Civilization IV is, for me, the peak of the Civilization franchise. It’s much more accessible and user friendly than the first 3 games, but it isn’t overly streamlined like the most recent games. It can be played casually and you can still get a lot of enjoyment out of it, but you can also choose to go deep into the micromanagement of it and make the game a lot more complicated, if that’s how you prefer to play your strategy games. Players of both old and new Civilization games will be able to pick up and play it relatively easily. It isn’t hugely unique when compared to other games in the franchise, but it executes everything so well that it stands out among the crowd.

One of the game’s strongest assets is its extensive modding community. In my experience, it is the largest and most active modding community across the entire franchise. There are some truly amazing mods that can completely change how the game is played and what it’s about. You can convert the game to a fantasy RPG setting, complete with quests and unique NPCs. There are also a number of historical overhauls, which attempt to make the game more realistic and in-depth. My personal favorite would be Caveman 2 Cosmos. It has 5 times the technologies of the base game, which expands each era into almost their own game. It is extremely long and adds dozens of new mechanics, so it might be too much of an overhaul for some people, although I still recommend giving it a shot.

The base game of Civilization IV is solid and stands the test of time, although it does have some flaws. The AI tends to struggle, requiring cheats in order to keep up with the player. While I consider it the best of the franchise, it still has some issues with a lack of depth. There is also an issue with optimal strategies feeling very “gamey”, in the sense that they aren’t particularly fun to use, but are so far ahead of more fun strategies that you feel compelled to use them or turn the difficulty down. However, thanks to mods, the game takes on a whole new life.

*rating is based off of a modded version of Civilization IV

10/10

• Firaxis Games, 2K
• Steam
• $20