Rating: 
Summary: My favorite version of Civ...or, Rome on 64KB a day.
Review: Sid Meier's Civilization II may, perhaps, go down in history as the late and much lamented MicroProse's most popular and best computer game. (MicroProse, which also produced the F-15 Strike Eagle series of flight sims and the World War II submarine simulation, Silent Service II, changed hands several times, having been bought out by Activision, then Hasbro, then Atari before disappearing.) SId Meier himself went on to design other, equally admirable games such as "Sid Meier's Gettysburg," but Civilization (and its sequels) will be remembered by gamers for decades. The first version of Civ (in 3.5 in. diskettes) was released over 12 years ago; this was the first version I ever played and drew me into its addictive web of military strategy, cultural development and technological advances. Civilization II, released on the more versatile and multi-faceted CD-ROM format in 1996, is a vast improvement over the original Sid Meier-Bruce Shelley Civilization 1.0. The concept is the same: you are the long-lived leader of a major civilization (Rome, Greece, Egypt, just to name a few), equipped with one, sometimes two settler units, a few civilization advances (usually Irrigation, Road Building, and a randomly chosen one such as Alphabet or Bronze Working). Using terrain and resources on the mapboard (and usually the map is a sea of black except for the spaces your units are on), you find a suitable place to found your first city, then you start a 6,000 year process to create an empire that will either attempt to conquer the world or, for more points and a tougher challenge, win the game by gaining technological advances through research, building up a huge treasury via trade and taxation, and racing the other civilizations to be the first to reach Alpha Centauri before the scoring period ends in 2010 AD. The 1996 version (since supplanted by Civilization II: The Test of Time and Civilization III) is a single-player edition, but even without multiplayer options it is still quite a challenge even in the basic Chieftain level. It still has those pesky barbarian tribes that old hands at Civ grew to hate in the first edition, but the graphics are way better -- even 8 years later they still hold up. New (at least in '96) features include one additional civilization per color group (Spanish, Sioux, Celts, Cartaginian, etc.), your choice of gender during leader selection (women like to play sims, too, and Civ 1 only had male leaders and titles), 3-D heralds to announce communications from the AI civilizations, multimedia presentations of Wonders of the World (with new Wonders added and new or revised Wonder-benefits), and new military units (Helicopter, Paratrooper). To get the most out of Civilization II's features, particularly a stunning title sequence (by '96 standards) and multimedia presentations, it's best to play the game with the CD-ROM in the appropriate drive. You don't need to play the basic game with the disc, but you'll miss seeing and hearing the film clips that pop up when you build a Wonder or, if you are lucky, reach Alpha Centauri before the AI civilizations.
Rating:
Summary: What is there not to love?
Review: Civ II is an excellent game with endless possibilities. You can build cities, research technology, establish trade roots, build wonders of the world, fight wars-well, I could go on and on. And when it's at such a low price, these no reason why you shouldn't buy it right now! You start in 4000BC (unless you chose to start in 3600BC or 3200BC) with 1 or 2 settlers unit, who builds your first city. In this city, you can build units, such as settlers, to found another city, or irrigate, mine, or build roads, which increases food, production, and trade. You can also build buildings, like barracks, which increases units' ability to fight and defend. In your cities, you collect taxes, research science, and give out luxuries. As your Civ grows, you gain knowledge, which allows you better units, more buildings, different governments, and faster methods of life. You will also have to interact with other Civs, whether it's peacefully or in war. You can exchange knowledge, give gifts, ally, or demand tributes. You also can build wonders of the world, such as the Pyramids, the Statue of Liberty, Apollo program, and a Cure for Cancer. And there is some much more, you just have to play it for yourself to know. Over all, Civ II is an extremely fun game. I have had it for more than 2 years, and never gotten board of it. I am still finding myself calling in sick to play it. Whenever someone asks me why I make such a big deal about it, I ask them to come over and see for themselves, and the next day I talk when to them, they say "You were right. I went and bought it myself." Trust me and all the other reviewers on this page. Buy Civilization II;
you'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: My all-time favourite game
