When Firaxis was assigned the formidable task of creating a sequel for 1996's epic strategy classic; Civilization II, some were skeptical of their ability. Creating a true sequel to such an awesome strategy game was a tall order to say the least.
Yet Firaxis pulled it off well. Very well infact.
Civilization ... Read review
Sid Meier's name is synonymous with outstanding games, particularly turn-based strategy ... more
games. From the originalCivilizationtoColonizationtoAlpha Centauri, Meier has been behind some of the best games ever made. Now we can addCivilization IIIto the l...
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Advantages: Many improvements over its predecessor. Disadvantages: Does hog CPU & RAM, especially later in a game.
When Firaxis was assigned the formidable task of creating a sequel for 1996's epic strategy classic; Civilization II, some were skeptical of their ability. Creating a true sequel to such an awesome strategy game was a tall order to say the least.
Yet Firaxis pulled it off well. Very well infact.
Civilization as such possesses no plotline, instead gamers are given control of one civilization, and during the process of the game ... ...the rival AI controlled civilizations.
Yet the sheer amount of Civilizations to choose from, and the factors which set them apart is vast, this is but one of the many additions Civ III has to offer. For example, England is a Commercialist and Industrial civilization, these traits affect starting technologies, building speeds, and in the case of Seafaring, the chance of your early boats sinking in dangerous waters. Some Civs are more aggressive ... more
When Firaxis was assigned the formidable task of creating a sequel for 1996's epic strategy classic; Civilization II, some were skeptical of their ability. Creating a true sequel to such an awesome strategy game was a tall order to say the least. Yet Firaxis pulled it off well. Very well infact.
Civilization as such possesses no plotline, instead gamers are given control of one civilization, and during the process of the game must vie for military, political, cultural and social dominance over the rival AI controlled civilizations. Yet the sheer amount of Civilizations to choose from, and the factors which set them apart is vast, this is but one of the many additions Civ III has to offer. For example, England is a Commercialist and Industrial civilization, these traits affect starting technologies, building speeds, and in the case of Seafaring, the chance of your early boats sinking in dangerous waters. Some Civs are more aggressive than others, and each possesses a different leader model during negotiations and diplomacy.
The game begins during the year 4000 BC, your fledling Civilization comprises of just one city, your capital, each time a game begins, a map is randomly generated, this does a lot to assist the overall lifespan of the title as every game is different from the next. The game progresses in turns, in which you must move your units, assign construction processes, and so on. As the years go by, you must gradually expand, build new cities, look after your current towns, and begin to construct a strong military.
Another key component of Civilization that this edition has expanded on is the income system. Each turn your Civ gains revenue in the form of gold, as the ruler you must allocate your gold to one of three sectors. Your treasury, sciencific research, and luxuries. The treasury is the amount of cash available for you to spend through building projects, expanding your military, or indeed within negotiations with other civilizations. If your still a little short, tax collectors can be employed to satiate your monetary needs. The more cash invested into science, the faster new discoveries, or "techs" will be gained. Technologies enable many things, new structures, updated military/civilian units. On that note, the game is divided into four "ages" : Ancient times, Middle Ages, Industrial and Modern. If your not satisfied with the amount of science research going on you can hire scientists in towns to further increase the science output.
Technology is presented in a tree, which has indeed become more complex since Civ II, with some techs taken away, and some added. Lastly, theres the luxuries option, the more invested in luxuries, the happier the populace of your cities will be. On that note, when the inhabitants of your towns and cities become unhappy, a revolt can break out. This halts any income and construction projects, so naturally its wise to invest a portion of your income in luxuries. Entertainers can be hired to ensure residents remain contented. The most notable change Civ III introduces is culture, culture is measured in each individual town. The higher a town or cities' culture level, the bigger its borders will be. Culture can be expanded with certain structures, the special "Wonder" buildings, and just the passage of time. The culture system allows for an organized border system, and the higher your culture, the better other civilizations favor you. If your combined culture level reaches epic proportions, other civilizations admire you. This is beneficial during times of war, as some enemy cities will even pledge alliegence to you!
