Civilization V

Strollen · 2010-09-17T18:14:11.000Z

Sarkus:

I think just about every PC upgrade I’ve done (and I do them every 3-4 years) has been driven by the knowledge that a particular game was coming that my current system was going to have problems handling. If all I wanted was a net surf and old games capable machine, I could have saved a lot of money. But part of the cost of being a PC gamer is that you have to upgrade more then every five or six years.

Yup. The only console I’ve ever bought was the Wii (during the Wii madness phase). Since PC games are generally cheaper than console games and have better replay value via Mods or games like Civ V I figure I save money on the software. I figure $800-1000 every 4 years plus a $100 or so video card in the middle of the cycle. I figure my annual hardware cost is in the $250 range roughly what I spend on software and overall a pretty inexpensive hobby.

Rock8man · 2010-09-17T18:14:37.000Z

BigWeather:

Wow, that’s nice. So, what does Steam get out of it if I buy from D2D or the store? I mean, I didn’t buy it through them and I’ll be sucking their bandwidth in the future. Does Firaxis kick them some money on every purchase regardless of whether from Steam or not?

I’d always imagined that Steam gets a bigger customer base out of it. Who will buy more stuff on Steam.

Shadari · 2010-09-17T18:14:55.000Z

Sarkus:

WoW was released before Civ4. And Starcraft 2 still requires a better PC then what Damien’s girlfriend has (based on what Civ4’s requirements were, anway).

Fair enough, but my point was that the most successful PC games company just so happens to make their games with very modest system-requirements.

BigWeather · 2010-09-17T18:16:23.000Z

Rock8man:

I don’t think Tom’s Fidgit article on 10 Cool things in Civ 5 has been mentioned yet. After reading that, I’m just going to ignore all other Civ5 reviews at this point. No use working myself up about the fact that I can’t play any Civ 5 this weekend.

Civ 5 doesn’t exist yet. puts fingers in ears. La la la la.

Thanks for the link. That’s some great stuff. I want it so bad, I’ve got to make sure I don’t waste the weekend pining for it instead of making headway on the crap I need to do to clear out plenty of time for Tuesday and on.

BigWeather · 2010-09-17T18:18:18.000Z

Rock8man:

I’d always imagined that Steam gets a bigger customer base out of it. Who will buy more stuff on Steam.

True, and bandwidth is probably pretty cheap. Man, now I wish I had jumped on the deal D2D had the other day. Now I’m torn between just going straight Steam or getting a deluxe from Amazon (while I don’t really want the minis the art book may be neat – I keep hoping they’ll show it off so I can be sure).

liminal · 2010-09-17T19:07:26.000Z

Rock8man:

I don’t think Tom’s Fidgit article on 10 Cool things in Civ 5 has been mentioned yet. After reading that, I’m just going to ignore all other Civ5 reviews at this point. No use working myself up about the fact that I can’t play any Civ 5 this weekend.

Civ 5 doesn’t exist yet. puts fingers in ears. La la la la.

I saw that earlier when it was posted. I wonder if Tom omits big new features like hexes and no unit stacking because they’ve been talked about so much, or because he’s readying a less enthusiastic companion list for next week. Tom’s opinion on Civ 5 will probably make or break my purchasing decision. I think he is the best computer and console strategy game writer out there, and his apprehensive post-E3 Civ 5 post, along with some of the announced design choices (I do not see what hiding decision-making information during diplomacy chats adds to the game), have put a damper on my enthusiasm.

But I agree that it’s wise to ignore other reviews. I’d hate to get hyped for the game, only to have Tom post something disappointing next week.

mtkafka · 2010-09-17T19:16:43.000Z

I’m curious how the civ community will take to civ v. because i still think the gameplay changes are very huge. and old habits are hard to give up!

and im guessing alot of the slowdown is not just in graphics but in the AI, divergences from previous civs. the ai has to be credible enough to play a tactical panzer general war game and a 4x game.

Spoit · 2010-09-17T19:19:59.000Z

Quitch:

Because shooters depend on your GPU and I bet Civ V is CPU dependent. It’s much harder to scale a game logic CPU dependency than the quality of textures. I’d guess.

Which realistically, is closer to how most non-gaming systems are built anyway, with actually reasonably good CPU/RAM but silly low end GPUs. Still sad that my C2D is not really cutting it anymore though, it had a good run.

