Civilization V - DLC Worth It?

[BlueWeasel]

Ignoring the issues, problems, drawbacks of the game, are the DLC's for Civ 5 worth getting the GOTY over the base game?

Gamersgate has the game (non-GOTY) for $7.50. I'm a new Civ player who has minimal experience with previous games in the series. Just curious if the DLC add much to the overall game or if they are minor add-ons. Probably will just be doing single player only, so don't see needing the DLC for MP matches.

Thoughts?

 

[Chaotic42]

If you haven't already bought Civ 5, I honestly can't recommend that you buy it. I loved Civ 4, but Civ 5 was the video game equivalent of getting kicked in the balls. I guess for $8 you can afford to risk it though.

 

[BlueWeasel]

If you haven't already bought Civ 5, I honestly can't recommend that you buy it. I loved Civ 4, but Civ 5 was the video game equivalent of getting kicked in the balls. I guess for $8 you can afford to risk it though.

Is it still a really bad game for someone who has essentially never played a Civ game, though?

It appears more simplified than Civ4 and I thought it might be the better choice for a new player. Granted, simple isn't always better.

 

[coloumb]

Ignoring the issues, problems, drawbacks of the game, are the DLC's for Civ 5 worth getting the GOTY over the base game?

Gamersgate has the game (non-GOTY) for $7.50. I'm a new Civ player who has minimal experience with previous games in the series. Just curious if the DLC add much to the overall game or if they are minor add-ons. Probably will just be doing single player only, so don't see needing the DLC for MP matches.

Thoughts?

I can't answer about the DLC's - but a quick take looks like they add a few AI's, maps, and scenarios.

My experience with Civ is probably on par with yours - I dabbled in Civ 4 on "I'm a noob" difficulty and dabbled a bit on "I'm still a noob" in Civ 5. Back then - the AI was extremely stupid [the warriors wouldn't attack me half the time] and I spent A LOT of time just waiting on turns.

I'd say try the gamersage vanilla version and see how you like it. I don't think you're going to be missing much without the DLC's.

 

[StinkyPinky]

The DLC's are pointless. Just buy the core game.

You can always buy the DLC later if you decide you like the game. They'll be on special again over christmas.

The game is ok, but I agree with people that say Civ 4 is currently the best of the series (with Civ 2 a close second).

 

[Chaotic42]

The DLC's are pointless. Just buy the core game.

You can always buy the DLC later if you decide you like the game. They'll be on special again over christmas.

The game is ok, but I agree with people that say Civ 4 is currently the best of the series (with Civ 2 a close second).

Civ 4 with all of the expansions is, to me, the absolute best Civ experience you can get. I've played marathon sessions of Civ 4, but got bored with Civ 5 after less than an hour.

 

[paperfist]

They are minor additions, as coloumb said they add new civilizations like Korea, Incas, Babylon, and then there's the Cradle of Civilization which adds maps.

It is probably the easiest Civilization game to get into because the AI has a hard time playing on 1UPT hex map. The game is stripped of many features that made Civ IV a masterpiece. It's a lot like Civ REV the console version which is pretty easy to get into.

So being your first time I wouldn't bother with the DLC. Try out the base game first as the DLC doesn't change any game mechanics. As much as I hate this version at that price you really can't go wrong. It's cheaper then most Indie games with a much higher production value.

 

[BlueWeasel]

Thanks all. Ordered from Gamersgate and downloading via Steam now.

 

[Arglebargle]

The DLC's are pointless. Just buy the core game.

You can always buy the DLC later if you decide you like the game. They'll be on special again over christmas.

The game is ok, but I agree with people that say Civ 4 is currently the best of the series (with Civ 2 a close second).

Alpha Centauri is the best Civ game. By far.

But totally agree about the DLC.

 

[CPA]

Go to Civfanatics and read about some of the Mods that are available. The thing that Civ V has over Civ IV is the ease of using mods. There is a function that is built into the game that allows you to download mods, so they're guaranteed to work. Then you can pick and choose which mods you want to use, by filling the checkbox.

 

[Maximilian]

Is it still a really bad game for someone who has essentially never played a Civ game, though?

It appears more simplified than Civ4 and I thought it might be the better choice for a new player. Granted, simple isn't always better.

Yes civ V would be a lousy first experience for someone who has never played civ before. Its made even worse by the fact theres no city governor, if you like massive empires and micromanagement gets boring you just want to war and diplomacy and not tell all all your 40+ cities what to build every round then you wont like civ V. I cant recommend civ IV either though because it needs mods to be good. Without mods its a complex game without a good UI which is a bad combo.

Alpha centauri still hasent been beaten IMO. Its as complex as any civ game, more so dependant on which civ its compared to, the graphics are pretty good it takes a different approach than civ. Its easy to get the hang of, you settle bases near the green tiles, not the horrid looking barren tiles, it all just makes sense. Every faction has a personality too unlike any of the civ games.

