Running Civ.4

[Phoenix_56721]

Does anyone know what it will take to run Civ.4 and what kind of internet connection will be needed for online play? Just wondering if its time to upgrade my computer.

My computer has:
866 mzh processor
512 ram
Geforce 5700 le 128m video card
sound blaster audio card
Dial up internet (and its my only option, i live in the country )

Thank You!!

 

[vbraun]

Your going to need to upgrade your computer. You need at least 1Ghz of prosscer power.

 

[Phoenix_56721]

Thank you, I was afraid of that!

 

[toh6wy]

Thank you, I was afraid of that!

Your memory and video card are well above the current min. requirements, though. Perhaps you'll still be able to play Civ 4 without getting a new computer.

 

[Phoenix_56721]

Thanks, I only hope that Civ.4 can be played over a dail up connection. I really enjoy online play and i would be very dissapointed if i couldn't!

Thank's for your thoughts!

 

[Urederra]

There is no cable internet conexion in Grand Forks, MN? Is that the place whre the movie 'Fargo' really takes place? Do you have cable TV?

 

[Phoenix_56721]

There is cable internet in the city itself, but its not offered for rural residents. I have satellite TV, but they don’t offer internet with their programming, the only satellite internet I can find is way to expense.

Fargo is about 70 miles south of me, I never saw the movie don’t know why.

 

[bt_oz]

Phoenix, i think you should be able to play civ4, it might be just under the recommened specs for computer cpu, however your video card will be fine,
Even if it is a little bit slower, it won't detract from the gameplay, as for dialup gaming
well maybe you could find some others who have dialup and game with them as a group

cheers
bt

 

[Brain]

I don't think dial-up is going to be a problem. It's not a 3D shooter where you have to constantly exchange a large stream of data. The game just sends info about each turn and maybe some chat data.

However, I think your CPU is going to be a problem. The most CPU expensive part of the game is the AI, and AI turns already take forever in Civ3. I don't think it's going to be realistic to play below the recommended specs (which are going to be higher than the minimum specs).

 

[Janos]

You will be able to play it - just don't expect great performance. Shunt all the settings down to minimum and you should be fine =).

 

[Brain]

You will be able to play it - just don't expect great performance. Shunt all the settings down to minimum and you should be fine =).

Those settings affect 3D graphics performance. AFAIK there is no AI performance setting. You still have to wait for the AI to play its turn.

 

[Janos]

Those settings affect 3D graphics performance. AFAIK there is no AI performance setting. You still have to wait for the AI to play its turn.

Then he'll have slow load times. Fact is he will be able to play the game.

 

[Phoenix_56721]

Thanks for the input guys, I know i'm not the only one who has a older computer and wants to play Civ.4, hopefully they will make the game compatible for us guys with slower computers! Thanks agian for the comments!!!

 

[Yusaku Jon III]

866 mzh processor
512 ram
Geforce 5700 le 128m video card
sound blaster audio card

Any idea what type of processor, Phoenix? Intel or AMD? What type of RAM?

If anything, you should be able to get by with the game on low graphics settings, but not necessarily have optimal speed during gameplay. The bottleneck here would be the processor, which falls below the minimum requirements for the game. I might go for an additional 512 megabytes of RAM if that'll help with large maps and high unit volume (though the processor still gets loaded).

I've already thought about swapping out my existing Pentium4 for a newer, faster system. It's not just for the 3D environment now being added to Civ IV, but also for other RTS and sim-racing games that might come along. At this point, even a 2.4 GHz P4 might not be enough if the motherboard isn't supporting DDR2 RAM, PCIe graphics accelerators and increased front-side bus speeds.

 

[Phoenix_56721]

Its a intel processor, with 512 sd ram.
my slots only seem to read 256 per slot and I only have 2 slots availble so i cant get more then 512m. But updating the type or ram is something i hadn't thought of....... thanks!

 

[Brain]

Then he'll have slow load times. Fact is he will be able to play the game.

Please pay attention. I'll repeat for the 3rd time. CPU speed affects how fast the AI plays its turn. It's not the load time but the IBT time that's going to be long.

 

[Godwynn]

I have a P4 3.6ghz
1gig ram
ATI Radeon X800XT
250gig HDD
Cable Internet

Will I be able to play?

EDIT: sarcasm

 

[Phoenix_56721]

I have a P4 3.6ghz
1gig ram
ATI Radeon X800XT
250gig HDD
Cable Internet

Will I be able to play?

EDIT: sarcasm

Sweet setup! Can I have your old computer?

 

[dannyevilcat]

With an 866mhz processor, even if the game does load, and even if it does play, I'd expect it to freeze up and stop responding as the game advances and the AI has more units to control, things to build, etc.

 

[NinjaCool]

You might play fine on small maps but anything larger will definitly get boring with delays as the cpu tried to catch up.