

The one thing that may come as a shock is not so much the size of the game, but the time commitment.
#Civilization revolution vs civilization 5 Pc#
Ready to take on the big, bad PC version of Civ, eh? Well, good, cause there's a lot in Civilzation 5 you're already familiar with.
#Civilization revolution vs civilization 5 series#
A lot of the minutia that turned previous entries of the series into empire simulators is gone, as Civilization 5 puts strategy and quick, decisive action back into the franchise. With diplomacy and strategic moving taking center stage, Civilization veterans will find themselves spending more time on the main screen than micromanaging in menus. You'll need to protect these defenseless units with naval vessels or face the consequences, but creating cargo ships and all that boring stuff is gone. For example, the optics tech will allow all units to move over shore tiles with "embark." Later on, astronomy allows all units to move over ocean tiles. Don't worry, a "normal" game still takes eight to twelve hours, but a lot of the annoying technology and unit prerequisites to move the game forward are gone. Initially, veterans of the series will find the pacing feels much, much quicker.

The city states add a whole new dimension to the game without really getting in the way of or derailing the big picture. The requests are very direct, such as destroying a barbarian camp, defending it from an enemy civilization or wiping out a competing city state. Becoming friends and allies with these factions is dependent on completing tasks. Become allies and you'll receive a luxury resource to keep your populace happy. Become friends and it'll give you a bonus in whatever its focus is. These one-city civs have a focus on military, culture or food. It's all crystal clear and it is the key element of Civ 5 I hope the series keeps for the rest of its days.Īnother major change is the introduction of city states. Now you have a really good idea of what's going on and the math is upfront about whether your unit is going to win or lose a battle. Imagine if chess allowed "stacks of doom." It wouldn't be chess, it would be a game about slamming two stacks together with some bizarre math to decide the outcome - with respect, that's what the old Civilizations were like. This not only makes you keep your soldiers to the front while your ranged units bombard from the second line, but it also gives you a better idea of what your enemy is up to (instead of everything hiding in a stack). Alright, so it's not as fun for those who prayed at the " stack of doom" altar, but for those who had to rely on culture/economy/science tactics to win because the whole battle system was obtuse, this is the game that'll turn that around - it may even make you into a warmonger.Ĭivilization 5 is a game that needed to happen.Only one unit is allowed now per square - sorry, hex.

If this is the love child of the aforementioned Civs, it was raised by a nanny who loved European board games. But it actually serves the franchise - which was getting into convoluted "empire simulation" territory - and yanks it back to being a strategy game. Yes, the console Civ's influence is all over this game: the interface, the lack of money/science sliders and the transparency of statistics. This is the most streamlined Civilization to date, but please don't let the Revolution talk scare you. Housekeeping issue #2: Take those " recommended" PC specs seriously. However, first thing to do once you get the game - who are we kidding here, you know you vets are buying it! - is switch the auto-save function from every 10 turns to every three (or less). Don't panic, I'm sure this will get resolved. Okay, empresses and kings, let's get some housekeeping out of the way first: The review copy of Civ 5 I played crashed (very inconveniently) from time to time on each of the three different computers I used. With that in mind, I'm going to divide this review into three parts, with sections for Civilization PC veterans those who enjoyed Civilization Revolution and "the uninitiated." Read all three perspectives and find out if this latest Civ unites the tribes. Civilization has been around for almost two decades and the most divisive moment in the franchise's history was the creation of the console-based Civilization Revolution. I'm going to try something different in this review. Civ 5 has the grand, epic feel we expect from the series on PC, but so much of it has been streamlined for the better that Revolution's influence is undeniable. It is a game that shares genetic markers of both the PC and console iterations of the franchise, luckily receiving the best elements of both - with a couple good mutations. Civilzation 5 is the love child of a clandestine tryst between Civilization 4 and Civilization Revolution.
