After being dazzled by the graphics and sounds, I realize my same-old, tired strategies work just as well (or better) as they do in Civ2. Within the week I'm already on auto-pilot, looking for MP games (but can't easily find any)...and nobody seems to be able to modify anything (or even has the interest enough to try).

Greatest Hope:

My greatest hope is a very sophisticated diplomacy system and a fiendishly clever AI, with sophisiticated but easy to use trade models and city/empire management screens.

My greatest hope is a very sophisticated diplomacy system and a fiendishly clever AI, with sophisiticated but easy to use trade models and city/empire management screens.

This is not directly related to the game itself, but I'm afraid of living the SMAC experience all over again when it comes to support from Firaxis, ie. good response and presence on the forums within the first few weeks, then endless waiting and begging to get more patches... and seeing each patch introduce more bugs than it fixes (OK, I'm exagerating a bit here ). We'll be waiting forever for SMAC5 and SMAX3 I suppose...

Like you Yin, I'm hoping for a great game that will surprise and challenge me behind a nice UI. But call me pessimistic, but I don't think that will happen.

Greatest Fear: That there won't be a plethora of custom scenarios and modpacks to keep the game exciting and interesting after the initial buzz wears off.

Good diplomacy

Total Customization

The ease of use and speed that the civ 2 interface has. I like the city view, not clicking through a bunch of tabs to get anywere. A lot of customizable screens where you can f.e. change productions in several cities at once depending on some criteria.

Something totally new, like "the rise and fall of empires" idea.

Greatest fear:

Useless 3d graphics that bogs down the game, that after an initial "wow this looks great", becomes more and more annoying. I don't care about unit animations when it makes moving units a drag.

Poor AI

GREATEST FEAR

• the game, like being somesort of sci-fi-game, running halfway into the future like in CTP
  
• no real challenging AI
  
• a UI (a bit like in CTP) that’ll make you do click, click, click, click, click, click, click, before getting anywhere
  
• beautiful graphics getting in the way of simple & smooth playability (a bit like in CTP)
  
• little customization
  

GREATEST HOPES

• NO SCI-FI NONSENSE LIKE IN CTP (those who want that, buy SMAC or CTP !!!!!)
  
• a AI that will turn me into minced meat
  
• basically the same clear and convenient UI as in CIV-II improved with new handy features
  
• beautiful graphics combined with simple & smooth playability
  
• complete customization
  
• a complex, with several "intertwining" branches, tech-tree with lots of new units, city-improvements, things adding to the concepts of governments, diplomacy, waging war, etc.
  
• structural setbacks
  

I just thought of one: Having more cities is always better, even if you are constantly working on most of your cities. Also, a score which is mostly dependant on the number of happy/content citizens in your empire.

Hope: That I will be able to maintain a military and be able to skirmish with my unruly neighbors WHILE I work down my path to be the costantly most advanced player in the game.

Second Greatest Fear: Peaceful expansion will be impossible despite an enhanced Diplomacy system. All rival civs are warlike, betray all their treaties, and attack the player even when it's not in their best interest. Designers say this "shows off the improved combat system of the game" and makes warfare "an essential part of the gaming experience." My small numbers of high-tech units are still routinely defeated by phalanxes and pikemen.

Again, Civ3 offers only 7 civs to play with at a time, plus a demi-civ called the Barbarians. All this seven civ are dumb, and the barbs are the dumbest.

It offers a great scn editor tool as well, but no one is able to consistenly modify the beatiful and animated units, or to create new ones that go together well with the default ones.

Greatest hope:

We will have the ability to play with, say, 16 major civs at a time, plus 16 minor civs, all of them with their own agenda and their own military. The players who still want to play with 8 civs at a time, or even with only 4, are free to do it. Civ3 is highly customizable!

More elaborated diplomatic status.

Clever AI, that know how to raise and use a navy...

SLOWNESS!!

Crappy AI, ones which build a navy and put them in a 1x1 lake, ones who trespass ever 2 turns (CtP), ones who attack without any defence in their cities.

To few civs / To small map (I want to be able to play against 1000 major civs, and maybe another 9000 minor civs.

Incustomizabity: I don't want to have to abandon my WWII scenario (details on 3rd page of thread 1893) until I know the most complex programing language and must write the game myself.

No bugs!

That it takes several months after the game is realeased to get a copy, as it is SO popular.

Greatest Hope

FAST CLEAR GRAPHICS!!! (No mowing the lawn while the computer computes the next turn (aka CtP).

