New IGN Preview...

[Loppan Torkel]

http://pc.ign.com/articles/628/628695p1.html?
...and there's some new info in this one too. The traits are explained among other things.

 

[Aks K]

Lots of screenshots and new info.

Aks K

 

[Meleager]

Each ruler has two defining characteristics, each of which grants them a unique bonus and lessens the cost of two city improvements by half. The Philosophical characteristic grants a ruler a 100% in his or her people's birthrate and half-cost libraries and universities. Being Spiritual allows a ruler to avoid the period of anarchy that comes with a change in government and also get cheaper temples and monasteries. Creative rulers gain a bonus to their culture and half-price theaters and broadcast towers. Rulers with the Organized characteristic reduce their civic upkeep costs by half and can buy labs and courthouses more cheaply. Expansive rulers will be able to heal units inside cities much faster and also get a break on granaries and grocers. New units produced by rulers with the Aggressive characteristic get the Combat 1 promotion for free. Aggressive rulers also get half-price barracks and jails.

Quite a lot in that.

 

[dc82]

wow a lot of good info. i hafta say tho, i was blown away listening to one of the tracks while looking at the new screenshots. heh, gave me shivers man, truly made the game feel like a game of epic proportions. haha, def. pumped me up.


did anyone notice how in the screenshot w/ the globe view, it seemed like the world was made up mostly of land, with a few lakes scattered - perhaps the world customization option has been further expanded with a larger variety of worlds one can create and play in.

 

[Meleager]

Hey look at the sheep rescorse. Lots of little sheep istead of one big one. It looks good.

 

[Meleager]

They have new movies too. They are pretty good.

Edit: Nice Music Here: http://christophertin.com/samples/BabaYetu.mp3 . Goes for quite a while.

 

[Bartholomaï]

Some rulers are a bit more inscrutable. The only difference you can tell between the angry and happy states of the Chinese ruler Qin Shi Huang is the elevation of his eyebrows.

I hope I will still have my advisor to tell me if he is angry or happy with the offer.

As before, the first civilization to discover a technology that opens up a new religion will be assigned the holy city for that religion. The holy city is assigned by the AI to a random city within the civilization, most likely one near the center or capital of the empire. Owning the holy city gives you line of sight in all cities that share that religion, encouraging you to spread your faith around the world. The holy city is also where you build great wonders that can improve the happiness throughout your empire.

wow, religion actually looks very interesting!

Each civilization can declare a state religion as well. (You're free to switch to a new religion later on but you'll endure a period of anarchy just like you'd experience during a change in government.)

So you will have anarchy when you change a setting in your goverment!

And don't tell me the leaderheads are cartoonish, they look real to me!!!

 

[Mongoloid Cow]

When dealing with the flirtatious Hatshepsut or the jowly dandy Louis XIV, you'll be able to see their attitudes and personality in their animations.

Queen Hatshepsut for Egypt, and King Louis XIV for France. Good to see they are rising above the cliche and lame ducks for leaders. Also mentioned as leaders are Napoleon, Genghis Khan, Kublai Khan, Qin Shi Huang, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Saladin.

The game is still on target to ship this Fall and is already being tested pretty heavily. Since all the big features are in place, the team will be spending the time between now and the release tweaking the math and balancing the game's AI. If all goes according to plan, the developers will have a beta build by August. We're hopeful that we'll be able to bring you even more updates between now and then.

For most of us, the best and most important part And geez, it looks good.

 

[Carver]

If it was still in doubt, Greece is definently in.

 

[Aussie_Lurker]

You know, it looks like your Diplomatic Advisor is gone and I-for one-am glad. It made diplomacy too 'Idiot Proof', shall we say. I far prefer the way it was in Civ2, where you had to 'haggle' a bit before you arrived at an acceptable deal. What I also love is that they practically 'stole' my idea for great leaders , judging from what they have said so far. Even if that were the case, though, I would be very flattered !
It also is looking more apparent that the 'Giant Units' are only really an issue at Maximum Zoom-at Civ2 and 3 level zoom the units look pretty much as they always have in relation to surrounding terrain.
If I have any lingering problems, its that they still have had precious little to say about the GUTS of diplomacy and Civics-and I still want to know more about how health, birthrates and 'corruption' are all going to work.
Also, I don't like the sound of artillery. I DO like the fact that they can damage all units in a square, but I also liked the Non-Lethal/Lethal differentiation between artillery and non-artillery units. i.e. I really want artillery units to remain a form of 'suppression' unit, damaging the enemy but never quite killing them. Again, I would like to hear more about this from Firaxis. All in all, though, I am increasingly happy with how this game is looking, but more information will personally help me to make up my mind!

