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Civilization III: Play the World for Windows
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Civilization III: Play the World for Windows
206 reviews   3.4 of 5

Product Description

Rating

Reviewed By


teardropmina
 (72)

Review Date
07/02/2004

Overall Rating

 2 of 5

Value Rating

 0 of 5

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4.00 of 5,
5 votes

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Summary

1. The most "cheat deserving" game I've ever played; that is, I'd have no problem using cheats or trainers playing Civ3 since the computer AI cheats. 2. Live and die with the TURNs! the whole turn base system gets ugly when, again, compputer AI cheats. 3. The game is easily beatble at the Chieftain level (at which I beat the game and I didn't have patience and interest to go on to more difficult levels since it seems that computer will cheat at all levels). 4. Many of the ugly things have been said in the previous reviews, not going to repeat it. However, respond to those postive reviews, to say this game is *complex* is overstatement; try the real city building games such as Pharaoh and Zeus...those are complex!

Sound

ok, the same as above.

Gameplay

How AI cheats? There are RULES in the game, but unlike the D&D rules in Baldur's Gate alike RPG, the rules in Civ 3 don't seem to apply to the computer rulers. Do they also have to take care of the waste and corruption problem? one thing obvious is that all computer rulers know exactly WHERE the strategic resources will turn out to be in the future, and so they will send their settlers to build a city right on that seemingly insigificant and empty spot. As many have mentioned, we'll always be dropped into a deprived land of nothing, mostly with iron and one insignificant luxury source, while the computer rules all settle on lands of gold and promise. Also, the low tech unit beating up high tech units rule only applies to computer units. The TURNs! in the beginning of the game, one turn is like 50 years, with it the worker and the settler can only move ONE step. The idea I reckon is to simulate the progress of civiliziation, in the early ages, it took more time and technology progressed slowly in the early years of civilization. However, it also means that we have to settle down as soon as possible and cannot really search and pick a more resourceful spots. The low tech unit beating high tech unit rule is not just not realistic, it also means that the whole "turn" system is meaningless == it takes more turns/years to build a Tank than a Samurai...yet, it's quite a common scene that computer controlled Samurai sliced my tanks into pieces. In spite of all those AI cheats, the game is easily beatble if going for UN dipolmatic victory and Space race victory. Playing the huge map, it'll give us more time to build up and gets a lead in advancing technology, and then selling technology and getting extremely rich. This will probably be more difficult in the more difficult levels, but I don't have the interest and patience to find out.
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Rating

Reviewed By


Durruti
 (100+)

Review Date
03/27/2004

Overall Rating

 1 of 5

Value Rating

 0 of 5

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3.83 of 5,
6 votes

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Summary

TOLKIEN wrote; "A single dream is worth a thousand realities." One of my dreams is for more PC games of the quality of AOE2, Civ 2, the Chessmasters, the Total War series, Myst, the Hoyle games, LOTR 2 & Europa (the last 2 with reservations), & a few more fine efforts. The other dream has something to do with Liv Tyler & will not be mentioned here. Additionally, a nice combination of effective game programming with eye candy is essential for a great computor (visual game). Bought Civ 3 (used) & Play the World - (used). Played extensively. To begin with, Civ 3 is unbalanced in combat, & has extensive cheats to help the a1. Civ 3's faults are toooo many to mention all; most have been detailed in previous reviews.

Sound

Inferior music & sounf to CTP 2.

