Civilisation V Out Now!!! So Awesome, and social life ending...

[Maximus]

http://civilization5.com/

2K Games has announced Sid Meier's Civilization V for release on PC this autumn.

We popped over to Baltimore-based developer Firaxis recently to check on the game's progress and will have a full preview and interview to present in a few weeks.

In the meantime, you can check out the first Civilization V screenshots on Eurogamer now.

We can also reveal that Civ V (or "Civvy" if you like) puts you back in the role of a world leader, guiding one of 18 civilisations from the dawn of man to the space age, and that you will be doing war, diplomacy, research and reality TV in between. Most of those.

You will also pit your wits against some of the greatest and most notorious leaders of this or any age, although full details are still to be announced.

We do know, however, that City States will present a new diplomatic battleground, and that you will continue to manage relationships with other leaders by bribing them, trading and kicking their heads off.

When all else fails war will take place on "vast, realistic and diverse landscapes", and this time you will be able to fall back on ranged bombardment, too, loosing off rounds from behind the front lines.

Perhaps adopting from the BAFTA-winning successes of Civilization Revolution on consoles, the developer is also promising a more intuitive interface suitable for veterans and newcomers alike, with a range of "trusted advisors" to walk you through things if you get stuck.

Interestingly, Firaxis also mentions "new ways to play and win, new tools to manage and expand your civilisation, extensive modding capabilities, and intensely competitive multiplayer".

Modders and multiplayer fans will be able to take advantage of an in-game community hub for playing via internet or email, and for sharing scenarios, comparing scores and achievements and accessing fan-sites.

Unlike a lot of modern PC games, Civ V also promises LAN and hotseat multiplayer support, so you really can fill your boots.

Look out for more on Sid Meier's Civilization V in the next few weeks when we report on our Baltimore adventures. So that's Civ V, autumn 2010. Nobody tell Iain Banks.

OMG!

Civ V! OMG, going to waste so much of my life on this game.

[Lord_Stewie]

Don't get it Max.

Thanks for ruining my life as well.

[scragham]

anyone else been reading the previews that have come out?

i'm really excited thus far from what i've read. i'm not sure how well i'll be able to break out of the "MORE CITIES MORE CITIES MORE CITIES" mindset that Civ 1-4 have ingrained into me, but the concept of increasing the importance of each individual city and needing more space so that a city can grow larger sounds great. the entire concept of city-states also sounds great... in civ 4 there was a single-city challenge mode, but that just seemed like an exercise in pain because with the system in civ 4 (and every previous iteration) you really couldn't do anything with one city... thus no entities like Hong Kong, or Singapore.

also, FINALLY ranged combat. was the stupidest thing in civ 4 to be having my very expensive self-propelled arty doing direct attacks against enemy stacks.

in sid meier we trust! can't wait for this game.

[mikejet]

I read that one article on them revamping the entire road building. I want to know more!

[scragham]

Originally Posted by mikejet

I read that one article on them revamping the entire road building. I want to know more!

i'm intrigued also, but that damned article was really short on details. grr.

i think overall the road system as is works ok, it just looks like crap graphically and needs some enhancement... like having the existence of superhighways/autobahns that provide an even bigger bonus to movement but can only go from specific points to specific points (like city to city, or whatnot).

need... more... details...

[mikejet]

I remember long nights playing CivNet with friends....good times