6,000 year scenario

[Alci]

I think the only major thing that has always been missing from the Civ games is the chance to take control of a real world civilization all the way from its starting point, right up to the Twenty-first Century. With the real world challenges coming up at the right time.

For example, let's say you choose to play as Carthage, you will take the control at about 300 BC, your first challenge will be to face the Romans. If you survive that, then at around 500 AD, you will have to face the Germanic invasions (suddenly tonnes of Huns, Vandals, and Goths will appear and sweep into Europe). Then if you survive that, at around 700 AD, the Arab invasion will occur, then the Mongols, then the Turks, etc.

Or alternatively, let's say you choose to play as the USA, you would take control at around 1750 and your first challange would be to win the revolutionary war, then you would face the war with Mexico, the Civil War, the World Wars with Germany and Japan, then the Cold War, and finaly the War on Terror.

This kind of game would be a lot more dynamic, civilizations would have to spring into existence from out of nowhere, for example before 1200, the Mongols were nothing, but at that point in the game, the Mongols would have to suddenly appear as a major superpower.

Civ games can often end up being too boring and linear, often the most powerful civilizations will just get stronger and stronger and it will be obvious quite early on who will win. In the real world, history was never like that, if you look at who were the major powers in the past (Egypt, Greece, Arabia, Persia, Babylon, Spain, Britain, etc.) most of them are no longer superpowers anymore. A more sophisticated Civ engine should be able to duplicate this kind of instability and dynamism.....

[Zomgmeister]

This thing is called “Rhye's and Fall of Civilization”. It is included in Civ 4 (I am not sure what version of it) as a mod, and it is downloadable for free. Just google it.

[satsui]

I like the idea, but I think it would be better if it was built in and not a mod.

[Zomgmeister]

I like the idea, but I think it would be better if it was built in and not a mod.

And the difference is?..

This setting should remain as feature which can be enabled or disabled anyway. Basically, a mod. It has been said already that Civ 5 will be even more modding-friendly, so I expect loads of drastically different Civ 5 experiences in various mods.

[ta game masta]

I agree, I hate it how you get such little time

[epatton1001]

This thing is called “Rhye's and Fall of Civilization”. It is included in Civ 4 (I am not sure what version of it) as a mod, and it is downloadable for free. Just google it.

This. Rhyes is a lot of fun. But it does get really resource heavy at the end.

[The Purple Viking]

So, there was a board game way back in the day called Civilization (or something), and it contained exactly this sort of mechanic. With each new era, players would randomly (by card draw) be assigned to one of the various civs of the day. You would then invade, conquer, attack, trade, etc., with not only the current era's player-controlled civs, but also the inactive civs of ages past, including your own past regimes, which you no longer control. Players would win or lose based on their handling of all their civs over time. It was kind of fun, in a tedious dorky board-game sort of way.

I once read an interview with Sid Meier in which he said he was inspired by that board game when he made the original Civilization for computer. I sometimes wonder if copyright laws or something of the sort forced the civilization-to-last plan of the Meier series. I kind of like it the way it is though. I enjoy the idea of Aztecs-with-rifles, Americans-in-loincloths, and other anachronisms.