Export thread

So I've been looking at a new game to play, and I've heard Civ IV is a great game. As a casual player of strategy games (although I prefer RTS, TBS games are okay in my book) it seems like a good bet. However, some people have told me it was boring/slow.

Therefore I turn to you, Halforums. Should or should I not play Civ IV?

Play it but make sure you have plenty of food and nowhere to be for a month.

Have you ever played turn-based/4X strategy games before? Or any of the previous Civ games, specifically?

If the answer to either of those is a positively-themed "yes", then take Dave's advice.

I'm not sure what 4x games are, but I've played Heroes of Might and Magic (II, III and IV) as far as TBS go. Haven't played any of the Civ games. Like I said, I prefer RTSes, but I liked the HoMM series.

In that case you'll like this. Have fun. See ya next year.

$10 doesn't seem like that much of a risk, if you're worried about not liking it.

However, if you're worried about being addicted to it, Civ IV is whole lotta gaming crack.

Dave said:

In that case you'll like this. Have fun. See ya next year.

Click to expand...

hehe... That sounds about right. I remember when Civ IV first came out, my friend disappear for like 4 months.

figmentPez said:

$10 doesn't seem like that much of a risk, if you're worried about not liking it.

However, if you're worried about being addicted to it, Civ IV is whole lotta gaming crack.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately D2D is only available in North America/Canada/Mexico - which is where I'm not. So 20 bucks for me. Still, if all y'all think it's a good idea then I suppose it's not so bad after all.

Wahad;380131][QUOTE=figmentPez said:

$10 doesn't seem like that much of a risk, if you're worried about not liking it.

However, if you're worried about being addicted to it, Civ IV is whole lotta gaming crack.

Click to expand...

Unfortunately D2D is only available in North America/Canada/Mexico - which is where I'm not. So 20 bucks for me. Still, if all y'all think it's a good idea then I suppose it's not so bad after all.[/QUOTE]

best crack you'll ever paid for 20$... I'm just saying

Wahad said:

Unfortunately D2D is only available in North America/Canada/Mexico - which is where I'm not. So 20 bucks for me. Still, if all y'all think it's a good idea then I suppose it's not so bad after all.

Click to expand...

Where are you?

D2D is available in Europe as well. Civilization 4: The Complete Edition 4,95 €

Oh hey! That works. Thanks Pez!

...or not. ''This product is only available for purchase in France, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and Aland Island.''

What the hell? They have the Faroe Islands on there but not the Netherlands?

The Netherlands isn't a real place anyway. It's like Finland. They just tell us it exists. Like Santa Claus or women who really mean it when they say nothing is wrong.

Dave said:

The Netherlands isn't a real place anyway. It's like Finland. They just tell us it exists. Like Santa Claus or women who really mean it when they say nothing is wrong.

Click to expand...

Now, now, it's been well-documented that Finland disappeared from this plane when the Berlin Wall fell, and even now, they wait and watch in the aether, preparing for the Day to End All Days when the Soviets return to cast the world down into the Darkness.

If I like the Age of... Games will I like Civ 4? Are they similar?

If you like strategy games at all, you'll like Civ IV, I think.

Just... try to get to bed before the sun comes up.

I've just head it's a lot less action oriented than the Age of Empires games, so I always figured it might not be my cup of tea.

Pro: Civ 4 is a game you can play for hours on end and not even notice

Con: Civ 4 is a game you can play for hours on end and not even notice

Espy said:

I've just head it's a lot less action oriented than the Age of Empires games, so I always figured it might not be my cup of tea.

Click to expand...

That's true, there's a lot less action. But it grabs you because of the amount of time you spend devoted to getting the biggest and baddest weapons, the coolest upgrades, the grandest civilization, and trying to find that goddamn iron ore.

Soliloquy;380215][QUOTE=Espy said:

I've just head it's a lot less action oriented than the Age of Empires games, so I always figured it might not be my cup of tea.

Click to expand...

That's true, there's a lot less action. But it grabs you because of the amount of time you spend devoted to getting the biggest and baddest weapons, the coolest upgrades, the grandest civilization, and trying to find that goddamn iron ore.[/QUOTE]

If it's anything like Civ III, I could always get enough iron. It was the oil that killed me.

It is a very fun game, and I really appreciate the fact that I can walk away from it to tend to other things.

HCGLNS said:

It is a very fun game, and I really appreciate the fact that I can walk away from it to tend to other things.

Click to expand...

...which is really just a design feature preventing you from ever turning the game off.

CIV IV is not as good without it's expansion Beyond the sword. So be sure to grab the complete edition of the game.

Then install patch 3.19 and the bug mod, you will now be ready to play the best game in existence.

I don't like CIV IV for one. I like real-time strategy games like Command and Conquer and Warcraft where I can see my little unit guys running along the map...