Review: Back when I hadn't even heard of Windows, I visited a friend whose parents had just bought a stunning 'new' computer (as a Pentium 233 was called then). I was introduced to one of their games: Civilization II. The game was (and still is!) about building up a great civilization out f a single settler you have in the beginning. You can build cities, roads, have diplomatic meetings with your AI neighbours, wage war and construct Wonders of the World. And this is just a selection of all possibilities! I still remember those great first moments with the game, when I was trying to defend the noble city of Canterbury from the evil Zulus who were doing a massive amphibious attempt to seize my continent! The game got me at my throat immediately and from then on I visited that place very frequently just to play Civ. II! No wonder that, when we finally got a new pc, the first game I obtained was this one. I have had many great hours since then with all aspects of the game. For it's not just some ordinary thing. No, this game really breathes atmosphere and fun! However, I should say that you really need to get the add-on Scenarios disc to enjoy this game at its max. Take those terrific wonder movies for example! Believe me; it's so enormously enjoyable that, after you have taken much effort building a wonder of the world, these fantastic movies appear! I often built these wonders just so that I could see the cute movies afterwards. No need to say that I was really infuriated when I played this game's successor, Civilization 3, and saw the movies had been left out! Anyway, these things add greatly to the game's superb sphere. Next is the music. This game's soundtrack (again, you need the scenarios disc for this) is perhaps the best I have ever heard in a game, with the possible exception of World Cup 98 (with that terrific Chumbawumba music!). Civ II has some very funny songs, including a humorous take on the Civil War song 'John Brown's body'. Furthermore, there is the atmospheric 'Harvest of the Nile' and the creepy 'Alien invasion'. And for your sheer glorious moments, there is of course... Beethoven's Ninth! I can't say how much fun I had every time when an enemy was destroyed. The game itself changes the music to Beethoven's funeral march from the Eroica symphony then, but I always raced to the music section to change this to the Ode to Joy! Not to mention the really funny unit sounds, the ambassador's animations, the quirky scenarios such as a battle between Zeus and Hades, the way the Napoleon unit speaks out the word 'tirez' in his scenario... This game is really full of hilarious moments! And so, so addictive... This game really belongs in the same category as games like Sim City and The Sims: you create things you don't want to leave behind anymore. It's ultimately challenging to try making your citizens even happier than they already are. And to expand your empire and sweep those nasty AI civs away. The ultimate experience of the game, however, is to complete a star ship to Alpha Centauri. Once your forces have reached the planet, you are congratulated with another stunning movie sequence; and again the programmers showed their great feel of humour by putting a certain very well known theme into this movie (yea, what?). The other way to finish the game is simply destroy all enemies, which may be even more satisfying for the player, especially at the hardest levels. Oh, and it's also such a pleasure to see your own name back in the Civ Hall of Fame, after you've completed the game! Your only competitor is yourself of course (unless there are more players in the house!) but that's something I just try to forget. The game's graphics (the movie sequences not included!) are archaic, agreed. However, I don't care at all. Just think of what Sid Meier himself once said: "A game is played in the player's head, not at the screen". Actually, I even like the very simple visualisation of things. It gives much more space for your own imagination. And after all, the programmers created such a beautiful atmosphere throughout the game, that the looks of the world map don't really matter. I could tell a terrible lot more about this game, but that would be of no use at all. This is simply the game of games, and even its fine successor Civ 3 isn't as good as this. If you like the kind of genre, this is a must buy. And if you got tired of it, get Alpha Centauri, the equally astounding successor of this game.
Rating:
Summary: Dont let the graphics cange you mind!
Review: This is a wonderful game!Those who enjoyed Sim City 2000,will love this game.The graphics aren't that good,but the gameplay is awesome!I dint think Civ2 would be that great,beacause the graphics didnt look so good,and it was only [price],but this is one of the best stratagey games I've ever played.It is also very addictive,once you start playing,its hard to stop!The only bad thing about about Civ2 is it doesn't come with directions,but it's farely easy to learn and understand.A great game and fun for most people.
Rating:
Summary: I need another fix...
Review: I've been a huge fan of the original Civilization since...well, for a long time. In fact, I still dust off the original from time to time for nostalgia's sake. As for Civ II, there are only so many ways to say it's an AMAZING strategy game. There are so many ways to approach the game that it truly can be replayed as often as you like, and the fact that every single choice you make has an impact on the game later on forces you to give a lot of thought throughout the game. Deciding how to balance your research, military might and diplomacy requires constant attention. This is one of those games that can't be anything but turn-based. The level of detail and sheer number of items you need to manage are what give Civilization II its depth, and the turn-based structure allows you to dedicate the time you need to each of your cities and units. It doesn't leave a lot of time for sleep, mind you, but that's another issue entirely...
