply now at the Civ World site, and they'll receive a confirmation email by January 10. Those who register will also receive a "special item" to display in their throne rooms. No word yet if plebs who are late to the party will be able to pay a couple bucks for that item when the game launches. In his public address about the name change, Civ emperor Sid Meier also said that Civ World games will have a "well-defined beginning and end" and players will have "both a final goal to work towards, as well as short-term objectives to achieve as they play. The trophies you unlock with your triumphs will carry over from game to game, and you can show them off in your throne room." Okay, we're intrigued about a Facebook game -- time for some self-flagellation.
Civilization Network for Facebook still in production, arrives 2011
Take-Two Interactive's first "social network game," Civilization Network, will arrive on Facebook in 2011. The release window was confirmed by Take-Two's soon-to-be CEO (currently the company's Executive Chairman) Strauss Zelnick during today's BMO Capital Markets digital conference. As for a glimpse of what Civ addicts are in for, Zelnick stated that we should see the product "relatively soon." Civilization Network's production has been quiet for quite some time, with no update to the game's Facebook page -- you know, the platform the thing is going to be on -- since May. When we contacted 2K Games about a status update last month, we were told the game was still in development and that there would be "more details to come in the future." So, apparently, the future is kinda now.
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.
Report: Civilization Network beta coming in June
The problem with those hollow boxes littering the cubicles at your workplace is there isn't enough juice, enough substance, within to actually run any kind of program outside of Excel, Outlook or--when you're really bored--MS Paint. So if you're at work and don't really feel like working, you're forced to either scour the web for stuff or watch a neat screensaver. Then, there was hope: Civilization Network for Facebook. However, it looks like Civilization Network is still a ways off. Variety reports that the beta for the new Facebook game won't actually start up until around June. This will likely come as a big let-down to fans, as the initial announcement back in October mentioned a hunt for beta testers would be underway "soon." We guess "soon" means "maybe in a few months or something."
The Digital Continuum: Socialize, now
Socialization is dead! Isn't it? Well actually, that's a tough one. Certainly, the perception that socialization is becoming a lesser factor to more and more developers has become the norm among most people. That doesn't necessarily mean they're correct. So, let's examine the general landscape of yesteryear and beyond to see what's really going on when it comes to human interaction in our massively multiplayer online games.
Civilization Network bringing Facebook persistence to Sid Meiers' series
Civilization Network may not exactly be an MMO, but it's the closest a new game in the series has ever come to the concept. The announcement isn't too surprising as we've heard rumors in the past of a potential persistent version of the game being developed. Frankly, it's nice to finally know the pioneering developer's next game. Meier himself explains the general design goal of Civilization Network on the official Facebook page, and it's more or less all about cooperation with friends and family. That's not to say there's no competition either, but the biggest edge a social networking game has is similar to an MMO -- cooperation with other players. We'll be watching this project closely, as the blending of MMO qualities with a series like Civilization is by far abnormal. The next piece of the puzzle is the game's business model, but as of yet there's been no announcement of how Firaxis plans on making any money with the game. You can watch for beta news on the game's official Facebook page, and we highly suggest it.
'Civilization Network' announced for Facebook, arriving in 2010
Sid Meier has announced a Facebook version of the epic Civilization franchise. Dubbed Civilization Network, the game will make its way to the popular social networking site sometime in 2010. The game designer notes on the CivNet Facebook page that the company will be on the lookout for beta testers soon.Meier mentions that the game will offer everything people love about Civ in a "fully persistent environment" and that it'll be "free to play." Coincidentally, Meier's announcement comes soon after Brian Reynolds, who designed Civilization II and Alpha Centauri, took the job of "chief designer" at social gaming developer Zynga. Apparently the two strategy designers see some major opportunities in the social gaming genre.[Via Games.com]
