POLL: for how long does your game last?

[guermantes]

I'm new to CIV and would like to get a feel for how long time people spend on a single game in average. For me it usually takes something like 15-20 hours, and I am after 5 games slightly put off starting a new one since I know that during its play I will be obsessed by it and not be able to do other things properly, inclusing eat and sleep.

For how long do yours games last on average?
Do you ever start and win a game in under 2 hours?
Do you consider yourself to be an experienced CIVver?

Thanks for all comments!

[Shogun Gunner]

Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for civ!

Yes, eating and sleeping take a back seat to civ gaming.

I can take 5 hours if I play quick without a lot of counting, considering..etc. But those might be sloppy, less optimized games.

If I play it right, more like 10 hours or so. This is based on standard or large maps.

[evizaer]

I'm playing a game on a large map currently with the "Realism" mod from over at civ fanatics. It's taken probably 6 hours so far and will undoubtable have 4 more hours of play in it. Once i started warring with neighbors, the game time seemed to slow down a lot in comparison to real time. Now that i've got a large army to manage, it takes probably 10x longer for me to complete a turn than before i started millitary escalation.

[LordShiva]

No banana option

[Shogun Gunner]

not really a POLL - but in name only, not graphical using Poly Best Practices

[Jaybe]

I don't play civ at a single sitting. One game may last me more than a week, especially in these early months of studying and pondering the game while playing it!
I am finding I do not prefer standard or smaller maps, where a game for me will still last tens of hours.

[Dis]

usually under 5 hours. Even large maps only take me about 5 hours. Note, if I'm playing warmonger games that usually goes up to 8 hours. But if I try to avoid all wars, I can finish in 4 to 5 hours at the most.

[Jamski]

I play small maps and take about 2-3 hours.

[pauli]

i can't remember the last time i finished a round of any civ game in under eight hours.

[Celerity]

Large, Epic takes about 9 hours for me. That's running a peaceful civilization. I can see taking a lot longer with a few more wars thrown in.

[Cordelayne]

I'm slow. I fuss. I optimize. I study everything. When I launch an attack on a neighboring civ, I have spent many turns moving over 100 units to just the right spot. So my average game on a small or standard map takes about 15-20 hours. Who needs sleep? Who needs work?

After all that trouble, though, I wish the Hall of Fame would save the victory movie, so you could replay your victories. The end of game stuff is great--but it still sometimes seems kind of a letdown after 20 hours of hard work. [Edit: This was wrong. Civ4 DOES save the turn-by-turn replay in the Hall of Fame, which is great!]

Gosh, if I put all this energy into my law practice, I'd be rich! He he.

[WiggleStick]

I'm slow. I fuss. I optimize. I study everything

I'm forced to participate in reality, so I too Measure games in weeks. Huge map, Max civs, Conquest only (since civ 2 anyway. I don't remember civ 1 although I probably played it more than all the rest). I usually can't start a game right away after I finish a game. The beginning seems bland after finishing off a huge game. Because I cant play Civ 4 to finish on a huge map, It seems like a demo to me and I cant get into it. I played a few on standard map, 5 civs to the end and really hope to fix the huge map problem. 18 civs is a challenge I'm looking to conquer

[jerry247]

Victory movie? Like the space race movie? That's just a .bik isn't there a bik player somewhere?

[Dinner]

It depends upon if the other bastards remember to hit enter or not.

[rjwoer]

Epic games last between 6 and 20 hours for me, depending on how many wars I wage (1 or 2 = < 10 hours; 5, 6 ... = 20 hours) and how meticulous I am. At first I was disappointed that I could finish an Epic game of Civ IV in 6 hours, but I've come to understand the pace of the game better and if I want to extend them out I can do so.

Still, overall, my Civ IV games are significantly shorter than my Civ II & III games.