Gameplay

As game progresed, & playing as Greeks, or Carthaginians to gain their extra strong defense units, there came a point where no fewer than 3 opponents would declare war on you at the same time. Diplomacy was not a usable option for the human player. The other civs always advance thru the ages faster than you-no matter what you do & what level of difficulty you play on. Civ 3 did not permit a long-term effort to play as a builder & diminish the violence. Civ 3 had not, to this date, updated the outdated conflict resolution system. Unlike Call to Power 2, you could not easily stack units. [Yess CTP 2 has its own problems-such as a serious lack of programming for the inactive a1.] Even the pathetic "Legion" had a better approach to military conflict simulation than Civ 3. From military & diplomatic unbalance & unplayability to the S.M. cult-of-personality, Civ-3 was more stressful that an RTS clickfest. In playability it was inferior to Civ 2 (produced a century earlier). It was the failure of the Civ 3 (arguably the most sought out PC game update in history), producer-developers to live up to their promises that is most responsible for the malaise-decline of the PC game industry. The era of the action simulation shoot-them-up on your TV screen is in full bloom; & you can't blame the kids. And for more entertainment their government can invade the world (Iraq, Grenada, Vietnam, Haiti-yes Haiti), etc., & provide more shoot-them-up material. At least the shoot-them-ups work. The producer-developers have dropped the ball & gutted the PC game industry. Ask gamestop-EBX-Circuit City, etc., what their biggest selling games are (BY FAR). I repeat; sloppy-poorly programmed games are killing the industry. The decline of the pC games is forcing me to go back to work, go fishing, play softball, & even pay attention to my wife & kids (ugh).
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Sound

Not bad at all.

Gameplay

Obvious one really, build your chosen civilisation from scratch and set about winning the game via one of the particular methods of winning, via technology, culture, warfare.

What sets this version of Civ apart is that the alternative ways to win are realistic. I am progressing through the levels of this game and have completed non-violent victories in all levels up to King. Yes, this does involve some bending over to an aggressive nation when they come to you demanding 8 gold and a look at the map you have already gave them, but hey, I don't mind when demands are that minimal.

Diplomacy in this game rocks, and the ability to manipulate trades to suit specific needs is a big plus in this game. Wait for another nation to come to you with an offer, then turn their offer around with a counter-proposal with the same thing they want and see how their offer improves. If war does eventuate and you can't be bothered looking after a city outside your national borders, use this city as a trading object to receive large payments from other nations. This is also a good way to get other countries to start a war with each other.
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Summary

I remember the days when I played CIV 1 for hours on end with those crude units. I didn't mind how it looked (The days of Dos) it was just different. I was thrilled to see CIV2 years later. As the expansion packs came, I would quickly run down to the local store and buy one. When they released Gold with multiplayer I thought that was a tremendous jump, no more 3rd party multiplayer add ons. I could get friends to join battles and play together. And of couse when CIV3 came out, I leaped right into the store. Sad to see the wonders of the world videos and council go. However, overall I was genuinely upset to see no multiplayer. Of couse until now. But am I the only one who thinks this should have been released not as a expansion. But with CIV3 itself. It sure feels like they wanted to double dip into your pocket. The whole idea of a sequel is to improve from the last. However they retracted from the previous improvements of the game. This is why we don't see many game sequels past 4. These game developers move on to other areas and the company itself tries to milk the project to a point there's no more attraction or enchantments.
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Sound

Sounds in Civilization, especially the music department, are top notch. Despite the lack of voices for the civilization leaders, the sound for the units moving on terrain and attacking other units are quite realistic at most. There are, however, some bugs within the sounds such as naval units, or lack of, at times. The music, which is played on the type of age your civilization is in, really sets the atmosphere and calm mood of the game. Even though there are some pieces of music the game could’ve been better without, the beating on the drums in the Stone Age does the proper setting for a game like Civilization 3.

Civilization 3 is one of those few games that come out each year and really make a difference in your gaming experience, especially when you are into the turn-based strategy genre. The game does lack multiplayer, but Civilization was never a popular thing to play online. With the AI this advanced with diplomacy, military, and other required tasks, it simply does not matter. New and old players of the turn-based genre will find this game easy to pick up and adapt. However, like most games, it is going to take a while to fully master and manipulate the game to your advantage. If you wish lose friends, your job, and relations with your family, or you just want a good strategy turn-based game, invest your copy of Civilization 3 soon.

Gameplay

In the year 4000 BC, you will begin the game starting with a settler and a worker. A settler is a unique unit in the game that has the ability to create cities to be put under your control. The worker is a common unit with the ability to build mines, roads, plant trees, and other useful abilities to your cities surroundings. Like other Civilizations and most strategy games, you will start very small and work your way up in time. However, what separates Civilization 3 from other games is the flexibility to choose a certain path in the game instead of trying to be the master-of-all trades. For example, you can decrease investment into scientific research and spend your remaining cash into military power instead. This makes the game very unique in its own right and will allow you to use creativity to create various strategies to counter the opposition.

