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Sid Meier's Civilization V (also known as Civilization 5) is a turn-based strategy computer game developed by Firaxis Games. It is the latest game in the Sid Meier's Civilization series, and was released for Microsoft Windows on September 21, 2010 in North America and on September 24, 2010 internationally.[1]
In Sid Meier's Civilization V, the player leads a civilization from prehistoric times into the future on a randomly-generated map, achieving one of a number of different victory conditions through research, diplomacy, expansion, economic development, government and military conquest. The game is based on an entirely new game engine with hexagonal tiles instead of the square tiles of earlier games in the series.[2] Many elements from Sid Meier's Civilization IV and its expansion packs have been removed or changed, such as religion and espionage. The combat system has been overhauled, removing stacking of military units and enabling cities to defend themselves by firing directly on nearby enemies.[3] In addition, the maps contain computer-controlled city-states as non-player characters that are available for trade, diplomacy and conquest. A civilization's borders also expand more realistically, favoring more productive terrain,[4] and the concept of roads has changed.[5]
The game features community, modding and multi-player elements.[2]
Gameplay[ | ]
AI[ | ]
The AI in Sid Meier's Civilization V is designed to operate on four levels: the tactical AI controls individual units; the operational AI oversees the entire war front; the strategic AI manages the entire empire; and the grand strategic AI sets long-term goals and determines how to win the game. The four levels of AI will complement each other to allow for complex and flexible AI behaviors.[3]
Each of the AI-controlled leaders has a unique personality, determined by a combination of 'traits' on a ten-point scale; however, the values may slightly vary in each different game.[3] There are 25 traits, grouped into categories including growth, expansion, wide strategy, military preferences, recon, naval recon, naval growth, and development preferences.[6]
Cities[ | ]
Now cities can spread up to three tiles outwards instead of two.[7] As before, cities remain the central pillar of Civilization gameplay. A city can be founded on a desired location by a settler unit, and the city will grow in population, produce units and buildings, and generate research and wealth.[8] The city will also develop culturally and expand its borders one tile at a time, which is critical in claiming territory and resources. The expansion process will be automated and directed towards the city's needs, but it can be accelerated with gold.[3]
City warfare has been revamped. Cities have hit points that, if taken down to zero, will signal the city's defeat to invading forces. Hit points can be increased by merging units with the city.[citation needed] Captured cities can be annexed, razed, or transformed into puppet states, each option having distinct advantages; for example, puppet states will provide resources and have lower unhappiness.[9]
Units and combat[ | ]
In this iteration of the series, tactical gameplay is encouraged over numbers, with the introduction of new gameplay mechanisms. Most significantly, the square grid of the world map has been removed in favor of a hexagonal grid, a feature inspired by the 1994 game Panzer General, according to lead designer Jon Shafer.[10] In addition, each hexagonal tile, including city tiles, can accommodate only one military unit at a time, forcing armies to spread out over large areas instead of piling onto a single tile. This has the effect of moving most large battles outside of the cities, and forces increased realism on sieges, which are now most effective when surrounding the city tile.[3][9] Also, increased movement points, simpler transportation over water, ranged attacks, and swapping of adjacent units will allow for more versatile maneuvering of units.[3][9][11]
Units take longer to produce than in previous games from the series, making them more valuable. As they defeat enemy units, units may be either promoted for bonuses or forgo their promotion in lieu of being completely healed. Another departure from previous games is that units are no longer always destroyed if defeated in combat.[12]
