Civilization

We recently were able to go hands-on with a playable build of the title and things indeed look solid. Civilization is not a title that shows off the N-Gage's graphical prowess. It's a deceptively simple-looking empire-building strategy game that lets you go up against some of history's greatest leaders and build up your very own civilization and see it evolve over time. We use the term "deceptive" since the simple presentation belies the game's depth and tried-and-true gameplay balance. Players build cities and governments, explore vast lands, research new technologies, erect Wonders of the World, and -- true to humanity's turbulent history -- fight wars through the ages. As players advance through the game, civilization itself evolves. While early wars are fought with sticks and stones, your virtual little ant farm will eventually figure out more efficient ways to bang heads. Think battleships and nuclear bombs and you get the picture.

The main game system itself is firmly rooted in Civilization II, but the designers also took cues from the third title, streamlining interfaces and adding features left and right. The N-Gage version of Civilization doesn't cut corners when it comes to bringing the variety and feature-riches of the original to the handheld. Civ on N-Gage features 21 unique civilizations, all ground, air and naval units (51 in all), all 88 technology advances from Civilization II, and all 28 different Wonders of the World, ranging from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to the Statue of Liberty. If you're a stickler for authenticity, you'll be happy to hear that Gryphondale Studios is planning to include every sound effect from the original as well.

Though the developers are avoiding tinkering with the gameplay code and balance (after all, why mess with a good thing?), the menu system itself is undergoing some big changes. The 5 key brings up your menu at any time, while the surrounding number keys allow navigation of the different commands. The directional pad is used for actual menu selection and cycling through cities and units -- but most players will quickly learn to stick to shortcut keys. If you look at screenshots, you'll see that menu commands are assigned numbers, which makes for the speediest way to get around. So far, navigation feels intuitive and comfortable. After a short learning period, you will be able to easily and quickly get around, toggle between the three zoom levels of the world map, and let nothing stand in the way of you playing God. Though it's already more than playable, developer Gryphondale isn't done with the N-Gage version by a long shot. Targeted for an early 2006 release, Civilization may still receive a number of tweaks, such as the ability to stack units a la Civilization 3 and more.

We'll bring you more on the game as soon as we get another playable copy.