Tag Archives: 4X

Mapping Old World– Map-It

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TL;DR – We continue our project of mapping historical video games with a look at Mohawk Games’ Old World

Rome.

Mapping Old World –

One of the joys I have discovered working on this site has been our mission to map historical video games. We started with Civilization, followed up with Humankind, and our next mission is Old World. I had played a bunch of Old World when it was back in beta, and now that its next expansion, Pharaohs of the Nile, has arrived, I knew it was time to jump into this map.

Before we dive in, a couple of quick notes: while all attempts have been made to ensure that everything is accurately placed, putting this together meant working from multiple sources, map projections, and sometimes not firm locations. As such, no matter how much you try, there might be slight discrepancies. This is increased in places with many locations grouped into a small area [cough Greece cough]. So take this as indicative of the place, not a pinpoint location. Also, some entries could be one of several different locations; in that case, I had to make a call about which one it was.

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Civilization VI: Leader Pass – Features Thread

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In this thread we will be documenting all the new additions for Civilization VI in their new Leader Pass.

Civilization VI Leader Pass. Image Credit: Firaxis Games.
Civilization VI Leader Pass. Image Credit: Firaxis Games.

This Features Thread is being complied for Civfanatics, head on over to the forums for all your Civilization discussions both for Civ 6 and also for Civ games of the past and upcoming 4X titles.

You can also see all our Civilization coverage HERE.

Throughout this thread, I will put links to Wikipedia articles about the different features, if you would like to know more. If you see anything in ITALICS, this means that the information is implied enough that we feel it is safe to add it to the Features Thread, but it is not officially confirmed yet.

Leaders Pass Overview

There will be 13 new leaders and 6 updates to existing leaders released between November 21 2022 and March 2023.

For Windows PC, if you purchase Civilization VI Anthology (or purchase all of the content that’s included in it separately at any time), you’ll be eligible to receive the Leader Pass for no additional charge. For Mac App Store and iOS, the Civilization VI: Leader Pass is available for individual purchase only.

Now Available on PlayStation®4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch

Jump to Pack Information

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Humankind – Map-It

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TL;DR – We map all of the eras of Humankind all in one map … okay many maps.

The Mediterranean Map

Mapping Humankind

One of the joys I get is mapping out universes, while I have charted out movie universes like the MCU and Grand Designs. However, one of my favourite things has been charting how 4X video games explore the world and its history. Today we are looking at the next entry in this series, charting all of Humankind from Amplitude Studios and Sega.

I had started making this map several times before running into roadblocks, like how do you make a map that shows Russia/Soviet Union or England/Great Britain? The way I previously fixed this issue with my Civilization map didn’t work here, and I started to wonder if I was Wile E. Coyote hitting my head against every ACME invention. However, one day it all clicked together, so I started down this road.

I worked it out by having a separate map for each era, all the cities, cultures, independent peoples, and wonders. Then we smashed it all together at the end in a wild kaleidoscope of overlapping entries. While putting this all together, I was still concerned it would not work. However, it kind of does. Before we start, I have to thank the Humankind Wiki for collating all the cities for me so I did not have to dive into the code. With that in mind, let us dive into the world of Humankind, which includes all the information from the base game and the Cultures of Africa Pack and Cultures of Latin America Pack DLCs. You can also see links to all the information in the map in our Humankind Cartographic Educational Database.

While all attempts have been made to ensure that everything is accurately placed, putting this together meant working from multiple sources, map projections, and sometimes not firm locations. As such, no matter how much you try, there might be slight discrepancies. With that in mind, let us dive into the maps.

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Humankind – Video Game Review

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TL;DR – Here, we have a beautiful game with a lot of promise but is not quite there yet.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for this game.

Humankind. Image Credit: Amplitude Studios.

Humankind  Review –

One genre of Video Games just clicks with me more than others, like on a deep physiological level. That genre is the strategy game, well, more than that. It is the particular 4X genre of strategy game where you eXplore, eXploit, eXpand, & eXterminate, and if it is turn-based, even better. I can spend hundreds of hours exploring the mechanics of each game, hitting each of those four X’s. In the realm of the historical-empire-builder 4X world, there has been one crown, Civilization.  Well, today, we take a look at a game that is coming for that title, and while it doesn’t quite get there, it does come close.

The first thing I want to mention is just how beautiful this game is. When you first jump into the game and see a river crashing over the cliffs into a valley full of lush jungle and red earth, Well, it will take your breath away. A lot of care has gone into everything feeling as if it is a natural part of this world. Part of what helps is a mountain of terrain features that make even areas that could be dull, like the frozen poles, still feel interesting to explore. I also like how they have introduced height to the game, making the world feel more grounded. You can see the legacy of Endless Legend throughout this game in the design of the terrain, but it has been tailored to be like Earth but stylized, and I think they get that balance right. To add to this, while watching this stunning game, you also get to hear a soundtrack that I have yet to get sick over these[redacted] hours that I have played, and I am listening to it now as I write this review. If I had to pick my favourite track from the game, it would be Mercury, but they are all great.

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Hammurabi of Babylon First Look and Analysis – Civilization VI: New Frontier Pass

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TL;DR: There has been a dearth of perfect science civs … that is until now.

We are getting a new expansion for Civilization VI, well not quite, over the next year we have a season pass, the New Frontier Pass, which will give us several new Civilizations and Game Modes over the next year (which you can find out more information HERE). The next new Civilization has been released so let’s dive into Babylon.