Research[ | ]
Technology trading has been removed in favour of joint technological ventures. Two civilizations at peace can form a research pact, which for an initial investment of gold will provide both with a random unknown technology after 20 turns as long as they remain at peace.[13] However, it is possible for a civilization to sign a research agreement for the sole purpose of getting an enemy to spend money which could be used for other purposes; AI civilizations are programmed to sometimes use this tactic before declaring war.[14]
Social Policies[ | ]
In a change to the culture system, in Sid Meier's Civilization V players have the ability to "purchase" social policies at the expense of earned culture. These social policies are made up of ten separate trees, and filling out six of the ten trees is a requirement to win a cultural victory. These policies replace the "Civics" government system of Civilization IV; the main difference is that the player had to switch out of old civics to adopt a new one, while social policies are cumulative bonuses. According to Jon Shafer, "With the policies system, we wanted to keep the feel of mixing and matching to construct one's government that was part of Civ IV, but we also wanted to instill a sense of forward momentum. Rather than having to switch out of one policy to adopt another, you build upon the policies already unlocked. The thought process we want to promote is "What cool new effect do I want?" rather than the feeling of needing to perform detailed analysis to determine if switching is a good idea." [15]
| Policy | Unlocked |
|---|---|
| Tradition | Start |
| Liberty | Start |
| Honor | Start |
| Piety | Classical Era |
| Patronage | Medieval Era |
| Commerce | Medieval Era |
| Freedom | Renaissance Era |
| Rationalism | Renaissance Era |
| Order | Industrial Era |
| Autocracy | Industrial Era |
City-states[ | ]
City-states, a new feature to the series, are non-expanding minor civilizations that can be interacted with. They can be conquered outright, or befriended for bonuses such as resources and units. There will be three types of city-states, each with different personalities and bonuses: maritime, cultured, and militaristic. A city state will have the potential to play a prominent role in diplomacy among larger civilizations, as well as make specific requests and grant rewards.[16]
Victory conditions[ | ]
As in previous games, there are multiple ways to victory in addition to military conquest. The player may focus on scientific research and become the first to assemble and launch a spaceship, winning a space race victory. Diplomatic victory requires support from other civilizations and city states in the United Nations. In the revamped culture system of Sid Meier's Civilization V that consists of social policy "trees", the cultural victory involves filling out six of the ten "trees" and completing the Utopia project (reminiscent of the Ascent to Transcendence secret project in Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri).[9] World domination is of course an option, but the victory condition has been simplified compared to previous games in the series. Rather than completely destroying the other civilizations, it is now only necessary to capture all of the capital cities.[17]
Civilizations and leaders[ | ]
There are 18 civilizations available in the standard retail version of Sid Meier's Civilization V. The player will choose a civilization and assume the role of its leader, based on prominent historical figures. Each leader of a civilization will have a unique unit, another unique unit or a unique building, and a special ability.[18] The player will be able to interact with the leaders of other civilizations via the diplomacy screen, which features, for the first time in the series, fully rendered and animated leaders that speak their native languages.[2][3]
| Civilization | Leader | Unique Unit 1 | Unique Unit 2 | Unique Building | Unique Ability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| America | George Washington | Minutemen | B17 | None | Manifest Destiny |
| Arabia | Harun al-Rashid | Camel Archers | None | Bazaar | Trade Caravans |