Another major factor which influences civilization development (particularily military development) are the natural resources. Resources are essential for certain military resources, and can even provide a decisive edge during war. The resource must be within your borders, also a colony/road to each resource leading to one of your towns is necessary to reap the benefits. A good example would be how Iron allows the construction of the Swordsman unit, an effective military unit. If another civilization has no Iron, they are stuck with the rather inferior Warrior unit, which can can be defeated with ease at the hands of your swordsmen. This is useful, as war in Civilization is purely chance based, generally, technologically superior units have a much higher chance of success against a more primitive division.
Luxury resources also occur on the globe, Ivory, Incense, Furs, Spices and so forth, these resources directly effect the mood of citizens. Put simply, the more resources you have, the more happy your citizens will be, as with natural resources, these luxuries must be within your borders and roads/colonies are needed to reap the benefits. The aforementioned diplomacy function is yet another key part of the gameplay Civ III offers, sooner or later you will encounter rival Civilizations. You can enter trade discussions, and may trade resources, techs, money, even cities. In times of war however, the Civilizations you are currently battling with will refuse to speak to you for awhile, and all you can trade for is peace. At the opposite end of this spectrum, you can form alliances, mutual protection pacts, and so forth. Graphically, Civ III looks excellent, the colourful textures used on the map display screen, mountain ranges, deserts, jungles, seas all present huge amounts of detail , your cities visably grow, and these too fit in well with the world display screen. Units move seamlessly across the landscapes, they too present an awesome amount of detail, occansionally shuffling. Battle animations too look great, archers rain arrows upon their foes, tanks lurch backwards in a massive recoil upon firing, and so on. The box-based setup aswell as other graphical perks (the temple screen, city overview screens etc) are finely done, nothing looks out of place in Civilization III. While not possessing any complex particle, or 3D effects, Civ III does still manage to bog down even the hardiest of computers, especially when your Civilization has grown to the point where it comprises of dozens of towns and cities. This can affect loading times between turns, and even cause minor lag during play. Aside from this the game performs fine as long as its minimum specs are exceeded.
The audio within the game is fairly basic, with around 3 repeating songs played for each individual technological age of civilization. These songs sound pretty good, though it can be annoying to hear the same tunes over and over again as you play. The sound effects used are fantastic, battle sound effects in particular exhibit a wide range of sounds, from the clash of spearman, to the roar of tank fire. Having said all this, Civilization most definately isn't for everyone, during the latter stages of a game, it can become a case of micromanaging each and every settlement you possess, just one turn can take a long time to complete, this can be tedious for some gamers. Being a strategy game, it isn't really suitable for gamers expecting instantanous action or flashy effects.
If you are fond of strategy games, the games lifespan can be absolutely huge, the difficulty settings and many ways you can actually play the game ensure you'll be spending great lengths of time experimenting with varying civilizations. The enemy AI can be tweaked to a point where it is beyond deviant, though its confirmed Firaxis did incorporate some unfair advantages to further boost difficulty. The original version does possess some bugs, but most are fixed by a patch Firaxis released soon after the games original 2001 launch.
In conclusion, Civilization certainly retains its title of king of strategy games. What it does it does extremely well, the endless strategies one can employ, the massive variations from one game to the next, and the balance between luck and skill based playing is brilliant. If your a fan of the genre, prepare to spend many late nights playing just one extra turn!
Advantages: Very familiar; improved game play; far more complex strategies required. Disadvantages: Seems slower to play than the original
...I was not surprised when Civilisation II was published. This was a graphical overhaul, moving from a top down version of the game to a 3D isometric view. There were changes to the game play, but not really enough to merit buying both games. Finally, after many years of waiting, Sid Meier has finally bought out Civilization III.