With strategies in mind, Civilization makes each of the sixteen races unique to each other with special abilities and a unique unit. These abilities have a long-term effect in the game and can benefit if the right strategy is played. If you play Greece, for instance, you will receive the abilities of “Commercial” and “Industrious”. Commercial provides more commence to you as your cities grow while Industrious makes workers complete tasks faster and building time for improvements will be shorter in cities. As you can tell, these abilities really give the game a facelift if you decide to change civilization throughout several games, therefore increasing replay value in Civilization 3 greatly.

Unique units are just improved common military units in the world of Civilization 3. Each civilization has a special unit at some time during the game such as the modern age or the middle ages. One example of this is the Germans and their Panzer tank unit. Panzer is more powerful tank then the common tank that everyone else gets, but it will only be received in the industry age, which is quite far in the game. This provides an advantage to each civilization in military terms at a certain age for a brief time.


In addition to the abilities and unique units, Civilization 3 has new ways to win without the excessive use of military. Besides the obvious “destroy everyone else” goal in other Civilization and strategy games, Civilization 3 allows a civilization to win in a cultural, diplomatic, or technological ways. A cultural victory is won by an impressive amount of cultural points accumulated by a civilization with the use of Wonders, Small Wonders, and improvements throughout the cities. Wonders and Small Wonders are special buildings in a city that produce culture points in time and give a global effect to the civilization. An example of this is Battlefield Medicine, which allows a civilization’s military units with the skill to heal on enemy grounds. Culture also allows a city to extend their boarders whenever they reach a certain amount of cultural points. A diplomatic way to win in Civilization 3 can only be done when the Wonder, United Nations, is built. Once this Wonder has been built, you will need to be voted as Secretary-General by the majority of other civilizations around the globe. The technological way to win is to build a spaceship that is set to a planet on the Alpha Centauri system. In order to achieve this, a civilization must have the Small Wonder, the Apollo Program, and ten spaceship components to be assembled and ready to launch. With these extra goals, Civ3 cooks up very interesting games with yourself and the AI.

The interface has gone through a major change and also has made it much easier to manage your own civilization. You have an advisors screen that shows your cultural, military, domestic, scientific, trade, and foreign advisors ready to give you advice to improve your civilization. The domestic advisor screen allows you to change the entertainment and scientific research investments. It also shows a summary chart of all the cities you own such as how much food is stored and how much commence is being produced. The trade advisor screen shows what luxuries and resources you own, what is being exported and imported, and the list of cities that you are able to trade with. This allows really quick trading deals to improve your economy. The military advisor screen shows off how many units you have by type and what units are defending the city. Your military advisor will also compare the current military size against a chosen civilization. This way, before going hostile, you have a hint whether or not you can beat the selected civilization. The foreign advisor screen shows colored lines representing current relations with that civilization such as peace, war, alliance, or trade embargos. The problem with this screen is the fact it will not allow more then eight civilizations on screen, which in Civilization 3, one can play up to fifteen other civilizations on a huge map. The cultural advisor screen shows the list of all the cities in your civilization and their culture points. This screen is somewhat useful if you plan to take the cultural victory. The scientific advisor screen shows off the technology tree for each research. This is very useful if you want a certain improvement, wonder, or unit. You can easily change what you are currently researching and it will tell you how many turns it will take to fully research it. The scientific advisor is very useful with his advice telling you if current technology of your civilization is up to date or not. The city interface allows you to change production, scroll through the cities, and check out the status of the city itself and citizens. The diplomacy screen easily allows you to make deals quickly with the smallest amount of mouse clicks as possible with the use of categorizing possible deals under technology, maps, treasury, resources, luxuries, cities, alliances, trade embargos, and diplomatic agreements.