| Aztec | Montezuma | Jaguar | None | Floating Gardens | Sacrificial Captives |
| China | Wu Zetian | Cho-Ko-Nue | None | Paper Maker | Art of War |
| Egypt | Ramesses II | War Chariot | None | Burial Tomb | Monument Builders |
| England | Elizabeth I | Longbowman | Ship of the Line | None | Sun Never Sets |
| France | Napoleon I | Musketeer | Foreign Legion | None | Ancien Régime |
| Germany | Otto von Bismarck | Landsknecht | Panzer | None | Furor Teutonicus |
| Greece | Alexander | Hoplite | Champion Cavalry | None | Hellenic League |
| India | Gandhi | War Elephant | None | Mughal Fort | Population Growth |
| Iroquois | Hiawatha | Mohawk Warrior | None | Longhouse | The Great Warpath |
| Japan | Oda Nobunaga | Samurai | Zero | None | Bushido |
| Ottoman | Suleiman the Magnificent | Janissary | Sipahi | None | Barbary Corsairs |
| Persia | Darius | Immortal | None | Satrap’s Court | Achaemenid Legacy |
| Rome | Augustus Caesar | Legion | Ballista | None | The Glory of Rome |
| Russia | Catherine | Cossack | None | Krepost | Siberian Riches |
| Siam | Ramkhamhaeng | Naresuan’s Elephant | None | Wat | Father Governs Children |
| Songhai | Askia | Mandekalu Cavalry | None | Mud Pyramid Mosque | River Warlord |
Downloadable content[ | ]
Besides the 18 civilizations available in the standard retail version, additional civilizations are available as downloadable content.[19][20] So far Babylonia under Nebuchadnezzar II has been announced as a bonus civilization included in the Steam and Direct2Drive Digital Deluxe Editions.[19][21] Additionally, both scenarios and standalone maps will be offered as DLC. The first "Double Civilization and Scenario Pack" DLC is tentatively scheduled for a late 2010 release.[19] Players who pre-order through amazon.com will have access to the DLC "Cradle of Civilization: Asia", players pre-ordering from Gamestop will have access to the "Cradle of Civilization: The Mediterranean", and players pre-ordering from Walmart will receive "Cradle of Civilization: The Americas"
| Civilization | Leader | Unique Unit 1 | Unique Unit 2 | Unique Building | Unique Ability | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Babylonia | Nebuchadnezzar II | Babylonian Bowmen | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Steam, D2D |
Release[ | ]
The game was released on September 21, 2010 in North America and September 24 internationally,[1] through retail and the Steam content delivery system. In conjunction with its release, the State of Maryland, where Meier and Firaxis are based, named September 21, 2010 as "Sid Meier's Civilization V Day", in part due to Meier's success and for him "continuing a tradition of developing the talent and creativity of future generations".[22]
A special edition of Civilization V is also set for worldwide release on the same day as the standard edition. The package will consist of: a 176-page artbook, a "behind-the-scenes" DVD at Firaxis, 2-CD game soundtrack selections, and 5 metal figurines of in-game units, as well as the game itself.[23]
A demo was announced to become available on September 21, same day as the North American full game release.[24]
Localization[ | ]
| PC Language Support | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | Interface | Full Audio | Subtitles |
 Steam
|
         
|
|
|
| Notes | The macOS & GNU/Linux versions are only available in the following languages:     
| ||
Minimum & Recommended Specifications[ | ]
| Microsoft Windows Minimum/Recommended Specifications
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Specifications | Recommended Specifications | ||
| Operating System | Windows XP SP3 | Operating System | Windows Vista SP2 / Windows 7 |
| CPU |  Core 2 Duo 1.80 GHz  Athlon 64 X2 2.0 GHz
|
CPU | 1.80 GHz Quad-Core |
| RAM | 2 GB | RAM | 4 GB |
| GPU |  GeForce 7900 GS  Radeon HD 2600 XT Core i3 Integrated
|
GPU | GeForce 9800 Radeon HD 4800
|
| Graphics RAM | 256 MB | Graphics RAM | 512 MB |
| Storage | 8 GB | Storage | 8 GB |
| Sound | DirectX 9.0c-compatible | Sound | DirectX 11-compatible |
| Additional Software | DirectX 9.0c | Additional Software | DirectX 11 |
| Notes | Optimized for the touch-screen Ultrabook device | Notes | Optimized for the touch-screen Ultrabook device |
| macOS Minimum/Recommended Specifications
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Specifications | Recommended Specifications | ||
