Firaxis needs to change Chinese cities naming!

[dc82]

So that said, I'm not trying to be offensive to Chinese people, or their language here, but I really don't think this is an important issue at all. Some names are given in Pinyin, others in different methods. There are no doubt people from the mainland who play this game, as well as people from other chinese speaking areas who are more familiar with different names.

Further, Civ is a game about history, in a way. These unofficial names are part of world history, and I kindof like it. I like playing scenarios about ww2 in asia and seeing chinese cities named the way they were on an english map back in that time period. I don't think it's a deliberate effort on Firaxis' part to insult Mainland China by not totally adopting the modern hanyu pinyin system, and I don't think it's miseducation on the part of the franchise.
I played civ2 back when I was maybe 13 or so, and it was one of the major reasons I got interested in real world history and travel. These games serve to get people interested in places they wouldn't otherwise think about.

well again, it's not about preferences, it's about just trying to be accurate - u're rite about geography - problem also w/ the names is that some of the names rn't even names of cities - like canton? it's like having an american civ w/ texas as a city name - rite now people r just asking for some accuracy - i mean we can have new amsterdam instead of new york, since it was called that, but as a whole, we generally accept new york as the proper city name, unless we're doing a specific scenario. well same thing - yeah perhaps in a scenario u'll have peking or nanking - but as a whole, their official names r beijing and nanjing, which is just one easy change to ask - i mean if u want to learn some history from this game, shudn't they at least have the names written right?

 

[dc82]

Perhaps the developers saw the complaints about city names on the forums! In the newest IGN screenshots, several Chinese city names have been updated to the correct English spelling - notably Nanking -> Nanjing and Canton (which isn't even a city to begin with) -> Guangzhou, and Xian.

 

[Lord Shadow]

I don't know about Civ4, but you could easily change the city name list of each civilization by editing a text file in Civ2.

 

[dc82]

Yeah you can change city names on Civ 4 too, but the argument was that those city names were just errors that should've been fixed in the first place. Either way, Civ 4 seems to be dated, and that the developers really do listen to the fans, check the forums, and take in our suggestions. Don't you feel loved?

 

[Mujadaddy]

Tsingtao is well-known because it is a brand of imported from China.

and one of the best you can get in the US...

 

[lordwu84]

TVA22... are you Huntsman ISB?

 

[Trade-peror]

Perhaps the developers saw the complaints about city names on the forums! In the newest IGN screenshots, several Chinese city names have been updated to the correct English spelling - notably Nanking -> Nanjing and Canton (which isn't even a city to begin with) -> Guangzhou, and Xian.

What an accomplishment for us! (and if it wasn't because of this forum, well, Firaxis still deserves credit. )

 

[Neonanocyborgasm]

Just saw the official screenshots on Firaxis' site and was very disappointed that they're still using both the Wade-Giles and PinYin system in naming Chinese cities...

If you're going to be such a stickler for orthography, you might as well change the city lists for other civilizations. For example, the Russian city lists would be:

Moskva, not Moscow
Sankt-Piterburg, not St. Petersburg

among others

 

[Schmek]

What are you worrying about...

in civ3 conquests where we had the mighty dutch as a nation they put in a place called Holwerd. This is infact a small village of less then 5000 people.. I had to look it up in my atlas. Besides that it has no ground breaking historical moment. (Now it is stuck in my mind as my great dutch capitol.)

At least those cities actually have meaning.

 

[dc82]

If you're going to be such a stickler for orthography, you might as well change the city lists for other civilizations. For example, the Russian city lists would be:

Moskva, not Moscow
Sankt-Piterburg, not St. Petersburg

among others

Aish... people comment without reading the thread - the main complaint that was placed wasn't that it wasn't written in the preferred format but that the official English name was just plain wrong - it wouldn't be acceptable in any map, textbook, chart, etc. today. And to add, some of the cities weren't even cities! They were names of provinces. Anyways, I'm just glad not only were the city names changed but that it seems like Firaxis really listens to its fans. Great job!

 

[Zhahz]

1. How many "US consumers" are actually "familiar" with Chinese cities?

I'm familiar with them using whatever the "wrong" versions of their names are.

Edit the city names lists if you're really that concerned with this incredibly trivial issue.

 

[VasiaPupkin]

Same reason why they butchered Russian city names...


Moscow should be Moskva, etc.

 

[spicytimothy]

If you're going to be such a stickler for orthography, you might as well change the city lists for other civilizations. For example, the Russian city lists would be:

Moskva, not Moscow
Sankt-Piterburg, not St. Petersburg

among others

For god's sake... this same stupid point come up over and over again! Isn't Moscow the English translation of whatever Moscow's called in Russian? same deal with using Nanjing instead of Nanking!

but ur standard, what us Chinese should really have requested isn't only a change spelling, but to include the accents, or maybe even show them in Chinese characters... now we're not asking that are we?

 

[Knight-Dragon]

Perhaps the developers saw the complaints about city names on the forums! In the newest IGN screenshots, several Chinese city names have been updated to the correct English spelling - notably Nanking -> Nanjing and Canton (which isn't even a city to begin with) -> Guangzhou, and Xian.

About time.

I always shudder when I thought of how anyone can put 'Shandong' as Chinese city candidate in Civ2/3 - it's the name of an entire province!

 

[aahz_capone]

I think that The Chinese names should be displayed in Chinese characters. That goes For Japanese names, Russian, Greek, etc. Spelling should be in the original language, and if you can't understand it, tough! LEARN!

 

[dc82]

haha that would be a bit tough - although there were times when i hoped/tried to write the city names in their correct native language spellings. haha, didn't work for civ3. maybe civ4? either way i'm pretty content w/ it now.