Yours,
Aussie_Lurker.

 

[ThERat]

Be careful, however, of spreading too many religions; the Freedom of Religion civic option grants bonuses to civilizations that are home to a wide variety of religions.

now this is what I wanted to hear
my choice for sure

But the clunky multi units are still there

still , makes one look forward to trying it out asap

 

[Carver]

Other promotions give bonuses in certain types of terrain; the Guerilla promotion, for instance, adds bonuses when fighting in hills, while the Woodsman promotion grants bonuses in jungle or forest tiles. Three levels each of the City Raider or City Garrison upgrades give units a bonus for either attacking or defending cities. There are also specific bonuses for fighting against certain types of units as well; Cover gives a bonus against ranged units, Shock against melee and Formation against cavalry.

I'm starting to like this new combat system much more than the Civ 3 system. It seems deeper and more, well, strategic.

 

[Nobody]

Dosent anyone else think that the guy on the main page looks a bit like osama bin laden

 

[ThERat]

now, after looking at all the screens + the videos, got to say my opinion of the graphics have not changed. not my style, the map looks as messy as ever.
other opinions?

the world view shows polar caps of epic proportions on both ends

 

[Furius]

That I suspect is because the map isn't spherical... They've just rolled up a rectangular one and sort of bulged it slightly...

Everything would work better if the map was composed of diamonds instead of squares....

 

[Evie]

If it was still in doubt, Greece is definently in.

Yep, Thunderfall called that shot right. the blue-green hoplite helmet flag IS the Greek flag. (it is seen on units defending Athens (which is marked as a national capital) and Thermopylae.

Edit :

SCREENSHOTS OBSERVATIONS
http://media.pc.ign.com/media/620/620513/img_2872463.html
Saladin. A bit caricatural, but not too bad. Let's hope the Khans are treated better than they were in III.

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/620/620513/img_2872465.html
Multi-unit formation? (center-right, edge of the blue territory : a 3 pikes/2 bow formation!)

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/620/620513/img_2872469.html
I note with great amusement that the elephant UNIT and ressources are SOMEWHAT mis-sized.

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/620/620513/img_2872471.html
Another multi-unit formation, 2 pikes, 2 bow, 2 catapults. It seems.

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/620/620513/img_2872472.html
French seems to be purplish blue. VAST improvement there, Firaxis.

 

[MishGolden]

The Saladin leaderhead looks great, but I'm somewhat disappointed with this choice to lead the Arabs. Although he must have led mostly-Arab armies, he was knows as Salah al-Din the Kurd -- he was a Kurd, not an Arab.

The background of Jerusalem also looks great with the Dome of the Rock there, but, again, I have a quibble. Why Jerusalem for the Arab leader? It was never the center of the Arab world, as Mecca, Medina, Baghdad, and Damascus have been. I think I understand why Firaxis did it -- Jerusalem is much more recognizable, but still. In all, if I were an Arab, I don;t think I would be happy with that picture.

 

[BearMan]

"i was blown away listening to one of the tracks " ... ", gave me shivers man, truly made the game feel like a game of epic proportions."

x 2, and, please tell me that the ingame music keep the same level.

 

[Chieftess]

Dosent anyone else think that the guy on the main page looks a bit like osama bin laden

That's what everyone said in PTW when Arabia was in the game.

Also, anyone notice that there's no cities on the desert... ? (and the little "bar" beneath the other bar in Tenochtitlan) Just a few things for discussion.

 

[Quentin]

I find most interesting the attention they're giving to the music.