| Operating System | macOS 10.12 "Sierra" | ||
| CPU | Core 2 Duo 2.40 GHz
|
CPU | Quad Core 2.60 GHz |
| RAM | 2 GB | RAM | 4 GB |
| GPU | GeForce 8600 Radeon HD 2600 HD 4000 Integrated
| ||
| Graphics RAM | 256 MB | Graphics RAM | 512 MB |
| Storage | 8 GB | ||
| Connectivity | Internet (TCP/IP) and LAN (TCP/IP) play supported. | ||
| Notes | It is possible for Mac and PC to become out of sync during updates. Within this short time period, Mac users will only be able to play other Mac users. This game is not supported on volumes formatted as Mac OS Extended (Case Sensitive). The following video chipsets are not supported for Civilization V: ATI Radeon X1000 series series, Intel HD 2400, NVIDIA GeForce 7000 series, NVIDIA GeForce 8600, NVIDIA GeForce 9400, Intel GMA (950/X3100), Intel HD 3000 | ||
| GNU/Linux Minimum Specifications
| |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum Specifications | |||
| Operating System | SteamOS | ||
| CPU | Core i3 2.40 GHz A10 2.40 GHz
| ||
| RAM | 4 GB | ||
| GPU | GeForce 640M Radeon HD 6450 Iris Pro Integrated
| ||
| Graphics RAM | 1 GB | ||
| Storage | 10 GB | ||
| Notes | Don't meet the above requirements? Running on Ubuntu? That doesn't mean your configuration wont run Civ V, it just means we have not tested and vetted your configuration. Visit the Civilization V community page to share your experience with other Linux players and learn about how to send bugs to Aspyr. Your feedback will help us improve Civ V Linux and future AAA Linux releases! Intel Integrated video chipsets (GMA 9XX, HD 3XXX) will not run Civilization V for SteamOS and Linux, and are unsupported. | ||
References[ | ]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 2K Games Conquers PCs with the Release of Sid Meier's Civilization V on September 21, 2010 in North America. 2K Games (2010-06-11). Retrieved on 2010-07-23
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2K Games Announces Sid Meier’s Civilization® V in Development at World Renowned Firaxis Games Studio. BusinessWire (2010-02-18).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Butts, Steve (2010-03-08). Civilization V Preview. IGN. Retrieved on 2010-03-09
- ↑ Civilizaton V Preview: Small Changes, Big Differences. Kotaku.
- ↑ Civilization V to eradicate road spaghetti?. Kotaku.
- ↑ Civilizations Wiki (English).
- ↑ Civilization V Analyst - Cities.
- ↑ Andrew Park (2010-03-10). Civilization V Impressions - First Look. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2010-07-22
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Tito, Greg (2010-06-16). E3 2010: Civilization V Breathes New Life Into the Series. The Escapist. Retrieved on 2010-07-21
- ↑ Julian Murdoch and Jason Wilson (2010-04-30). Civilization 5. GamePro.com. Retrieved on 2010-08-10
- ↑ Charles Onyett (2010-06-15). All About Civilization V. IGN.com. Retrieved on 2010-07-22
- ↑ 2KGames (2010-09-13). Civilization V Gameplay Part 2. UStreamLive.com. Retrieved on 2010-07-22
- ↑ Civilization V Analyst: Civilizations. Retrieved on 12 September 2010
- ↑ Plomp, Robert. Apolyton's Civ 5 Hands-on Preview. Retrieved on 12 September 2010
- ↑ Civilization V Q&A--First E3 Details. Gamespot (15 June 2010). Retrieved on 12 September 2010
- ↑ Staff, GameSpot (2010-06-15). Civilization V Q&A--First E3 Details. GameSpot. Retrieved on 2010-07-22
- ↑ Civilization V Analyst: Miscellaneous. Retrieved on 12 September 2010
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Civilization V - CIVILIZATIONS. civilization5.com. Retrieved on 2010-07-22
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 http://www.direct2drive.com/0/9611/product/Buy-Sid-Meier%E2%80%99s-Civilization-V-Download
- ↑ http://forums.civfanatics.com/showpost.php?p=9400172&postcount=1
- ↑ 2K Games’ Sid Meier’s Civilization® V Shipping with Steamworks: Steam exclusive digital deluxe edition and pre-order bonus item announced. BusinessWire (2010-05-06).
- ↑ Remo, Chris (2010-07-29). Maryland Declares September 21 'Civilization V Day'. Gamasutra. Retrieved on 2010-07-29
- ↑ Announcing Sid Meier's Civilization V Special Edition. civilization5.com (2010-07-09). Retrieved on 2010-07-21
- ↑ Civilization V Playable Demo Release Date. civilization5.com (2010-08-27). Retrieved on 2010-08-27