Rating:
Summary: A deep, rich, well-developed strategy game.
Review: Civilization is a strategy game, with an extremely well-developed background. One of the joys of the game is its scope. Start with a single unit of pre-literate vagabonds: first one to Alpha Centauri wins. Along the way you have to develop cities, armies, science, industry, etc. The early decisions are easier, but the game continually grows more complex, with more decisions and more dangers. The heart of the game is the Advancement system, which lets you develop human knowledge in a reasonable but not quite predictable way. Most advancements have pre-requisites. You can't develop Railroads, for instance, until after you have both Steam Engine and Bridge-building. This forces a reasonable structure on your development, but there are still many choices to make. Develop just the money-making advances, and you'll be overrun by rivals with less money but better units. But if you just develop your war-machine, you'll use it up against your near neighbors while civilizations far away are developing faster. You also have to allocate your tax resources into money, sciences, and luxury. (One realistic touch is that democracies have to spend a lot on luxuries, but still wind up with more overall resources.) The game structure is intuitive, the mechanics are straightforward, and the strategic decisions are complex. It's a deep, rich game, and continues to be worth playing.
Rating:
Summary: THE ULTIMATE CIVILIZATION GAME
Review: Sid Meier's Civilization II is a game of strategy, imagination, and mental endurance that should probably be best described as FUN! Meier's civilization concept takes gamers on an adventure to explore the possibility of growing a civilization, whether historical or fictional and then allows the player to choose the destiny of each turn in game play. The user interface is exceptional with main map, information panel and position display. On the main map, an isometric view of land and sea is displayed with your corresponding units as well as enemy, ally, neutral and barbarian. Hence, your game is very interactive in each turn so that you can decide to attack, greet, parlay, or trade with other civilizations. The goal is to grow in population, technology, military, production, and surface area, so that you can either conquer all the civilizations on the planet or build a spaceship that will travel to Alpha Centauri. The choice for winning strategy is yours, which is one of the most innovative gaming concepts which I might add is not present in other turn based empire building games. Aside from the unique quality of the user interface and the winning strategy, the game itself is pre-programmed to provide the player with options to build a 'scenario' that can be played at a later time. One of the most positive and exceptional elements of Civilization II is that a player can actually customize the game beyond the set options of scenario building within the interface. A player can make changes to units, maps, and game play with minimal knowledge, working within the confines of the game engine to produce a 'modpack' (modification package), which can be played or uploaded to various fan websites. Later versions of the game provide a 'macro-language' which allows the player to program events into the game to occur in much the same way as they do in real-time strategy games. I have personally created a number of scenarios and modpacks that include such themes as: THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR, STAR TREK, ANTARCTICA, WATER WORLD, STAR WARS, PLANET OF THE APES, MARS, and THE MOON. Civilization is probably one of the most versatile turn-based strategy games ever created and continues to reign with a huge following of over 10 million players world-wide (larger than the world of dedicated Linux users). In fact, the multitude of websites created by fans, scenario authors, organizations and other companies is mind-boggling carrying with it a force of mind that assumes everyone likes and plays Civilization II. It is one of the best selling strategy games ever made, spawning other best-sellers such as: Call to Power, Alpha Centauri, Civilization III, Civilization II Multiplayer Gold, and Civilization: Test of Time. To say that Civilization II is highly recommended is to state the obvious.
Rating:
Summary: An oldie better than a newbie
Review: Civ 2 is in most aspects better than Civ 3. First of all it's faster, second it's easier to learn (thus you get fun faster) and third it's more similar to the original.
It lacks the culture aspect that Civ3 has, but you can still win by building temples, libraries and Wonders which will boost at max your citizens productivity and allow you to make diplomats who could subvert enemies cities without falling into Civil War.
True that graphics are not that awesome, but they do their function very well.
Plus it's really affordable for most pockets, especially if you haven't tried any strategy game before and are not sure about spending [money] in one.
If you haven't played either Civ2 nor 3 I'd rather recommend you start with Civ2 and afterwards move on to 3...
Rating:
Summary: Classic game
Review: This is a perfect turn based game. With out the "extras" that civ3 has. One of the most addictive games ever made.
Rating:
Summary: Classic game
Review: Civ II is a great game and it is going for $9.99 now. It is one of the few games that will play well on a lap top. Many hours of game play. Wyatt Kaldenberg
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