Many should remember Civilization (Civ) 2 and all the hours you poured into creating the greatest civilization in the world. Well, Sid Meier once again planning to steal your life with the release of Civilization 3. Not only does this game use past success, it also introduces several new ideas.

    Veterans of the old Civ games should feel right at home with this game. And the game’s easy enough for new players to pick up very easily. Of course if either group has any questions, there’s always the 250+ page instruction book to help them. First, you need to pick how you want to play: New Game, Quick Game, Tutorial, etc. Picking new world will give you the options for creating you ideal world to conquer. Options include world size, how the barbarians will act, continent size and type, temperature, climate, and age. The control over the world is amazing. The biggest problem is the removal of some of the tribes you could choose. Ahem, the Carthagians. Choosing the biggest world will allow the chance to face up to 15 opponents. This is more then double how many you could previously face. Having these options all done on like two pages is a big relief. All other modes of play will take you straight into game. You don’t get to choose any options for the world.

    Once in game, you should notice the huge improvement in graphics from Civ 2. The greatly improved textures will probably stand out first.. The unit models have been upgraded so to speak. Not only that, but they are more animated this time. When a unit is told to build a road, now it looks like he’s working instead of just standing around. This also creates neat sound affects. The combat animation is also superior to the old ones. In fact, the only problem with the graphics is that the world isn’t animated. Civ 2 showed creatures moving, plants swaying, and such. But now the world is still, lifeless if you will. I’ve checked for options, but have come up empty. Oh well, just a small price to pay for all the enhancements. There is also a city view and an upgradeable throne room. The city view shows your city in a closer, more detailed image. All of the improvements made to it show, wonders and non-wonders can be seen here. Nothing to grand. You’ll probably use it once each time you get a new wonder and then never again. The throne room is a nice feature though. It’s not like the old throne room, this time you upgrade the outside. And with the addition of five different styles, you’ll want to upgrade more then ever. Unfortunately, the different styles don’t go that well together; making the use of one per throne room not uncommon.

    The sound and music are nothing spectacular, but aren’t bad enough to be distracting. The music is very gentle and plays well with the activities of the game. The sound affects are a nice touch. I like listening to the horses run or the artillery moving. Combat sounds are also pretty good. Hacking and slashing are enjoyable while winning, but horrifying while losing.

     Civ 3 plays almost exactly like its predecessors, just with many small changes. The first thing I notice was the inability to use the arrow keys to move you guys. You now have to use the number keys. Then the lack of a settler being able to build roads, irrigate, and anything else they could do, aside from building cities. Now there is a new unit called the Worker; he does all the menial tasks that were once reserved for the settler. Aside from some military units, it is this change within the units that really matters. Civ 3’s difficulty has been turned up. In the past, cities equipped with two defensive units could hold off major offensives on the easier difficulties. Not any longer. I‘ve watched many a “well” defended city fall. Advisors have been changed, as well as the interaction between civilizations. There is a bargaining table of sorts, in which civilizations can offer goods, exchange maps, and other diplomatic things. Best part, you get to look at Joan of Arc. And you won’t have to worry about being forced into a peace treaty anymore you now have total control over how merciless you defeat you enemies. And just because you learned a new technology and gained a new unit doesn’t mean you can build this unit. Well, not everywhere anyway. You cities must have the necessary resources to build it. Example, the ironclad requires iron and coal in order to produce it. But the biggest factor to the gameplay is that Civ 3 progresses much slower then the others. Maybe it’s my rusty skills, but I used to be able to have the world conquered by 1950 AD. Now, current game is around 1500 AD, and I don’t even have ironclads.

    Never played a Civ game before, but love strategy games? Well then, this game’s for you. With the many different tribes, this game is sure to get plenty of replay time. It also keeps in tradition with the series in being very addicting and hours will slip by. The changes to the negotiating and advisors should please all vets, while the slower progression might make them bored. Overall, Civ 2 was a better game. Civ 3 comes off a work in progress. Many new ideas, but they’ve lost some of the charm the earlier games had. I can’t wait for Civ 4.