So addictive you'll be playing it in your dreams.
This is yet another long series of games that I'm a newcomer to. And while I have played several strategy (most turn based) games, Civilization 4 stands clearly above them all. Gameplay: 10
The game stresses the balancing of many true to life aspects. Combat, defense, population growth, pleasing the masses, diplomacy are just a few of the many aspects you can control. Micromanaging all of them can be difficult, and sometimes aggrevating. Thankfully the computer AI does a great job of controlling many aspects of the game that you choose not to control. This leaves you free to focus more on the parts that the computer doesn't have much control over: combat and expansion. The combat system is more like an RPG battle system. You try to work the system to take advantage of your opponents weaknesses while the computer calculates all of the battle percentages to determine the outcome. While the actual battle itself is very simple, the game does stress using strategy for proper unit placement and even which unit to use. Overall, every bit of this game requires careful planning and astute thinking. So if you don't like to plan ahead or think to deeply on strategy, you may want to pass this one up.
Graphics: 8
The only reason the graphics were rated lower was because the characters on the world map just didn't look right. Vehicles, cities, and especially the terrain all look great, but the people just don't look right to me for some reason.
Sound: 10
The music fits well with each country and technical period. Voice acting on the units is done well, though it does get repitious after a few hours. Leonard Nemoy is definitely a great bonus to game as he delivers one line comments on your tech achievements. The game probably would have done just as well without it, but still it adds a little bit of class that only Spock could bring.
Value: 10
I've found it difficult to find good quality pc games as of late. Either the gameplay is downtrodden by flashy graphics or just poor mechanics. Or the game plays out too quickly leaving little to no replay value. The shear number of options that is built into the game makes replay value quite high. The programmers have managed to fill the game with so many great options that it would take several gaming sessions just to discover them all. Tilt: 10
What really sells a game to me is it's modding capacity. Nothing brings a game to life more than one deisigned specifically to be changed by it's players. Add in a thriving community of such fans that produce high quality mods and you have a game that has near limitless potential. This game just happens to have all this, in addition to an already released (and patched) expansion pack. When you finally do grow tired of this game just look around for something to change it's mechanics and the magic starts all over again.
Overall: 9.7
What really sets this game apart from the rest is it's addictive gameplay. Many new releases offer great graphics but the gameplay and replay has been questionable in nearly all of them. There are so many options to play here as is and the modding aspect just increases it even further. It will make you lose sleep and keep you coming back for more just to see how the game will playout after each turn. So setup some time off from work, send the kids off to the grandparents, brew a vat of coffee and kiss your spouse goodbye since your life will be revolving around your computer for the next month at least!
Happy gaming all.