I feel... sad

[Rusten]

HoF for civ 4 has been laughable for almost 10 years, that's nothing new.

 

[Fippy]

Most Civ4 activity happens in (s)gotm games on Fanatics (not including the mod section, i think that's also doing good), i think it's normal that players look for either team games or games that matter.
Those parts of the forum will probably have some more living years.

I struggle with finishing games i just play for myself for years now, there's nothing left to discover or discuss alone.
There will also be some multiplayer, but the solo part of games ends at some point.
I know no game where that was different.

 

[need my speed]

Civilization as a series may die, for me, but IV won't. Where else do I get to play around with all kinds of Fallout, Middle-Earth, Rayman, 1984, and Borderlands civilisations? I should probably get around to uploading them at some point.

 

[Ricci]

I've already decided to hop ship over to 6 (I hate 5 with a passion). Traffic numbers aren't an end all tell but forum activity and game participation certainly is.

HoF is sadly pathetic. That's a big one for me seeing how I now play almost exclusively HoF. The recent G-Minors have been laughable as well as HoF challenger series participation. The only Mods I use are Buffy or Bat and those don't actually change the official rules/actions. Any Mods that actually change the rules, era, actions of the AI, etc are not for me (huge turn off actually). Imo the game needs to be played as it was designed, period (once again, necessary in HoF anyways).

So yeah, Civ IV is probably dead for me very soon too. Civ 6 looks like it has the potential to be a fine game. Time will tell.

You, and anyone in your shoes (Lemon.. anyone), need desperately to gang up with a couple of civers and dig your nose into multiplayer Cseanny. There is no parallel to improvise -or even repeat- great gaming and strategy against a couple of human players and a bunch of AI`s. It`s what keeps this great game ahead fo my fantasies for me. Roleplay as far as your imagination gets you (even invent some weird quest for the other HPs.. jejej!!)
In my case, my civ pals are true friends of mine, not easy to get. We even make LAN rarely, would you believe?

 

[lindsay40k]

The worst thing to happen to Civ IV for me is the Gamespy shutdown. Mac users haven't been given an update and everyone else has to go to extraordinary lengths to accommodate us in multiplayer. My circle of regulars continue to play but I'm not involved so much any more. I can't see us losing interest, though - we love a good Toku and Hannibal game now and then

I am cautiously optimistic about VI. The thing I enjoy doing in V is building up religion and policies to make super-tiles. Districts look like a great idea - I've been miffed about air bombing being unable to target factories and suchlike.

Don't think much of that sepia map FoW, though. Nice idea, but so far looks clumsy.

 

[Quintillus]

I think Lemon Merchant summed it up well:

The problem is that now I can't even finish a game. I'm bored of it. After 8 years, I feel like there is nowhere left to go with the game anymore. Even modding has become a boring chore.

That's increasingly the case for me too... there's nowhere left to go. The last time I finished games:

Civ3: January 2015
Civ4 Single-Player: July 2013
Civ4 Multi-Player: Sometime in (late?) 2014
Civ5: May 2012

Okay, so I've only ever finished one game of Civ5. But while I started games in Civ3, 4, and 5 last year, I just didn't have the motivation to finish them. And in 3/4, that was with mods. I've pretty much memorized 3/4, so it's hard to find something new. And perhaps it's natural that with playing far less, I've been modding somewhat less as well.

But... I'm not sure I'd really say I'm sad at this point. Especially this year I've been branching out and finding a lot of different games that I enjoy, and while I may not equal even my Civ4 levels of time on them, it's refreshing to try something different. And it's so easy to pick up games inexpensively these days that it makes a lot of sense to try a variety.

And I went back to my Civ3 game that I started last year on Wednesday, and after not having played Civ since October, it was more fun that it had been in quite awhile. Sure, it helped that I started doing better than I had for the previous 150 years in that game, but it being a little bit less fresh in the memory made a difference as well.

I've also realized that while I tend to go for large, epic games, that isn't necessarily what I'll finish, especially with new mods I'm not familiar with. So trying my first games in History Rewritten on Odyssey speed - maybe that wasn't a great idea. Next time I'll dial it down from Huge Odyssey to Large Epic or Saga, and if I finish it and am hankering for more, then dial it back up.

I don't have a strong opinion on VI yet. Could it make Civ a mainstay of mine again? Perhaps. But I'm discovering that there's enough variety out there nowadays that even if it doesn't, I shouldn't have a shortage of fun, enjoyable, and indeed when I'm looking for it, deep games to play.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

And perhaps it's natural that with playing far less, I've been modding somewhat less as well.