Manresa · 2010-09-17T19:20:28.000Z

Rock8man:

I don’t think Tom’s Fidgit article on 10 Cool things in Civ 5 has been mentioned yet. After reading that, I’m just going to ignore all other Civ5 reviews at this point. No use working myself up about the fact that I can’t play any Civ 5 this weekend.

Civ 5 doesn’t exist yet. puts fingers in ears. La la la la.

Don’t worry, he’s playing some crappy beta, and won’t really be able to have fun until the retail game ships, just like the rest of us.

mtkafka · 2010-09-17T19:31:13.000Z

Manresa:

Don’t worry, he’s playing some crappy beta, and won’t really be able to have fun until the retail game ships, just like the rest of us.

thats what ppl said about elemental and we know how ppl took to that release. anyway, at least based on the recent reviews the game does seem to be getting a positive vibe. but having read the shack, joystiq and escapist review… i came off with the feeling of reading another preview.

the biggest issue with me is still the gameplay. the core concepts have to meld together well, especially for a 4x game as big as civilization. and you have to play a few games to really get a feel of it. and civ is not just any tbs franchise… its pretty much the invention of the 4x genre on computers. so im glad toms not rushing to review. i respect his review/opinion on strategy games more than any other genre he covers.

ledshok · 2010-09-17T20:18:12.000Z

The Civ V manual has been made available on the official website.

I’d link to it but I’m just a humble 5-poster…

Nephrinn · 2010-09-17T20:36:39.000Z

TopShelfCookieJar:

The Civ V manual has been made available on the official website.

I’d link to it but I’m just a humble 5-poster…

Allow me: http://www.civilization5.com/#/community/feature_manual

Octonoo · 2010-09-17T20:41:05.000Z

TopShelfCookieJar:

The Civ V manual has been made available on the official website.

I’d link to it but I’m just a humble 5-poster…

Nephrinn:

Allow me: http://www.civilization5.com/#/community/feature_manual

Thanks for the heads up!

John_Reynolds · 2010-09-17T20:44:26.000Z

Definitely, thanks guys.

Lorini · 2010-09-17T20:47:54.000Z

The Strategy guide is OK. Not anywhere close to as good as the strategy guide for Starcraft II by the same publisher. Had I known the manual was coming out this weekend (woo hoo!) I probably wouldn’t have bothered with it.

EDIT: the manual looks beautiful! on the IPad. Even better. I was worried about the interactive format.

BigWeather · 2010-09-17T21:06:46.000Z

I really dig the art style of the game – the menu decorations, the unit / building / etc. icons, etc. Almost a shame that the map itself couldn’t be a bit less “realistic” and a bit more “painted” looking.

billt721 · 2010-09-17T21:08:19.000Z

The fact that they gave the manual a version number gives me hope that they’ll actually update it as updates are made to the game itself.

Scotch_Lufkin · 2010-09-17T21:09:56.000Z

billt721:

The fact that they gave the manual a version number gives me hope that they’ll actually update it as updates are made to the game itself.

That’s the plan as they outlined it when they announced a PDF manual rather than a physical one - if they actually update it I’ll be SUPER impressed.

It’s a handsome manual though, VERY informative and well written.

Octonoo · 2010-09-17T21:44:21.000Z

Civ Wine?

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…

…sobs…

Strollen · 2010-09-17T22:21:05.000Z

Luke M:

I saw that earlier when it was posted. I wonder if Tom omits big new features like hexes and no unit stacking because they’ve been talked about so much, or because he’s readying a less enthusiastic companion list for next week. Tom’s opinion on Civ 5 will probably make or break my purchasing decision. I think he is the best computer and console strategy game writer out there, and his apprehensive post-E3 Civ 5 post, along with some of the announced design choices (I do not see what hiding decision-making information during diplomacy chats adds to the game), have put a damper on my enthusiasm.

But I agree that it’s wise to ignore other reviews. I’d hate to get hyped for the game, only to have Tom post something disappointing next week.

Yes, but while you are waiting for Tom’s careful and thoughtful review. I will be enjoying several days of blissful gaming pleasure. Exploring the intricacy of hex based combat, evaluating the strengths and weakness of each civilization and trying to figure out which is the best for MP gaming. Marveling over the polish and clever UI innovations and admiring the tricky AI.

In short I will building an Empire that withstands the test of time!

Ok I am just giving you crap. But I’m curious, but why are you on the fence? and what would Tom say or not say that would sway your opinion.

I’ve definitely bought and not games based on the reviews by Tom and Troy, and the comments on this forum. Just not for AAA titles like this.