Firaxis Games and MicroProse. 12 studios that keep making the same game
Table of Contents
- Games or series: Sid Meier's Civilization
- Copy-pasting since: 1991
- Copied elements: gameplay basics, nations, leaders
Justifying the choice of the Civilization series in this compilation shouldn't be that hard. The subsequent installments of the popular strategy IP differ in terms of graphics, available nations, leaders and mechanics, but the foundation of the game remains the same. We participate in an arms race, creating wonders of the world, developing increasingly advanced technologies, to make our civilization the first to bloom and dominate the rest of the world.
The changes introduced from game to game are sometimes bigger, sometimes smaller, but – generally – they're always perfectly in line with the IP's heritage. If something didn't work out in part three, it may finally fit like a glove in part six. It similar with the returning – sometimes all too regularly (looking at Alexander of Macedon and Mahatmo Gandhi) – nations and leaders. Genghis Khan is also a regular visitor to the series. For a while, it seemed that he would not appear in 6, but in the end – thanks to the Rise and Fall expansion – the tradition has been fulfilled and he may again bring Mongolian Empire into the information age.
The most interesting thing is that you get the impression that the community doesn't seem to want major changes. The disappointment of fans due to lack of Genghis Khan in the core version ofCivilization VI was considerable – no wonder Firaxis Games added him later. It's similar with gameplay, which is constantly compared to that of the cult part three. Fortunately, the series by Sid Meier is developing and making progress. The best example of this is part six, which at the beginning was basically just the previous installment with its two expansions, but at the same time it introduced many interesting mechanics – i.e. automatic creation of roads, or the system of districts. I hope they will also be included in the next installment of the series.