That's my problem. I got into this play mode where I was just testing BAT and Better BAT AI and doing nothing else. I'm burned out from doing that.

I used to be really excited when I came out with a new version of my mods, but now I can hardly be bothered to answer questions about them in the support forum. It's unfortunate, but that's what its come down to. I know exactly how you feel when you say you are modding less. I understand the reasons completely.

But... I'm not sure I'd really say I'm sad at this point. Especially this year I've been branching out and finding a lot of different games that I enjoy, and while I may not equal even my Civ4 levels of time on them, it's refreshing to try something different. And it's so easy to pick up games inexpensively these days that it makes a lot of sense to try a variety.

I'm sort of sad because I feel like I'm abandoning an old friend. Like I posted earlier, Civ has gotten me through some very rough times in my life. When I thought that I just couldn't go on, there was Hatty, or Louis, or Toku looking at me from the screen. It made me feel better, and gave me something else to think about for a while. I owe a lot to this game.

I'm starting to branch out with my game play, too. I'm finding a lot of stuff to play that is really interesting and fresh. I'm trying not to go for 4X games ATM because I'm sort of tired of the genre (the exception I make is Paradox's Stellaris), but there certainly are a lot of good games out there, and if you wait for sales, you can really maximize your gaming dollar.

Maybe I'll return to Civ in the future, and I won't feel like I'm cheating on Sid. I need to be away for long enough to forget how to play. Come at it with a fresh strategy.

For now, I'm going to finish the sequels to Bioshock: Infinite, and put my Civ disks and modding notes away. It's been a good ride, but the carnival is still going on, and there are other rides to have fun with.

 

[Ricci]

That's my problem. I got into this play mode where I was just testing BAT and Better BAT AI and doing nothing else. I'm burned out from doing that.

I used to be really excited when I came out with a new version of my mods, but now I can hardly be bothered to answer questions about them in the support forum. It's unfortunate, but that's what its come down to. I know exactly how you feel when you say you are modding less. I understand the reasons completely.


I'm sort of sad because I feel like I'm abandoning an old friend. Like I posted earlier, Civ has gotten me through some very rough times in my life. When I thought that I just couldn't go on, there was Hatty, or Louis, or Toku looking at me from the screen. It made me feel better, and gave me something else to think about for a while. I owe a lot to this game.

I'm starting to branch out with my game play, too. I'm finding a lot of stuff to play that is really interesting and fresh. I'm trying not to go for 4X games ATM because I'm sort of tired of the genre (the exception I make is Paradox's Stellaris), but there certainly are a lot of good games out there, and if you wait for sales, you can really maximize your gaming dollar.

Maybe I'll return to Civ in the future, and I won't feel like I'm cheating on Sid. I need to be away for long enough to forget how to play. Come at it with a fresh strategy.

For now, I'm going to finish the sequels to Bioshock: Infinite, and put my Civ disks and modding notes away. It's been a good ride, but the carnival is still going on, and there are other rides to have fun with.

BAT 4.1 is the best thing happening to BTS. The community.. I, thank you eternally and we already miss you, I think.


PD: If some day I decide to give it a try to my eclectic BTS mod I will surely be trying to reach you again.

 

[lymond]

BAT 4.1 is the best thing happening to BTS.
.

Truer words never spoken...all hail her Lemoniness

 

[civfanchambers]

Civ 4 is an incredibly awesome game. But no matter how great any game is everyone eventually gets a little bored and needs a break. We have here on the forum a community that generally respects each other and is willing to help each other out. I've been a member since Dec 2013, an in that time feel I've gotten to know some of you. I greatly appreciate the help received having improved my game, and within this thread it feels kinda like friends are starting to go their separate ways. So I have a small proposal to make. In the next few months a new game is being released No Man's Sky (NMS). NMS is a sci-fi exploration survival game. A single player experience set in an online universe. Features of the game involve upgrading your tool/weapon, space suit, and space ship. I am eagerly awaiting this game and plan to take a break from civ 4 for awhile. Considering that we have an established community here perhaps those of us who enjoy sci-fi could create our own little NMS club to help each other out. Shared discoveries, tips on how to upgrade ships, suits, and tool/weapons. Anyone with the time and patience could organize a Facebook page for CFC fans to maintain our community in NMS. Anyways, just a thought I had. I think it would be great if we could keep a since of community outside of just Civ 4. I hope the moderaters don't get too upset with me for making this suggestion. Peace and happy civing.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

BAT 4.1 is the best thing happening to BTS. The community.. I, thank you eternally and we already miss you, I think.

