You know what I’ve noticed about these first few inductees to the video game hall of fame? Well, for starters, they’re all sequels: Civ2, Diablo 2, Mega Man 2. They’re also all older games, which sort of makes sense. You don’t induct Albert Pujols today; you make sure that he can stand the test of time as one of the best in the game. Chances are he holds up, just as chances are that (insert your favorite new video game here) holds up. But that’s why you play the games…hey, how about that double-meaning?
Today brings us to Civilization 2. I was a big fan of the original Civilization game; I remember playing it at Learningsmith in the local mall and thinking, “This is the kind of game I want to play for the rest of my life.” So when Civ2 came out, I was ready to hop on board. The game stays very true to its predecessor, remaining a turn-based strategy game, but with a lot of added complexities that really enrich the experience. They incorporated a couple of new battle concepts (to prevent spearmen from beating tanks…too often), and changed up some of the wonders of the world to try to balance them a little better. Additionally, they improved diplomacy (slightly) and added an Internet- and network-capable multiplayer option.
But at its heart, the reasons that Civ2 was tremendous were the same reasons that the original game was so much fun: building up cities, waging war, managing research, and conquering the world (in whichever way you see fit). The opportunity to play against your friends is obviously a bonus, especially since the difficulty levels on the game seem to get very hard, very quickly. Level 1 is “Chieftain,” which is relatively easy. Level 2 is “Warlord,” where you’ll lose most battles. Anything beyond that and you really must just be a glutton for punishment.
The game runs easily in any Windows starting at 95, up to and including XP (I haven’t tried it in Vista, but I assume Vista cracks your disc in half and spits on your face). It runs in a window; add to this the fact that it’s turn-based, and you’ve got the perfect game for when you’re multi-tasking. You can run AIM and Gmail while you play, and even kick in an online TV show.
It’s not widely available for purchase anymore, but you should be able to find a copy on eBay or Amazon. Give me a holler if you need help and I’ll try to find it for you.
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The copy of Civ2 that I picked up as part of the Chronicles of Civilization box set does run with Windows Vista. My disc was not cracked in half. It may have spit on my face, but it may have also have been the dog.
With this recent addition to the Video Game HOF, when are we kicking up the Civ Tuesdays again? CIV TUESDAYS!!!
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