The Civilization series is often regarded as one of the best game series ever conceived. But what often gets overlooked in the praise of Civilization is the music, especially in Civilization II. When you first boot up Civilization II, you're treated to one of the best intro scores of any game. The heavy drums, seemingly inspired by African beats, are exciting and catchy, totally at odds with the general conception of strategy games as boring and cerebral. This was music that could rope you into the game.

Once you actually started the game, you were treated to a dozen different scores, each one a theme for one of the game's many civilizations. Unfortunately, not every civilization had a theme, and the Zulus, who had a wonderful song in Civilization I, were without one in this version of Civilization. However, the loss of the Zulu theme, and the absence of themes for some of the other civilizations did not at all detract from the quality of what music was in the game.

There was the American anthem (not the Star Spangled Banner, but the anthem for the American civilization), and it sounded suitably patriotic. There was the lilting Chinese theme, the Mongolian march, and several other songs that suited their respective civilizations so well. While the music didn't actually move the game forward; it definitely added to the game's appeal.

The music for special days, such as the Celebrate the King days, and the songs for the wonders were also good. And what's more, the songs for the wonders would get more progressive and modern as you advanced through the years.

The music team for Civilization II, led by Jeff Briggs, who also did the music for Civ I, did an excellent job in crafting music that stayed with you. Even years later, for those of us who played Civilization II, the music is still with us.
 

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