Truer words never spoken...all hail her Lemoniness

Awww. You guys... I'm getting verklempt.

Thank you for the nice words.

 

[fdrpi]

But in the end, not playing these games are ok. They are just games. We move on, we get new hobbies, we find more happiness.

But after a break, sometimes a long one, you're no longer burnt out. You come back, and you have fun, because Civ IV will always be there, and this community probably will be too, one way or another.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

I think a lot of people missed the point in the OP. It isn't that Civ IV, a great game, has 'passed the torch of the franchise' on to a game that is disappointing to the old hands. It is that the reasoning for the changes appears to be "proven" and that makes similar changes inevitable all across the spectrum of gaming.

I've been playing a new to me economic sim game I got from GoG for a buck or something. The graphics are ridiculous. The databases are microscopic because it was designed to be completely loaded into memory from a 5.25 inch disk. The gameplay is terrific; complex, challenging, offering a variety of strategies (some of which apparently just do NOT work no matter how I've gone at them). A modern version, not with any significant upgrade in graphics but with the kind of variety of industries and products that a modern computer could handle is like a dream...a dream that will never be realized, because we have entered an era of cartoon games that can be played on a phone and never take more than an hour to complete.

Economic sims barely exist any more.

Real time strategy is reduced to multi-player buffoonery."

4X is burdened by the commercial success of Civ five.

RPGs are sinking into the morass of Call of Duty knock offs.

EVERY major franchise is looking back...often WAYYYYYY back...to its last really descent gameplay through a haze of commercially successful shiny graphics.

It is sad. The good news is that for a couple decades, at least, I was driven to upgrade my machine frequently, and expensively. Now I only upgrade, and that slightly, when something completely breaks down...because everything worth playing runs great on ten year old hardware anyway.

 

[Fippy]

Agree, mobile and everybody using the inet = huge amounts of players who move from game to game. They want no deep gameplay mechanics, they just want modern looking entertainment.

Quantity has taken over quality gaming, and companies of course make money from that boom.
Doubt this will change anytime soon.
It's annoying me enuf so that i will never play anything mobile, or pay 150+ for a stupid phone

 

[ztrapon]

I just got Civ IV for Steam and noticed there were some peeps playing it there. It's pretty convenient to finally have functional online play, although I miss K-Mod.

 

[fdrpi]

Timsup2nothin, that is not what I meant. I was only talking about the Civ series, and how it looks like we'll never have a game even similar Civ IV again.

While what you say may be true, please do not put words in my mouth.

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Timsup2nothin, that is not what I meant. I was only talking about the Civ series, and how it looks like we'll never have a game even similar Civ IV again.

While what you say may be true, please do not put words in my mouth.

Sorry. That was the point that *I* got from it. Did not intend to "put words in your mouth." It's just that the Civ series doesn't exist in a vacuum. What you pointed out has happened to it is the same thing that has happened across the board.

 

[Pangaea]

I think a lot of people missed the point in the OP. It isn't that Civ IV, a great game, has 'passed the torch of the franchise' on to a game that is disappointing to the old hands. It is that the reasoning for the changes appears to be "proven" and that makes similar changes inevitable all across the spectrum of gaming.

I've been playing a new to me economic sim game I got from GoG for a buck or something. The graphics are ridiculous. The databases are microscopic because it was designed to be completely loaded into memory from a 5.25 inch disk. The gameplay is terrific; complex, challenging, offering a variety of strategies (some of which apparently just do NOT work no matter how I've gone at them). A modern version, not with any significant upgrade in graphics but with the kind of variety of industries and products that a modern computer could handle is like a dream...a dream that will never be realized, because we have entered an era of cartoon games that can be played on a phone and never take more than an hour to complete.

Economic sims barely exist any more.

Real time strategy is reduced to multi-player buffoonery."

4X is burdened by the commercial success of Civ five.

RPGs are sinking into the morass of Call of Duty knock offs.

EVERY major franchise is looking back...often WAYYYYYY back...to its last really descent gameplay through a haze of commercially successful shiny graphics.

