I consider myself an amatuer gamer. I have a lot of other things to do. I had some fun with Civ IV. It has the advantages of having come first and of belonging to a significant computer game franchise. The on-line community seems pretty witty and posts plenty of UCC for download. It is a fun and thought-provoking turn-based strategy game. No?
Well recently I got a new computer, something up to the year 2011. And then I installed Empire: Total War. My inner eternal 13-year old is like :eek: Empire seems to combine every game of the genre into one, then adds understanding the philosophical advancements of the time as a pre-requisite for victory. And on this new machine, the hi-res graphics of cannon blowing away ranks of line infantry or cavalry are exquisite. The mathematics of the economics of such activity are also believable. It tries very hard to maximize the use of modern chipsets to immerse a sensitive person in the realities of the era.
I feel like gaming acquired a new order of madnitude. I’m happy to have enjoyed the last one. So, is one better than the other? I wonder if Empire would have developed into what it is today if Civ IV had never existed.