Sid Meier's Civilization is a turn-based strategy computer game created by Sid Meier for MicroProse in 1991. The game's objective is to "...build an empire to stand the test of time". The game begins in 4000 BC, and the players attempt to expand and develop their empires through the ages until modern and near-future times. It is also known simply as Civilization, or abbreviated to Civ or Civ I.
Civilization is a turn-based single-player computer game. The player takes on the role of the ruler of a civilization starting with only one Settler unit. The player attempts to build an empire in competition with between two and six other civilizations. The game requires a fair amount of micromanagement (although less than any of the simulation games).
Before the game begins, the player chooses which historical civilization to play. In contrast to later games in the Civilization series, in Civ I, this is largely a cosmetic choice, affecting titles, city names, musical heralds, color, and also their starting position on the "Play on Earth" map (and thus different resources in one's initial cities). It has no effect on starting position, however, when starting a random world game or a customized world game. The player's choice of civilization also prevents the computer from being able to play as that civilization or the other civilization of the same color, and since computer-controlled opponents display certain traits of their civilizations this affects gameplay as well. The Aztecs are both fiercely expansionistic and generally extremely wealthy, for example. Other civilizations include the Americans, the Mongols, and the Romans. Each civilization is led by a historical figure, such as Mahatma Gandhi (Indians) and Joseph Stalin (Russians).
As time advances, new technologies are developed; these technologies are the primary way in which the game changes and grows. At the start, players choose from advances such as Pottery, the Wheel, and the Alphabet to, near the end of the game, Nuclear fission and Spaceflight. Players can gain a large advantage if their civilization is the first to learn a particular technology (the secrets of flight, for example) and put it to use in a military or other context. Most advances give access to new units, city improvements or derivative technologies: for example, the Chariot unit becomes available after the Wheel is developed, and the Granary building becomes available to build after Pottery is developed. The whole system of advancements from beginning to end is called the Technology tree, or simply the Tech tree; this concept has been adopted in many other strategy games. Since only one tech may be "researched" at any given time, the order in which technologies are chosen makes a considerable difference in the outcome of the game and generally reflects the player's preferred style of gameplay.
The game can be won by destroying all other civilizations, reaching the end of the modern era with the highest score or by winning the space race by reaching the star system of Alpha Centauri. This may lead up to Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri.
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