A major improvement compared to the other Civilization games is the more diplomatic and intelligent AI. Diplomacy has been improved massively with more options available to you and the way AI reacts to a variety of deals. In diplomacy, you can make deals involving resources, gold, luxuries, cities, technologies, military alliances, agreements, maps, and trade embargos. Depending on the type of leader you are facing, some of the deals may be threatening (paying tribute) or just a friendly trade for new technologies. Sometimes the AI leaders may betray you later on in the game or may accept an alliance with you against the common enemy. Intelligence has been improved with the AI in terms of expansion and military use. Whether this is a cheat or not, the AI manages to expand very well with a multitude of cities early in the game. The cities may not have much with citizens or content, but it is proof that later on in the game, destroying a hostile civilization can be quite a challenge. Military use is somewhat more advanced when creating a legion of arms for their defense and offense. However, you will notice later on in the game as technology grows, the AI will still use men on horses facing your tanks, neglecting the fact that they can upgrade their obsolete units easily.

The combat and military system in Civilization 3 has also changed but it leans more into an imperfect system. One flaw is the inability to stack military units to attack a target. Instead of stacking, you must give orders to individual units to follow a simple command such as moving or attacking. If, for example, you have ten tank units to attack a town, you would need to give each individual tank an order to attack the town. When this happens, you have to wait for all the combat animations to play for each tank. The outcome of this is a long, tedious, and frustrating experience. If the units were able to stack and attack as a whole, it would result with a quick battle and less micro-management of your army. You do have a minor ability to stack military units of three (or four if you built the Pentagon wonder) to form an army once you have military tradition researched or a “leader” unit in one of your cities, but having an army is not a common thing in Civilization 3. Combat system has also changed by giving units rank and the same amount of health. Newly created units have 3 health, while veteran units have 4 and elite units have 5. With equal amount of health, technology doesn’t play the key role of winning a battle, but the combat system still has bugs because sometimes the really low tech units, such as a spearman in the stone age, will be able to kill an industrial age infantrymen. Even though War in reality makes all sides take a loss, when a pathetic obsolete unit in the BC age can take on a modern unit and win, there is no excuse for such a flawed system. The good news about the combat system is a smaller number of hi-tech units can take on a larger number of low-tech units. But as it stands now, the combat system still needs work and it is heavily flawed.
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Summary

As an only periodic player of previous Civilization offerings, I will be basing this review on the merits of Civ III as a game unto itself, and not in comparison to its older siblings. Overall, Civ III is an excellent single-player, turn-based strategy game. It is set in a grand historical context, meaning that during the course of every game, you will lead a civilization through time from its conception (around 4000 BC) to the modern age. This vastness of scale means that most games will take several days to complete – indeed, I’ve spent over a month playing a single, large game. This is in stark contrast to RTS games, where you might be able to finish a scenario in 15 minutes. Civ III requires patience, a certain amount of dedication, and an appreciation for overarching historical processes. The graphics, while sufficient, are bare compared to most contemporary games. The sound effects are mediocre at best. For all these reasons, Civ III (and the Civ series in general) have appealed to a particular type of gamer, perhaps more than any other individual title in PC history – a slightly older, “thinking”-type gamer. A nerd, in other words. If you’re a nerd, and want a game that grants you the feeling of being a Godking, like Montezuma or Genghis Khan – a game that lets you make all the decisions, a challenging game that you won’t really be able to muscle-through – then you should check out Civ III. It’s got plenty of flaws, and it ain’t pretty – but it’s the type of game that keeps me awake at night imagining barbarian hordes, or talking to myself in the car about whether to build nuclear plants or focus on air superiority – the type of game that actually seems to capture something real about human cultural history. And that’s no small feat.

There are no pre-package scenarios that come with the game (though you can download some from fan-sites), so your bread-and-butter is the trusty random-map generator. You choose what size world you want, the level of barbarian activity, the number of AI opponent civs, the difficulty level (which varies greatly across 6 categories, from simple to insane), and most importantly, what civilization you want to lead. There are 16 to choose from, including the Chinese, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans. Each civ has a unique military unit that only it has access to, and these usually end up playing a critical role in the game since they’re more powerful than the other civilizations’ units at the comparable time-period. In other word, when you’re unique unit becomes available, it’s a great time to go to war. Additionally, each civ has certain “traits” associated with it, which give it particular bonuses: religion civs don’t go into anarchy when they switch governments, military civs’ units gain veteran status easier, etc. The unique qualities of each civ significantly contribute to the fun-factor of Civ III and its inherent replayability. I still haven’t played with all the civs, and each offers a distinct game-feel.

