Civilization losing its charm in late game

[Mountain King]

I'm curious if anyone else feel that Civilization loses its charm after the industrial revolution, when things like rifles and armour are invented. It feels too modern, clinical and globalized. It's the same feeling which prevented me from enjoying Alpha Centauri.

When I get the option to build all sorts of modern military vehicles, it starts to feels more like Command & Conquer, and I just kind of want to start a new game.

I felt the same thing with Civ 2 (my other "main" civ game), though not as strongly as with Civ 5.

Thoughts?

 

[ShahJahanII]

Yes, the whole world looks ugly, even on max settings.
Also, gameplay just doesn't feel right.

 

[TommyVern]

Agreed. Not really sure what it is. The world just seems to clustered and complex, but that's how our modern world is, so maybe that's what they were going for?

 

[Roxlimn]

I like modern combat in Civ 5 a lot, actually.

 

[puyo]

Modern age is boring but you already know who will win anyway, so you don't last too many times here...

 

[Louis XXIV]

I think that's part of the point of Civilization. Things evolve as you get more advanced. There's the barren exploration phase, the consolidating middle part, and the advanced global part where everything is specialized.

 

[Ranos]

The Civ series has always been lacking in the late game due to the tediousness of moving units, setting production in cities, microing citizens, etc. The main reason for this is the large number of cities, units, etc you have in the late game.

Civ 5 is actually the best of them all in the Industrial and Modern eras because of the limitations on units and cities. For the first time in a Civ game, I look forward to getting my tanks and modern armors.

 

[CYZ]

Although what I perhaps love most about civ is the evolution the gameworld goes through I also dislike the modern world. 9 outof 10 games it feels like everything has been mostly decided and the micromanagement is a tedious task instead of a challenge to get ahead of the rest.

 

[Lord Chambers]

Clearly the endgame is in need of tension. Yet when that is supplied by a deceptive AI who hates you--specifically for winning--certain people can't handle it and whine.

One solution to the game being a foregone conclusion is to play on a harder difficulty, which pushes your ascendancy later and later into the game. My only complaint is that it's an imperfect solution because higher difficulty entails even larger AIs with more units, and thereby increasing the drag on the endgame yet again. Our universe has similar laws which prevent us from reaching lightspeed.

 

[awesome]

i've always preferred the late game. subjectivity, i guess.

 

[Roxlimn]

Lord Chambers:

I find playing Continents more conducive to late game excitement, because you sometimes have to mount an intercontinental invasion of a strong foreign AI (or else have to compete in other ways).

 

[void_genesis]

For me late game depends completely on the map. One of the better map scripts like tectonics or perfect world will have all sorts of interesting choke points. The first wave of planes and helicopters over a mountain range that protected you for a thousand years from a foe is exciting. Terra and Terra Incognito maps make late exploration and city founding essential. Also don't forget to try a few games setting the pace to marathon and starting the game at a later era for a very different experience.

 

[jtb1127]

I think the late game combat is a lot funner but everything else doesn't seem that way.

 

[Bleser]

For me late game depends completely on the map. One of the better map scripts like tectonics or perfect world will have all sorts of interesting choke points. The first wave of planes and helicopters over a mountain range that protected you for a thousand years from a foe is exciting. Terra and Terra Incognito maps make late exploration and city founding essential. Also don't forget to try a few games setting the pace to marathon and starting the game at a later era for a very different experience.

Are the maps you speak of built-in to the game or are they mods? Sounds cool! I play Fractal now but would like a change.

 

[apocalypse105]

Disagree you never played advance wars i gues?

Modern era industrial era wars are just form me a better version of advance wars just amazing fun!!!

Using bombers and artillery to bombart your enemy and so on... And using tanks to atack and clear out...

 

[Truthy]

I agree. Modern era is a lot less fun than the rest of the game.

 

[JWAT44]

i think its because there isnt a way to weaken a really large and powerful civ over time like through corruption so that the game isnt already won by the modern era. there is no mechanic to truly limit the snowball effect which is what makes the ages get progressively boring and make a clear victor well before the game is over

 

[Warspite2]

I find just the opposite, I enjoy the modern eras more then the early periods. Many times I start a new game from the modern era, its just more exciting for me. Try starting a game in this period. Things move super fast and its fun if you just want to get straight to the good stuff.

 

[mythmonster2]

I, too, feel the opposite. Modern age is great fun for me since, all of a sudden, you have two more victory paths open up that the AI could take if you're not ready. And then there's the fact that I just find rolling over enemies with tanks to be very fun.

 

[Roxlimn]

i think its because there isnt a way to weaken a really large and powerful civ over time like through corruption so that the game isnt already won by the modern era. there is no mechanic to truly limit the snowball effect which is what makes the ages get progressively boring and make a clear victor well before the game is over

In fairness, many Deity players (and I'd advise lower skill level players to take note as well) are increasingly turning to Artillery to make the game-winning moves. That's an Industrial Era unit. It's highly noteworthy that the Industrial Era game is good enough that it's fun to push at this point, and that there's an Era unit that makes this possible.

The comparable mechanic in Civ 4 was the Rifle Draft, and that wasn't nearly as fun of a war to wage, since the war was basically won on the tech tree.