Civilzation IV

The classic turn-based strategy series returns, is it a return to form?

Civilization IV has a few interfaces annoyances. Whenever you discover a new technology, capture a foreign city, or are asked what building or military unit you'd like to build next, the game doesn't allow you to scroll the surrounding area or look at the Civilopedia to read more about your choices. This is particularly annoying after capturing a city as the game asks if you'd like to keep it or burn it to the ground and it really would be helpful if you could scroll around the map (or study a chart or two) a bit before deciding. As far as flaws are concerned, that's pretty much it. The fourth edition of this classic turn-based strategy series of world conquest is the best of the lot, and is easily one of the finest strategy games (turn-based or otherwise) ever designed.

Civ IV is great not just because Firaxis added several nifty new features and additions such as the Great People, famous artists, philosophers, and scientists from the past that pop up in your cities from time to time to offer their assistance, or the new religion system that puts a premium on choosing, and sticking to, a particular brand of faith (there are seven in the game from Islam to Judaism). You can even send out missionaries to help "spread" your faith to other cities. Civics is a great addition that also helps you define what kind of empire you wish to run – do you promote slavery or free speech? There are literally dozens of choices like this in the game, and all have some form of impact on your civilization. Still, while all of the new stuff is wonderful, Civ IV is what it is because the design is absolutely air tight. Nearly every part of the earlier games that were deemed "not fun" or overly complicated has been scrapped. This is not the "kitchen sink" philosophy of game design where more equals better (in fact the technology tree has been scaled back from previous editions, making each advancement more meaningful) – this is a thoughtful sequel to an already established series that takes the game to another level.

The combat model has been tweaked for the better as well. Units now have a single combat rating, but also earn experience and are awarded specialty advancements so you can customize each unit to a specific need. Want to turn a unit of riflemen into great jungle fighters? You can. Want to turn a cannon unit into a terrific city destroyer? You can do that, too. Adding this level of personality to the combat is a nice touch; it's not just a matter of sending in units with base numbers anymore.

Despite all of the design nuances, the first thing that you notice about the new Civ is its graphics. The game uses the same engine of Sid Meier's Pirates and it makes Civ come alive like never before. Sure, graphics in a turn based game like this aren't the most important aspect of its feature set, but it's really hard not to smile when looking upon a group of fully animated War Elephants as they attack a city, or as plumes of smoke fill the air as cannons blaze upon a city's defences. Even the base terrain looks great as water ripples along the shoreline and workers diligently plough fields and build roads. In short, the graphics are absolutely splendid; they are not overdone, and fit the theme of the game perfectly. The sound is equally good, from the combat and game sound effects to the professionally done, and strikingly beautiful, soundtrack. You even get the soothing voice of Leonard Nimoy as he reads aloud the description of each tech advance. The level of care put into the details of Civ IV is astounding, and it shows in its visuals, sound, and overall design.

Finally, there's multiplayer. Playing a multiplayer turn-based game has always been a tricky endeavour – many games have tried to tweak the system in order to provide a realistic approach to playing a game like this. Some games have used the traditional "you go I go" method which isn't too practical because there's way too much downtime for each player between turns. Even the "simultaneous move" method is tough because games still take way too long for the average player. Civ IV's multiplayer design doesn't shy away from the fact that games take a long time. It wouldn't be a game of Civ if you finished it in two hours.

Thankfully, Civ IV addresses this problem in a totally unique and brilliant way – it allows players to come and go as they please. You can hop into "open" games whenever you like and stay as long as you like. You can even start an eight-person game by yourself along with seven AI opponents and people will join as the game progresses. The turns in multiplayer games are taken simultaneously and a timer can be placed on each turn so the game moves along at a brisk pace (for a turn-based game, anyway.) Best of all, games can be saved and continued later. The downside to the multiplayer interface is that there's really no way of knowing how good a Civ is until you join the game. Who wants to take over India right before the Russians nuke it? Still, multiplayer works better in Civ IV than in any other turn-based game to date. This is how it should be done.

Civilization IV proves that not only is turn-based strategy gaming not dead, but when it's done right, it provides the type of rewarding, evenly paced gameplay that made the genre so popular back in the days when games like Master of Magic and the original Civilization ruled the hobby. This really is strategy gaming at its very best and you'd be doing yourself a disservice if you skipped it. It's that good.

This review courtesy of our friends at Gameshark .