See, I totally disagree with you. I hate RTS games. The computer cheats, it takes forever to build shit and I hate, hate HATE it when I'm doing something on one part of the screen and I start getting attacked offscreen. Also in the heat of things in a RTS you tend to grab large groups of units to move/give orders. In a turn-based you can set orders for individual units and I really dig that.

i don't even know why there is a comparison between these RTS (both outstanding games) and CIV IV. they have nothing to do with each others.

it's like me saying i don't like NBA2K9 because i'd rather play football.

I don't see much to compare between HoMM and TBSs like it and Civ style games myself...

Espy said:

If I like the Age of... Games will I like Civ 4? Are they similar?

Click to expand...

No. You may not like Civ 4. Age of Games are RTS, while Civ 4 is all turn based. Different style.

---------- Post added at 02:09 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:08 PM ----------

Math242 said:

i don't even know why there is a comparison between these RTS (both outstanding games) and CIV IV. they have nothing to do with each others.

it's like me saying i don't like NBA2K9 because i'd rather play football.

Click to expand...

They're all strategy games...

I just prefer Real Time mechanics, for the exact reasons Dave doesn't. Grandpa here is too slow on the reflexes to respond to offscreen attacks etc... :-D

Chazwozel said:

Math242 said:

i don't even know why there is a comparison between these RTS (both outstanding games) and CIV IV. they have nothing to do with each others.

it's like me saying i don't like NBA2K9 because i'd rather play football.

Click to expand...

They're all strategy games...

Click to expand...

Also, videogames...

about the Netherlands: Wilhelm is a sneaky bastard and one of the strongest leaders.

CRE/FIN leader with a decent UU and a wonderful UB. = uber tech whore who actually sometimes builds an army

Math242 said:

i don't even know why there is a comparison between these RTS (both outstanding games) and CIV IV. they have nothing to do with each others.

it's like me saying i don't like NBA2K9 because i'd rather play football.

Click to expand...

Yeah, they really are completely different. RTS has more in common with FPS games than 4x games as they are twitch based, with the exception of the ones that can be paused and orders can be given out.

Personally I don't like many RTS games. This could be because I suck at them, but I think its more that I don't like the lack of complex strategy in them. Min/Maxers chew them up and spit out single strategies that don't require a lot of modification. This unit is good, this unit is bad. This is your build order, this is your research order. Here are the 20 buttons you should push in the first 10 seconds of the game. Took you 11 seconds? You loose (ok, that may be an exaggeration).

I guess a better comparison is that 4X is chess, where RTS is basketball. There is strategy in both, but one is purely a thinking mans game, where the other requires snap decisions.

Anyways, to the OP and Espy, if you haven't played Civ4 give it a try, it is quite possibly the best game of its genre (Gal Civ gives it a run for its money due to better AI). HOMM really isn't all that different, its just a really simplified version of it. But take all the warnings about loosing large chunks of your life. In the games I play it can take me 2-4 hours to complete a single turn in the late game, and there are hundreds to thousands of terms. I have only ever finished a couple of games.

And don't let Ghandi fool you. He's a prick.

heh i like Gandhi in the neighbourhood.He'll soon be my bitch.

Asoka on the other hand...

Amorous Eyes;381279][QUOTE=Necronic said:

I don't like RTS games. This because I don't like the lack of complex strategy in them. Min/Maxers chew them up and spit out single strategies that don't require a lot of modification. This unit is good, this unit is bad. This is your build order, this is your research order. Here are the 20 buttons you should push in the first 10 seconds of the game. Took you 11 seconds? You loose (ok, that may be an exaggeration).

Click to expand...

This. This exactly, is why I cannot (and will not) play, or even be able to ENJOY playing RTS games. Zerg rush in 10 seconds, game over. WTF? How was that supposed to be fun?
[/QUOTE]


Except that's not the case, unless you suck...

yeah, that does not happen unless there is a huge mismatch skill wise.

HUGE mismatch

but then it's the same for everything. If you play CIV IV with me on a small map and i feel like it, the game will be over by 1000 BC. Same as i got my ass handed to me by proven deity players.

Well, I bought it. First game: was heading towards a nuclear strike so I could bomb the hell out of everyone but I got killed when the Aztecs completely ripped through my defenses. It's fun, but not the crack everybody presented it to be.

Or maybe that's just me.

that's just you. www.civfanatics.com

will make you love the game

Give it time, Wahad. Trust me. The game takes some time to get into, but once it digs its hooks into you and you play it a few more times, you'll start thinking about it. You'll start thinking "Hm, what if I tried this civilization in this landscape world?" or "hm, what if I try researching this as fast as I can?"

You WILL bow down before Civ! Both you, and one day, your heirs!

Wait until he starts building maps...

or just keep playing it. I never win a game on my first play. Especially strategy games. Give it a bit so you can work out the tech trees. You'll be dominating the world soon enough.

Anyone remember the first time they tried the game on the hardest difficulty?

Cripes, I remember researching the goddamn wheel when tanks rolled in and wiped me out.

Wahad said:

It's fun, but not the crack everybody presented it to be.

Or maybe that's just me.

Click to expand...

I bet everyone says that about their first hit of cocaine too...