It is sad. The good news is that for a couple decades, at least, I was driven to upgrade my machine frequently, and expensively. Now I only upgrade, and that slightly, when something completely breaks down...because everything worth playing runs great on ten year old hardware anyway.

For what it's worth, I agree with a lot of this, whether that was the intent of the OP or not (I've not re-read it). I have a pretty decent computer now, but my old one was indeed old (6-7 years). But I don't use Steam (spit) and never will, which limits new purchases a great deal given their de facto monopoly, and most of those new games aren't worth the digital box they come in either. There are some exceptions, like Pillars of Eternity, and it sounds like the Paradox games are still well-received, like Stellaris (I've not tried any of them). But for the most part I play old games, because these games focused more on gameplay and story, and less on bling-bling and gameplay a monkey with a blindfold could handle. I prefer games with some strategy and depth, with many options.

Quite simply, the gaming industry has changed. Like most Hollywood movies, it's not about quality and creativity, making something new and ground-breaking, but quantity and money. If you stumble upon something that sells well, like all the drones playing Call of Duty, then you push out those games at least once a year. Pump out DLC too, keep milking gamers, ideally by breaking up the game. Support? Who cares. Once you have sold your game, you have made your buck, so move on to the next one. Repeat.

For those of us who experienced the early period of the gaming industry, when there was more focus on quality games, this is a sad development.

 

[Quintillus]

That's my problem. I got into this play mode where I was just testing BAT and Better BAT AI and doing nothing else. I'm burned out from doing that.

I used to be really excited when I came out with a new version of my mods, but now I can hardly be bothered to answer questions about them in the support forum. It's unfortunate, but that's what its come down to. I know exactly how you feel when you say you are modding less. I understand the reasons completely.

Indeed, for most of the past few years the high majority of the time I've been "playing" Civ has been testing my editor or various other modding ideas. Modding being significantly more time than playtime is not really feasible long-term for me, I've found out - at least not a significant quantity of modding. Every so often I still get a new idea that I get excited about, but it's less frequent, due to burnout, playing less, and the fact that as a mod gets more complete, what's left often is the more difficult tasks.

The past week has been interesting as I've been enjoying playing a Civ3 mod, and it's also given me some ideas for the editor as I try to figure out unfamiliar aspects of the scenario. With vanilla games, I wouldn't have thought of what I did. But I had to be in the right mindset too, and I wasn't when I was playing this game previously in 2015.

For what it's worth, I agree with a lot of this, whether that was the intent of the OP or not (I've not re-read it). I have a pretty decent computer now, but my old one was indeed old (6-7 years). But I don't use Steam (spit) and never will, which limits new purchases a great deal given their de facto monopoly, and most of those new games aren't worth the digital box they come in either. There are some exceptions, like Pillars of Eternity, and it sounds like the Paradox games are still well-received, like Stellaris (I've not tried any of them). But for the most part I play old games, because these games focused more on gameplay and story, and less on bling-bling and gameplay a monkey with a blindfold could handle. I prefer games with some strategy and depth, with many options.

Quite simply, the gaming industry has changed. Like most Hollywood movies, it's not about quality and creativity, making something new and ground-breaking, but quantity and money. If you stumble upon something that sells well, like all the drones playing Call of Duty, then you push out those games at least once a year. Pump out DLC too, keep milking gamers, ideally by breaking up the game. Support? Who cares. Once you have sold your game, you have made your buck, so move on to the next one. Repeat.

For those of us who experienced the early period of the gaming industry, when there was more focus on quality games, this is a sad development.

What you say may largely be true for AAA studios, but there's a lot of smaller or indie studios still producing high-quality games. Which I suppose could be said of film as well - there is still really high quality content out there, it just isn't necessarily what you'll find when looking at the highest-grossing films.

Compared to 10 years ago, I think the gaming industry, at least on PC, is actually in a very interesting and exciting time currently. There is a much larger quantity, but that also means a much wider variety of experiences, so while perhaps the percentage of games that would interest me is lower, there are still a lot more games that interest me. And thanks to GOG, a good number of old games are a lot easier to procure and run (legally) than they were 10 years ago as well.

 

[Pangaea]

I'd probably agree with that actually. Kickstarter has breathed some fresh air into the gaming industry, and due to digital releases it has become easier for smaller / indie studios to release games to the wider audience. I can't stand steam, but on this front they have been good news (also for Linux gaming). There are still quality releases coming out now and then, but whatever the big players are up to, is mostly a complete write-off. Sadly that seems to include Firaxis too these days.