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Menelik II of Ethiopia First Look and Analysis – Civilization VI: New Frontier Pass

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TL;DR: Ethiopia is here and get ready for it to chuck faith into hyperdrive.

We are getting a new expansion for Civilization VI, well not quite, over the next year we have a season pass, the New Frontier Pass, which will give us several new Civilizations and Game Modes over the next year (which you can find out more information HERE). The next new Civilizations has been released so let’s dive into Ethiopia.

Menelik II of Ethiopia. Image Credit: Firaxis Games.
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Lady Six Sky of The Maya First Look and Analysis – Civilization VI: New Frontier Pass

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TL;DR: We get a civilization that finally goes tall

We are getting a new expansion for Civilization VI, well not quite, over the next year we have a season pass, the New Frontier Pass, which will give us several new Civilizations and Game Modes over the next year (which you can find out more information HERE). The first of the new Civilizations has been released so let’s dive into The Maya.

Lady Six Sky leader of The Maya. image credit: Firaxis Games.
Lady Six Sky leader of The Maya. image credit: Firaxis Games.

Civilization Information

Civilization Leader: Lady Six Sky
Leader Agenda: Solitary – She dislikes encroaching civs and she tries to keep her cities in a cluster near the capital.
Civilization Capital: Wak Kab’nal 
Civilization Bonus: Mayab – No extra housing from Fresh Water/Coast but Farms provide more housing and gold, Amenities for each Luxury resource adjacent to the City Centre
Leader Bonus: Ix Mutal Ajaw – Cities within 6 tiles of the Capital get a boost to all yearlings, other cities away from this limit get a penalty to yields. Bonus combat strength for units within 6 tiles of the Capital
Unique Unit: Hul’che – Ranged replacement for Archer, Stronger and gets a bonus against wounded opponents 
Unique District: Observatory – A campus replacement that gets an adjacency bonus from Plantations and Farms.
Volcanoes: Hunahpú
Rivers: Grijalva River
Cities: Palenque, Yaxchilan, Toniná, Xunantunich, Copán,

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Civilization VI: New Frontier Pass – Features Thread

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Civilization VI: New Frontier Pass. Image Credit: Firaxis Games.

In this thread we will be documenting all the new additions for Civilization VI in their New Frontier Pass.

This Features Thread is being complied for Civfanatics, head on over to the forums for all your Civilization discussions both for and also for games past.

TL;DR: There will be 6 packs of content, some of it will be paid DLC and some of it will be free content for players. Some of the new content will need to you have Rise and Fall installed, and some will need you to have Gathering Storm installed.

To jump to the different packs go to Maya and Gran Colombia Pack, June Update, Ethiopia Pack, August Update, Byzantium and Gaul Pack, October Update, Babylon Pack, December Update, Vietnam Pack, February Update, Portugal Update & April Update.

Throughout this thread, I will put links to Wikipedia articles about the different features, if you would like to know more.

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Video Game Review – Old World (Ōld World) First Look

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TL;DR – A game that sits in the middle between Civilization and Total War, taking things that work from both.

Old World. Image Credit: Mohawk Games.

Review –

If there is one genre of games that I will always been drawn to, it is the 4x (EXplore, EXpand, EXploit and EXterminate) strategy genre. It can be in space, in a fantasy realm, in the past, or somewhere completely new, I don’t care just hook it up straight to my veins. When I heard that Soren Johnson, the lead designer of Civilization IV, was diving back into the genre my interest was peaked and now that I have had a chance to play the game I can see why. One thing I do need to point out before we proceed, this is an “early access” game in that it is not yet finished. This means that this is only a first look, a first impression of the game and not the full review, which is why there is not a score above.  

So to set the scene, Old World (or as it is styled Ōld World) is a game set in the past charting the dawn of civilization through the classical era to almost the medieval era. In it, you play one of seven civilization/leaders from the dawn of time. Ashurbanipal of Assyria, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia, Dido of Carthage, Hatshepsut of Egypt, Philip of Greece, Cyrus of Persia, and Romulus of Rome. However, unlike Civilization and other similar games, you don’t just hold on to the one leader for the whole game, because like in real life, leaders get old and die. This means as well as maintaining your expansion you need to make sure your heirs are ready to take over. This brings the game a little of the way into the territory of the popular Total War series. On the whole, I quite liked the dynastic politics in the game, however, has the game goes on and your heirs and siblings etc start popping out multiple babies a turn, it can be a bit hard to keep track of. Which is just about when your sister kills you in your sleep for ascending to the throne over her as what happened in my first game. You also need to keep different dynastic families from squabbling, giving you potential problems from afar and within.  

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Video Game Review – Endless Space 2 (with Vaulters, Supremacy & Penumbra)

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TL;DR – A polished and calming take on the 4x genre

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

Endless Space 2. Image Credit: Amplitude Studios.

Review –

Several years ago I picked up a new space 4X game called Endless Space. It was from a new developer Amplitude Studios and combined a strategy game with space in a way that I loved. It started a bit rough around the edges but grew into a really solid game. Now when I heard there was a sequel, I was interested but it dropped a bad time, well now I have some time at home thanks to *gestures broadly around* it was a good moment to go back and rectify that.

So to set the scene, Endless Space 2 is a 4X turn-based strategy game. This means that you pick a race like The United Empire, or The Vodyani, or The Hisso, from there you need to eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate. You will do this by building new colonies on Mediterranean or terrain or monsoon planets, researching technologies from the technology web, and probably concurring a neighbour or two.

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