Civilization Might Go Episodic

<strong>[ Interview ]</strong>

<p>Sid Meier recently gave an <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162633.html?part=rss&tag=gs_pc&subj=6162633" target="_blank" title="interview">interview</a> with Gamespot to pimp the <a href="http://www.civilization.com/chronicles/" target="_blank" title="Chronicles">Civilization Chronicles</a> box set. It's more or less the usual stuff, but Sid did mention that <a href="http://www.firaxis.com/" target="_blank" title="Firaxis">Firaxis</a> is considering giving Civilization the episodic treatment.</p><blockquote><p> GS: What about episodic content? It seems to have worked well for the Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Might we expect Civilization campaigns to eventually be sold a la carte online? </p><p> SM: It's definitely something we've been talking about. We like the idea. Actually, we have lots of ideas we want to act on. Now, it's just a matter of timing and human resources in figuring out how to make it all happen.</p></blockquote><p>So yeah, it might not happen and I for one hope it doesn't if it means future Civ games being sold in bite-size chunks (like the new <a href="http://www.telltalegames.com/samandmax/" target="_blank" title="S&M">Sam & Max</a>). Occasional bonus scenarios aren't a problem, but still not my cup of tea. </p>

 

So is "episodic" the new buzzword for ripping off morons and little kids parents?

 

WTF, episodic? Nonsense! Civilization isn't an adventure, why the hell going episodic? Fucking hacks.

 

I wouldn't take Meier all that seriously regarding Civ as episodic content. For other Firaxis projects for sure. Meier is big on experimentation and would certainly not rule out episodic delivery for other projects.

I think this reply should just be taken in that vein. Considering the number of prototypes Meier is working on at any one time, I'd be astonished if none of them would work in an episode format.

 

I think there is room and a place in gaming for episodic content. No, its not paying $20 or $30 for a stand alone expansion pack. I think its with releasing content at regular intervals as part of a subscription service. Sort of what Sam and Max is doing. No way is the 3 hour adventure game worth $9. But, thats the price for a month's subscription to Game tap, which gives you Sam and Max for free, plus a ton of older games to go with it.

I can imagine a company getting half a dozen "Sam and Maxes", charing a monthly fee of $10 or $80 for the year, and releasing new "episodes" through out the month. That would be cool, I think.

Not sure how this would work with a game or series like Civilization. Hmmm... I bet Brad Wardell could think of something.

 

Is there something wrong with my perception of the word "episodic"? Clearly when I read that I imagined Civilization games that only covered a episode of history, like "Civilization: Stone age".

 

You know, I'd really enoy a civ-like game that only covered a certain period, a la legion or chariots of war, particularly for the middle ages.

Personally, I see no problem in scenarios being released as episodic content, rather than a bunch of them being bundled together and sold as an expansion pack with additional tweaks to the full game. As long as you didn't have to buy the packs to improve the vanilla game, you could just go ahead and buy the ones you fancied.

 

Indeed, he's probably talking about bundles of scenarios which I'd be willing to pay a modest amount for in chunks.

While it's true Civ already has a fairly talented and dedicated mod community -- most of the official scenarios and mods are invariably better.

 

I won't pay for additional scenarios. Aren't they just turn limited games with a text briefing and altered victory conditions? I must be missing something.

Additional content for a CIV game will easily fit into a single expansion.. No justification for going episodic beyond developer wallet lust.

I abandoned CIV after 3, haven't bothered with 4 - so maybe I shouldn't comment.

 

Civ4 became very sluggish in a late game if you didn't have a small map. The wait at every turn being long (that with my old computer) long long. While it seemed to be just right and much better than Civ3 it never kept me playing after the first not finished game. I believe it is likely because it didn't feel that much different from the earlier combined with the long turns that made me lose will to play it.

 

Some scenarios from the Warlords expansion (which I like very much) are more like "total conversions" - new units, special maps, new tech trees, special (and important) rules (e.g. for religion, movement, recruiting troops etc), new music... it's almost like playing a different game.

Anyway, a company kicking out a turn based strategy once in a few years is not a WoW-type business which earns millions of dollars each month. And as making new installments is getting more and more expensive, I see why they're considering "episodic content", whatever this could be. As long as they don't sell anything which should be part of the original game, I'll be fine. Somehow I have trust in Sid that he won't keep all gunpowder units out of Civ 5 to sell them later for $5 individually, but he'd rather offer us a good scenario or two...

edit: and yeah, Civ IV is great, even without the expansion. Horribly addictive stuff, and I played all previous versions.

 

Exactly. Even some of the fan made mods/scenarios are really impressive like the middle ages mod/scenarios. The beauty of Civ is that it can be used to make some poor man's war/combat strat games, too.

They could also add new civilizations, etc. I'd certainly be willing to spend $10-$15 depending on the amount of the content. At the very least you're supporting game designers that have carried a terrific game for over fifteen years and continue to improve on what is a simple yet highly addictive and entertaining product.

 

A lot of players feel that way and not just because of hardware specs. If you are playing a traditional game (non-scenario) then the fun/challenge tends to wane the closer you get to the modern era especially if you aren't playing an aggressive/warmongering style game. That's why I prefer the scenarios as they keep play locked in a certain era and usually you are always at war with one civ or another.

 

Hmm, seems like the expansion is worth getting then, Elwro's tastes usually match with mine when it comes to those games.

And yes, I agree, Witty. I usually only play until the modern era before trying a different world. Somehow, the beginning is the most fun part for me. But this applies to many games. The early turns of Master of Magic on impossible difficulty are where the fun is!