 

[RebelCapitalist]

I also recommend CivFanatics. It's be THE place to be for years for us Civ guys and gals. As you can see in the thread, there's no consistent answer to anything.

I think Civ V makes a good entry into the universe because it's scaled back, so you won't be overwhelmed. However, if you look a lot of detail and micromanaging, get Civ IV.

Civ V has both que-building and puppets, so you don't need to attend to each city each round if you don't want to.

Like others have said, wait on DLC to see if you like the game.

 

[arredondo]

What are some good Civ V mods to dload?

 

[StinkyPinky]

Yes civ V would be a lousy first experience for someone who has never played civ before. Its made even worse by the fact theres no city governor, if you like massive empires and micromanagement gets boring you just want to war and diplomacy and not tell all all your 40+ cities what to build every round then you wont like civ V. I cant recommend civ IV either though because it needs mods to be good. Without mods its a complex game without a good UI which is a bad combo.

Alpha centauri still hasent been beaten IMO. Its as complex as any civ game, more so dependant on which civ its compared to, the graphics are pretty good it takes a different approach than civ. Its easy to get the hang of, you settle bases near the green tiles, not the horrid looking barren tiles, it all just makes sense. Every faction has a personality too unlike any of the civ games.

I'm pretty sure there is a governor. It's just buried under two layers of terrible UI.

 

[ArizonaSteve]

I also recommend CivFanatics.

Go there and see how Civ V has totally decimated the succession games subforum. I think the game list (both completed and in progress) is still on the first page.

 

[Maximilian]

I'm pretty sure there is a governor. It's just buried under two layers of terrible UI.

Unless they've patched one in there's no governor, the only thing close to it is puppeting your cities.

 

[paperfist]

Was reading the civfanatic forums and apparently they are working on a new patch to fix multiplayer and beyond that have '2 big' things (Firaxis) is working on for the game. I wonder if it'll get an actual expansion after all this DLC has come out?

 

[StinkyPinky]

Unless they've patched one in there's no governor, the only thing close to it is puppeting your cities.

Still not convinced. I seem to remember using one.

Here's a screenshot from a forum

http://i55.tinypic.com/2912al2.jpg

Citizen Management -- i think it focuses the AI to run the city towards a certain goal, which includes building stuff to achieve that goal.

It's been ages though so I cannot remember 100% if it does build stuff or not.

 

[n7]

It won't actually build stuff for you. You still have to pick the units/buildings to build.

But you can select the specific focus, and it will work the tiles best suited for that, and you can queue up a bunch of things to build if you really don't want to be bothered for a while.

TBH though, the more automated you leave things, the worse you will do.

For example, when i started out, i had no idea what to do with workers, and left them on auto.
Later, i discovered that is a horrible thing to do, as they do not do what they should in many cases.

Micromanagement most definitely does get time-consuming, but honestly, it's not like Civ is meant to be a fast-paced game.

At higher difficulties, micro-managing literally is the difference between winning or losting, so unless you are playing on the n00b difficulties, micro-managing is a wise idea.


And to answer the OP, yes, the DLC is worth it if you like the game.
I really like the DLC civs, and i haven't even played the scenarios or DLC maps, etc.

 

[mirandu04]

from my point of vies anything related to CIV 5 is worth the money.
Let's face it, the game is impressive and any addition to it is just to impressive to turn down.

 

[GoodRevrnd]

Was reading the civfanatic forums and apparently they are working on a new patch to fix multiplayer and beyond that have '2 big' things (Firaxis) is working on for the game. I wonder if it'll get an actual expansion after all this DLC has come out?

I figure all the DLC is roughly equivalent to the Warlords expansion for Civ 4, which didn't really change any game mechanics other than adding Vassals. We'll probably (hopefully) see a BTS-like expansion that significantly changes how a lot of stuff works and adds some new goodies.


And I think the DLC civs are worth it. A lot of people like playing scenarios and most of them are supposedly pretty good, but they're just not my thing.

 

[Homerboy]

What are some good Civ V mods to dload?

There is a mod called "Civ IV + expansions"
I highly recommend that one.
Civ V made me weep.

 

[arredondo]

Hmmm, any other mod suggestions? I am not only new to Civ games, but new to the genre in general. I'll be fine with Civ V without making it play like Civ IV.

 

[gregoryvg]

I like the streamlined CIV V over CIV IV.

 

[Homerboy]

Hmmm, any other mod suggestions? I am not only new to Civ games, but new to the genre in general. I'll be fine with Civ V without making it play like Civ IV.

But I guess that's the point. If you are new, just go to "the best" and play Civ IV. Why do you feel the need/want to jump in at V?