Sound

I found the soundtrack, which changes as you progress from age to age, to be annoying. It was quickly turned off, and I usually played my own CD’s in the background. The sound effects are limited to when units move over the map, and clash on the “battlefield” – they’re fine, though certainly not mind-blowing. There’s not a lot to say about sound in Civ III and that’s unfortunate.

Final notes: I’ve played this game a lot. That says something – it’s got that replayability factor that makes the high price ($50) worth it in the end. But after finishing a game, I usually take a break from Civ and move onto other games, other genres – because it’s a bit draining, and the end-game is very tedious (so many cities to maintain). I walk away with the mixed feeling that while Civ III captures some real historical trends and simulates cultural processes in an amazingly realistic way, it fails as a complete portrayal of how civilizations develop. Some may argue that the focus on scientific progress and military success IS the defining aspect of cultural evolution – and they may be right. But in terms of game-play, Civ III games always start differently, but usually end the same. In addition, the AI, overall, is disappointing. It does some things well (like trade and diplomacy), but is terrible at conducting war – and because war plays a large role in the game, that is a major flaw. As Civ III is a single-player game (and remains so, even with PTW!!), the lack of a truly challenging AI is disheartening. But given the complexity of the game, and the number of variables being juggled, I am not surprised. It is a testament to the fundamental strength of this game that even with uninspired AI, it continues to provide significant challenge and entertainment game after game after game. Highly recommended.

Gameplay

You’ll start out in 4000 BC, on a darkened map (fog of war), with only a settler and a worker unit. Settlers are used to build new cities, workers to construct roads, irrigate, mine, build colonies, and other tasks that become available as the game progresses. Once you build your first city (and placement is critical), the game progresses in turns. Be forewarned: the pace is decidedly SLOW so get used to it. However, there are tons are decisions to make throughout the game, so you won’t be bored. Most players find the first several millennia the most fun – you don’t what’s going to happen, you don’t know what kind of civilization yours will turn into, you don’t know whether the peaceful Indians are your neighbors, or the aggressive Persians. It would be difficult to list all the factors you need to take into account each turn, the decisions that can be made, but here are some of the most important. Research: the tech-tree in Civ III is the centerpiece of strategic decisions. What you research next and how quickly you can get there will determine your success in the game. With each advance, new military units become available, new buildings, new governments. Research costs money, so another central concern will be Money. Each city produces a certain amount of cash, depending on how many citizens live there, and what terrain you have them working. You will find special resources located throughout the map, which if worked by a citizen, provide you with food bonuses (for faster city growth), cash bonuses (like gold), or shield bonuses (shields being the symbol of production capability – how fast that city can build a unit/building). Each turn you will decide what each of your cities should be producing, and how best to dedicate your citizens and workers. Sound overwhelming? It is at first, but once you understand the basics, the beauty of the system shines through. Perhaps the most brilliant aspect of Civ III is that individual game-play decisions are relatively simple, but putting hundreds of these together makes an extraordinarily complex game. Thus, you end up feeling like a true leader as the game progresses and your empire expands. A large part of your time will be spent on building a military, composed of whatever units are available at that time period. Defense of your cities is crucial, for both protection and bargaining strength in trade-negotiations. Combat is conducted very simply, with one-on-one unit clashes, attack-rating vs. defense rating. Simple, yet elegant.

