Civilization II is one of the most addictive and time consuming games of all time!
Civilization II improved on all the biggest issues problems and graphics from the original Civilization on the PC. The icons for units were made to look like what they actually were and thus looked less like pieces from a “Risk” board game. The game map became more vivid and had more variants to create a more realistic feel to the world. The diplomat screens were very impressive for the time, featuring full 3D “heralds” which represented other nations. Your meetings with the high counsel had the most impressive feature, actual people who changed their outfits as time progressed but continued to nag your ear off. The games opening cut scene was also very impressive as it featured the creation and end of the universe and everything important in between. Sound was upgraded as well, each of the units used a different attack sound to match their method of attack and they were usually quite dead on. The affore mentioned high counsel would give you the advice with actual voice acting. The music wasn’t great but it was addictive. The other sounds consisted of people cheering when something good happened booing/screaming when bad stuff happened, which usually resulted in rebellion. And the sounds for each city item had individual sound effects to represent what had been built. The best mix of visual and sound were the “world wonders” which consisted of either mythological, real, or futuristic huge scientific or architectural advancements and always had some effect on either your cities or units. These wonders were each represented by a short video of what it was and how it came to be and what it does for your Civilization.
The Gameplay works in turn based strategy. You start out as a single settler and work your way up to be a world power by building cities, researching new technology, keeping the environment clean, conquering other civilizations, or making peace with them. It’s all up to you! The “you” I speak of is the leader of your civilization, you rule them for a set number of years then retire. But during that time you make every decision, from taxes and type of government to what to build or research and when, and even names of your cities!
There are quite a few options too as are in most games. But since this is a watered down PC port, it gave you the option to alter your background and music which didn’t matter to begin with….
There is also a scoreboard where you are remembered and given a score, you can compete with yourself or others. Again, it’s up to you!
Here is the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the wrap up.
I’ll list 5 good points (pros) and 5 bad points (cons) in no particular order.
PROS
1. your friends can compete with you on the scoreboard
2. Gameplay itself is fun and addictive
3. freedom to do whatever you want
4. though it consists of a lot of violence it’s within the realms of safe for all ages, I’d even call it educational.
5. a pretty decent PC port, not many good PC ports out there….
CONS
1. once you get to a certain point you have to wait a long time for it to be your turn again.
2. very time consuming
3. NO MULTIPLAYER!
4. not suitable for action junkies or people with ADHD
5. eats 10 blocks on a memory card!