isau
Deity
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2007
- Messages
- 3,071
I do think one of the problems with Civilization as a series is that its a race to the end. The only time at which victory is checked is at the end of the game.
This is a tautology, and actually not a correct tautology. Obviously the game only ends when it ends. But, to use another tautology, you win by not losing. If you get killed on turn 50, you can't win. And the players who remain after knocking you out increase their odds of being the winner. Thus to say "victory is only checked at the end of the game" is like saying "There is no Mushroom Kingdom--victory is checked when you run past Bowser." A whole huge part of the game is not dying prior to that point, not just the timer ticking down.
If it were true that victory is only "checked" at the end of the game, the follwing would be true: "With each turn that passes you don't actually get any closer to victory." This is obviously not true. You win by stacking up all the things you did in the previous turns, and win faster by stacking them better. You lose if you get killed or someone gets to any of the various goals faster.