But herein lies one of my major criticisms of Civ III – it is often touted to be a game with multiple pathways to victory. You can win by accumulating culture, by being elected world leader of the UN, launching a space shuttle to Alpha Centauri, or by conquering other civs. But in the end, all of these pathways require extensive development and use of your military. Now, that’s mostly OK, since going to war is probably the most fun aspect of the game, but increasingly, I’ve felt that Civ III simply boils down to: gains techs quickly, build lots of units, conquer enemies. Sound familiar? Same as any run-of-the-mill RTS? Yes and No. Yes, in that this theme is consistent across strategic PC games, and there’s no simple way around it. No, in that the feel of Civ III is completely different from RTS games, and how you achieve tech leads and military victory is absolutely different. You can engage in extensive trade with civs that you meet, form alliances, establish embassies, initiate trade-embargoes, set up mutual protection pacts, etc., etc. The Diplomacy system of Civ III is one of its shining strengths – comprehensive (you can trade almost anything), useful (necessary, often – to get that coal you lack for railroads), and the AI actually utilizes it effectively. You can’t imagine the feeling when you attack the Japanese after building up your military for 3 centuries, only to find that they’ve formed alliances with your 2 other neighbors in the meantime and now you’re absolutely screwed.

There’s so much more to Civ III –culture boundaries, trade routes, Wonders of the World. Espionage, I have to say, is a serious disappointment – as enabled, it is a highly overpriced and often futile option. With some tweaking in the editor, it can be made more useful but still mostly fails. This brings me to another of Civ’s strengths – the editor. Any chimp can open up the rules file and tweak to their heart’s delight – adjust unit stats (War Elephants more powerful!), rearrange the tech tree, introduce new units (Apaches) & buildings (movie theaters) & governments (Fascism), change the civ’s abilities. You can add new graphics files to the game to give it your own unique look. I’ve probably played around with the editor as much as I have with the game itself. Having said that, the editor could, and should, do more – it’s still limited in what you are allowed to tweak and the options are far from infinite. There’s enough to keep you busy, but it could have been so much more powerful that it’s almost a shame.
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Sound

The sound is a little less than adequate. The backround music is hardly good enough to be noticable, however each ages music can get very repetitive. You don't here alot, but you do hear some noises made by your units and actions. Some are effective (A horse galloping toward an enemy city) and some are a bit awkward (did I just hear that pikeman cough?) But, you don't play the game for the sound anyway. It doesn't subtract from the great gameplay at all.

Gameplay

Gameplay is what Civilization III is all about. It makes up for the so-so graphics and sound. The Game makes you think...should I be communist? a Democracy? Is Queen Elizabeth preparing to attack me? Should I expand my empire and risk the corruption? All of these desicions come up in the game. The game is based on turns, you dont run everywhere at any time, like C&C Red Alert, so it lets you micromanage your civilization without worrying about what your enemies are doing. (the AI doesn't care if you take to long either). You found cities, build up you culture, military, or Science, whatever victory you are concentrating on. You can win Diplomaticly (become elected leader of the UN) Culturally(have an amazing culture) Scientifically(be the first to launch a Space Ship) or militarily (Defeat the other Civs.)
The AI is very compelling on all Dificulty levels (there are many) and presents you with many challenges. The game is also easy to learn. I had never played a Civ game before, so I wasn't Sure about anything when i got the game. It only took a couple sittings to fully understand how to use all the features and play the game. Overall the Gameplay is great.
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Summary

I have never played the previous Civ games and am somewhat new to the strategy games. I am a first person, shooter DF2 kind of guy. I had heard about this game from a friend who raved about it. So.....having just started on it, what do I think? So far, I love it! I have gotten my rear kicked every time I play and that is a bit frustrating but I am not giving up. I also have the expansion pack so that I can play on line. I will wait until I am more skilled though before I get into that. The game is not for the simple minded. What I mean is, it is a time consuming, thinker's game, not unlike chess. You really have to think out your moves and the way you deal with your neighbors. Me being me, I opted for heavy combat from the start. That is not going to cut it as I discovered rather quickly. If you concentrate on war.....you will soon be a memory. Speaking of war....it seems like my enemies win more fights than I do and that is frustrating. All in all......the game is a great one I think. Just keep in mind, if you are looking for great graphics and high speed action....buy Counter Strike or something like that. If you want to spend some time using your brain and being challenged by rude world leaders who want what you have......this is the game for you.