Abilty to make my desired scenario.

Ability to play 1000 player multiplayer games.

No ICS and BAB!

More winning parameters.

Expansion packs which don't cost twice as much as the game itself.

AI able to win!

Ablity to win without wonders!

Warriors can't kill Stealth bombers!!!!!!

I can get the first copy in New Zealand

the AI military tactics being so bad that u find the barbarians more of a danger(like in CTP & even CTP II)

to get anywhere in diplomacy u need to be a oppressive most powerful empire making threats(like in CTP 2)

useless wonders(i am sure all civ games had this problem)

overpowering wonders(i am don't have to tell u)

no mayors

Greatest Hopes:

AI's military tactics can kill u & barbarians r not the only thing that r a danger to u

complex diplomacy that combines the best diplomacy parts of SMAC & CTP 2(like counter-proposals & planetary councils)

balanced wonders

mayors manage better

A peaceful diplomat can't win. (I'm not saying that you should be able to win without ever investing in an army. But you should be able to win without ever having to annihalate an opponent. Too many of my CivII and SMAC games have ended with me rolling over all the other Civs because I got to frustrated with doing it the peaceful way.)

Greatest Hope:

unbalanced game with poor AI (Have I read this very same thing somewhere previous to this).
No future tech.

Greatest Hopes :

Oh, no refugee unit

But of course, that is in way too general terms, so, I'll go deeper:

MY greatest fear is that I'll be stuck with same old stupid AI, diplomacy, and very unrealistic stuff, including: combat, units, nuclear warfare, etc.

Greatest hope: Firaxis will do it one more time (I only own SMAC but would pick up the others if I saw them)

My greatest fear: Civs I and II made me feel as if I were re-writing the history books. A felt I was up there with the great leaders shaping the future of humanity, and callously waging some of it's most bloody wars! SMAC, Test of Time, and Call to Power all just made me feel like I was playing a computer game. Despite the many superb and relevant suggestions made by the members of this site, I think the greatest threat to Civ III is that it simply won't 'feel' like Civ any more.

My greatest hope: Civ I changed the face of computer gaming forever. Civ II was logical progression, more units, better diplomacy, AI, Etc. etc. My greatest hope is that Civ III will follow this trend, improving, reforming, revamping...but still being, the Civ that we know and love.

All this self-indulgent tosh is all very well, but there is a point here - The developers need to summon the original Civ 'spirit' or all is lost.

back to the roots with the techtree!
i wanna realize the manhatten project.
and smooth playable MP games with many civs which dont take too much time to solve it!

- A "spoonfeed-able" AI, there players can guide AI-civs in overal strategical/logistical areas, through tweak-files.
- That AI city-placements and AI city-area developments is done without moving around stupid AI-settlers.
- Very extensive customization-ability in each area of the game, including Windows interface with skins.
- That the Civ-2/SMAC-style clickable city-area view, is still there. For the love of God, dont get rid of that.
- That game-mechanics is "transparently" designed, so you understand "how's" and "why's" behind the interface.
- That all top-five scenario-tools/suggestions are implemented, including the "pre-designated AI-cities" idea.
- That the game can be customized to match both "micro-manager lovers" AND "micro-manager haters".
- That clever anti-ICS, anti-BAB, Rise-And-Fall and world-conquer uphill-struggle parameters is added to the game.
- New city-screen parameters like health, with related CI:s. Catastrophes preventable by improvements.
- New combat-model what do something about the "Stan/Oliver vs Finlayson fighting syndrome". Not realtime.
- An overal feeling of quality & craftsmanship of both the manual, the game-interface and to the gameplay itself.

MY GREATEST FEAR:

Greatest hope, really, really cool scenarios, as I'm too lazy to make them.

------------------
"People should know when they're conquered."

"Would you Quintis? Would I?"

quote: Originally posted by Ralf on 01-13-2001 04:52 PM - That the game can be customized to match both "micro-manager lovers" AND "micro-manager haters".

Absolutely agreed. Firaxis would better give us that if they really want to satisfy all their potential customers...

greatest hope: open the box and find the super graphic in depth but simple CIVILIZATION 111 that ive been waiting for!!!!!!!

Hope:

quote: Greatest Fear ... No bugs!

Fear not, Grrr: I'm sure there will be bugs.

OK, my list:

Hope: Civ3 will be the greatest game I've ever played.

Greatest hope: the player completely forgets what time it is as they are so caught up with negotiating with foreign civs, putting down rebellions, building great wonders etc...