It is difficult to produce a sequel. After playing the original Civilization, and then buying the graphically ... ...buying the latest in the line of software. Hardened Civilization gamers will have formed their own favourites and be loyal to this product.
Civilization III comes five years after Civilization II, and with the amount of playtime which has been played on the original and Civilization II, it becomes difficult to see how a third version of the game could compete with this. There is only a certain amount of empire building one can deal with. Most would ...
Simoncook1 04.02.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Civilisation III (PC)
Advantages: Much improved combat and graphics, usual Civ charm Disadvantages: Diplomacy options could be a little better, lack of multiplayer
...to the Zulus, and each civilisation has specific traits such as Scientific, Industrious, Religious and so on. These traits are very important to how that race should be played. For example, religious civilisations can build structures such as temples and cathedrals quicker than the other races, and also spend less time in the "anarchy" state when switching to more advanced forms of government as the game progresses.
Ah, yes..progression. It would ... ...with spears, so Civilisation gives you the chance to research new technologies, ending with those technologies that allow you to launch a spacecraft to colonise Alpha Centauri (which is the main way to win the game). Want to learn how to make railroads in the 1500's? you can do it. Nuclear tests at the turn of the 19th century? Can be done, provided your research capacity is good enough.
Or for those that are a little more bloodthirsty, you could ...
Karnage 20.02.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Civilisation III (PC)
This game, without doubt, takes the crown of turn-based strategy games. It is a huge improvement over previous versions with a cleaner interface, and a much overhauled diplomacy system. Its also the sort of game that can keep you up all night, requiring many hours of gameplay to reach a conclusion. This new version has better graphics, improvements in the gameplay and AI.
The gameplay has been overhauled, no longer do you have to struggle to build ... ...civilisation. Instead trade is worked out as a function of your trade network, which makes it vastly more important to build roads and other improvements. Cities can now be put under the watchful eye of a governor, who can keep the city from falling into disorder, as well as manage production and resource allocation. Of course for the hardcore Civ fan this can be turned off, and gives you total control over every aspect of city management.
The AI ...
robotii 03.02.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Civilisation III (PC)
Advantages: Hours of gameplay, Every game is different Disadvantages: Takes a while to get into, Graphics could be improved
The Civilisation series of games have been around for a very long time – the first was released by MicroProse all the way back in 1991. It was an absolute masterpiece in its time, and a sequel was inevitable. Civilisation II came out in 1996, again written by strategy game genius Sid Meier. And here’s where it got more complicated. Companies were bought and sold, people came and went, and in the end three different groups reckoned they had the rights ... ...II: Call To Power, Civilisation II: Test Of Time, and, from Sid Meier’s new company Firaxis, Alpha Centauri. Alpha Centauri moved away from the common theme of the other two games, and instead opted for continuing on from the end of Civilisation; with a space ship arriving to colonise a distant planet orbiting the star Alpha Centauri. And so, in my admittedly elitist view, while we’ve had pretenders to the Civilisation crown come and go, we’ve still ...
Tony_edwards1 23.10.2002
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Civilisation III (PC)
Advantages: Another great Civ game, good graphics, well thought through improvement, Another Sid Meier Stunner Disadvantages: No Multiplayer as yet, Underuse of some features
...write a little about the civilisation series to bring those of you new to the game up to speed. Civilisation 1 was created and released by Sid Meier and his team at Microprose, based at chipping Sudbury, just outside Bristol, in 1990. Since then the game has sold phenomenally well, and has now spawned no less than three sequels, three add-on packs, and two more series. The series has sold in excess of 25 million copies since it’s release. Civilisation ... ...and team have now released civilisation III, and what a beauty of a game that was.
Of course, anyone with more than half a brain cell (no offence intended to anyone here) should realise that this isn’t an original concept – otherwise it wouldn’t be a sequel. Anyone going into the game thinking it is original and having played any of Sid Meier’s games before, will be sorely disappointed. I would say, however, that they may ...
TheReaper 17.12.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Civilisation III (PC)
