Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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65 of 71 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Compared to III - a great improvement, October 15, 2007
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
I find that the improvements outweigh the negatives in Civ IV. I've played Civ III for a while, and was always frustrated with the unrealistic means of making it more difficult at higher levels - such as warriors defeating Knights in battle, other Civs building wonders in record turns, things like that. In Civ IV, those issues seem to be repaired. I've found that the rules they give us for combat movements, cost, etc., are not bypassed to make the game more difficult at higher levels.
I like the added variety of leaders and their abilities, seems more realistic and helpful for long term strategy. I also like the addition of more wonders, though they have changed some of the benefits of certain wonders so I needed to get used to the same thing being different.
I also am enjoying the new "Permanent Alliance" option. I just finally used that and really liked the dimension it added to game play.
The graphics do bother me a bit - too bouncy. I've changed settings as much as I can to get away from it, but it is still a bit bouncy and makes me dizzy.
I'm also not pleased with the bug that makes the game not work with my graphics card - which I have yet to find a fix for. I am playing it on another computer. One of my son-in-laws also can't use the game since his graphics card doesn't seem to be supported. He has a much bigger, badder, multimedia computer.
It also has a problem with the online updates. I updated and had serious issues which I had to call the manufacturer to fix - couldn't start the game, couldn't uninstall the game, couldn't reinstall the game - totally useless. A Direct X fix repaired that, but I don't think I even got the update after all the work! I'm quite leary of trying again. Then my son, who also has the game, updated his and it caused serious corruption for him too. I told him what my fix was, and it didn't work for his. He has to call and see what to do now. Updates aren't supposed to break the game, they are supposed to fix it. The game works fine without the updates, so I'm going to forego any future attempts to update.
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28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Still can't top Civ II, January 7, 2008
Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars
Sure, in terms of graphical sophistication and rules, this latest Civ is the most impressive yet. But in terms of sheer escapist fantasy power, it doesn't hold a candle to Civ II.
The problem with making things gorgeous to look at, especially at high resolution and in detail, is that the game slows down considerably. By the time you have invested 8 hours playing a round, and your little empire has grown, you want the game to proceed a snappy pace. Rendering all that detail, however, has a cost, even on a higher-end home system. Civ IV's big weakness is that game play becomes very slow.
Others certainly disagree and prefer the eye candy of animated rivers and watching individual units flex their muscles in combat. I've turned off all the detail and as much animation as I can get away with, but the game still isn't as much fun as Civ II, which I still play. Your mileage might vary, so give it a shot--the 'gold' edition is certainly a good deal.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome game, if you have a FAST computer, June 16, 2008
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
I've been playing Civilization Games since the game first came out. Even when there were two different brands Sid Meier's and non-Sid Meier, I bought both to see which was better. (Obviously Sid Meier's versions was ;)
This game is FANTASTIC! The requirements are incredably high though and often my PC would lag as the game progressed, taking longer and longer for the computer to compute each turn. I upgraded my computer's RAM though and that largely solved the problem.
If you like ANY of the other Civilization games, you'll love this one. I wouldn't say this is a sequel though, because it's more like a whole new Civilization game.
Also, I would recommend getting the Beyond the Sword expansion along with this for a life changing experience.
Lastly, make sure you check out "Sid Meier's Alpha Centaury." It is INCREDIBLY hard but is FANTASTIC!!! It has Customizable Units and you can even take control of the native flora and fauna.
Make sure you have a lot of time on your hands if you're going to play this game though, as it can easily consume 8 hours of you day without you even realizing it.
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