Historical Question/Game Question

M

Marshall Thomas

King

Joined

Dec 11, 2005

Messages

700

• Jul 29, 2006

• #1

What is adjusting the research/gold/culture bar suppose to reflect historically? It's not raising or lowering taxes on your population. I know Civilization 4 is not a direct historical simulation, but everything in the game is based on historical developement and decisions. There has also been plenty of writing lately about either running a city specialist economy or a cottage/work tiles economy. Would anyone please offer an opinion on how this preference is intended to represent real history. Thanks

 

Gilder

Deity

Joined

Jul 1, 2005

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3,414

Location

Anywhere I Lay My Head

• Jul 29, 2006

• #2

It's incorporating how to acquire new technologies. I mean, no one just wants to wait for some inventor to invent a new thing or concept. As for the economy thing, I think we can safely say that is just game mechanics rather then historical fact.

As for the culture thing, I have no idea.

 

C

Cereal Box

Chieftain

Joined

Jul 24, 2006

Messages

60

• Jul 30, 2006

• #3

I always thought of it as what the government is investing in. Whether it is investing in science, the economy or the arts.

 

F

franlato

Warlord

Joined

Oct 27, 2005

Messages

134

• Jul 30, 2006

• #4

I will risk an answer

I think that if you put the culture and science meter a little you'll reproduce periods where the economy went well and they could afford those... if you go to war and need to upgrade 2 or 3 units and put a little more back on taxes, you will reproduce era of history where the coffers where empty and they needed to raise taxes in order to pay for these expensive things (like to much war and the likes)

I think the bars reflect that

 

M

Marshall Thomas

King

Joined

Dec 11, 2005

Messages

700

• Jul 30, 2006

• #5

That makes good sense. I guess that raising the science rate(which represents all sorts of thought- not simply science), reflects a state wide government investment in education, international exchange of thought, centralization, etc. Basically an investment in anything that furthers society- except for money making enterprises- including increased taxation.

Altough this subject is not essential to gameplay, I find it very interesting. Would anyone else please offer more thoughts and interpretations? Thanks

 

AriochIV

Colonial Ninja

Joined

Jul 25, 2006

Messages

5,978

Location

Nehwon

• Jul 30, 2006

• #6

You can also view raising the culture rate as the same thing as lowering taxes, giving the people "back" their non-essential money to buy luxuries, thus increasing happiness.

 

viz

Prime Minister

Joined

Sep 27, 2005

Messages

205

Location

England

• Jul 30, 2006

• #7

Cereal Box said:

I always thought of it as what the government is investing in. Whether it is investing in science, the economy or the arts.

Click to expand...

This is exactly the way I see it too. It's the distribution of money, be it science (research funding), culture (national schemes/events, holidays, exhibitions, tv and radio programmes, other media) and the treasury (national working capital).

 

E

Econo Miser

Chieftain

Joined

Jan 19, 2006

Messages

10

Location

Columbus, Ohio

• Jul 30, 2006

• #8

The way I think about it, your tax base is fixed depending on the size of your economy. By operating the sliders you are deciding how much of your budget to funnel into a National Academy of Sciences or a National Academy of Arts. When the science slider is full, you are giving lots of money to support universities and researchers. When you scale back, a lot of professors get fired and go work in your mines.

 

K

KrikkitTwo

Immortal

Joined

Apr 3, 2004

Messages

12,418

• Jul 30, 2006

• #9

Actually I consider it what Society is investing in... because the player has total and complete controll over everything done in their civ, they reflect all of society not just Government

raising the Science bar means people are spending less time dealing with Administration (Gold), and more on Philosophy and thinking about things

raising the Culture bar means people are spending more time just goofing off.

 

C

Cereal Box

Chieftain

Joined

Jul 24, 2006

Messages

60

• Jul 30, 2006

• #10

AriochIV said:

You can also view raising the culture rate as the same thing as lowering taxes, giving the people "back" their non-essential money to buy luxuries, thus increasing happiness.

Click to expand...

Hm... yeah, but if you lower both the science and the culture sliders, you have more revenue. That would only happen if the government were funding museums, spending money on something like those decorated cows NYC did a while ago or other such subsidies. By culture in this game, I don't think they're refering to the proper definition of culture, but more like high culture.