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There is a design decision that can make a real improvement in the way Civ is actually played. The right choice here can, in a stroke, give a huge payoff in making Civ more fun.
Its terrain improvement.
Think about what you actually do while you play Civ. Think about the real time you spend doing different things, the decisions you make most often.
There are fun, interesting activities and decisions. The things you imagine when you think of ruling an empire. What land to expand into, where to place cities, running diplomacy, big-picture economic decisions, technologies to pursue, armies to build, and wars to fight.
The cool exciting stuff!
Then, in Civ as we know it, there are the not so interesting activities and decisions. What tile should I move worker #63 to, irrigate this, mine that, railroad everything. On and on and on.
The drudgery work. The dull, incredibly repetitive decisions that have to be made a thousand times. Some are so mindless they aren't even decisions (like where to railroad, or what to do with hills). They are just work.
Work that takes time. Time away from the cool, fun decisions.
Public Works is only a little better. It does at least eliminate moving workers around, which is an improvement. But it still saddles the player i, m, and rr-ing every last darn tile they own.
Instead take a bold step. Eliminate this whole mind-numbing waste of time and decision-making.
Replace it with either no improvement or some kind of city or empire-wide improment.
My suggestion: use techs instead. Have food improving techs like:
irrigation
crop rotation
accurate calendar
fish net
terrace farming
pesticides
hybrid strains
Shield improving techs like:
pit mining
strip mining
quarrying
oil drilling
off shore drilling
And trade improving techs like:
roads
currency
trade ships
banking
limited liability
Maybe each tech increases the production of all cities by a certain percentage.
I would keep roads / railroads (built with a public works system), but only for movement, not trade increases. This is because placing roads to important places is actually an interesting strategic decision, not the drudgery of must-rr-every-tile.
This will also have the bonus of not turning the map into an ugly railroaded robotic looking mess.
Whether you like the tech idea or not, please give serious thought to eliminating terrain improvements.
In a game, how many times do you decide to, for instance, declare war? Maybe a dozen or so. And how many times do you decide what tile to move worker #45 to? How many times do you decide "irrigate here, mine there?" Literally hundreds, probably THOUSANDS.
Change that ratio! Spend time making fun decisions, not mindless ones!
Eliminating terrain improvements is the single thing that will do the most to increase the fun of Civ and make it appeal to a wider audiance.
Its terrain improvement.
Think about what you actually do while you play Civ. Think about the real time you spend doing different things, the decisions you make most often.
There are fun, interesting activities and decisions. The things you imagine when you think of ruling an empire. What land to expand into, where to place cities, running diplomacy, big-picture economic decisions, technologies to pursue, armies to build, and wars to fight.
The cool exciting stuff!
Then, in Civ as we know it, there are the not so interesting activities and decisions. What tile should I move worker #63 to, irrigate this, mine that, railroad everything. On and on and on.
The drudgery work. The dull, incredibly repetitive decisions that have to be made a thousand times. Some are so mindless they aren't even decisions (like where to railroad, or what to do with hills). They are just work.
Work that takes time. Time away from the cool, fun decisions.
Public Works is only a little better. It does at least eliminate moving workers around, which is an improvement. But it still saddles the player i, m, and rr-ing every last darn tile they own.
Instead take a bold step. Eliminate this whole mind-numbing waste of time and decision-making.
Replace it with either no improvement or some kind of city or empire-wide improment.
My suggestion: use techs instead. Have food improving techs like:
irrigation
crop rotation
accurate calendar
fish net
terrace farming
pesticides
hybrid strains
Shield improving techs like:
pit mining
strip mining
quarrying
oil drilling
off shore drilling
And trade improving techs like:
roads
currency
trade ships
banking
limited liability
Maybe each tech increases the production of all cities by a certain percentage.
I would keep roads / railroads (built with a public works system), but only for movement, not trade increases. This is because placing roads to important places is actually an interesting strategic decision, not the drudgery of must-rr-every-tile.
This will also have the bonus of not turning the map into an ugly railroaded robotic looking mess.
Whether you like the tech idea or not, please give serious thought to eliminating terrain improvements.
In a game, how many times do you decide to, for instance, declare war? Maybe a dozen or so. And how many times do you decide what tile to move worker #45 to? How many times do you decide "irrigate here, mine there?" Literally hundreds, probably THOUSANDS.
Change that ratio! Spend time making fun decisions, not mindless ones!
Eliminating terrain improvements is the single thing that will do the most to increase the fun of Civ and make it appeal to a wider audiance.
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