The CIV3 FAQ

[Lancer]

I have 'Civ III Complete' and when I load mods they don't show up in the Civ Content section at all so I can't load them to play. Any suggestions?

[The Eliminator]

Civ 4 sucks - Civ 3 forevah!

[Zoid]

Or buy Civ 4

[DrSpike]

You could reinstall the game.

[xaace]

whenever i load saved items to my CIV3, it shows this window saying "DataIO operation System Error: TILE" I keep on clicking "OK" but it wouldnt go!

Help please! i have been playing CIV3 for nearly 2 years now and i just encountered this error!
=[

anyone got a cure?..

-xaace

[Kassian]

Thank you.

[vmxa1]

It is from Multi Player, you do not see it in Single Player.

[Kloreep]

It's been such a long time that I'm not sure you can get it to come up in single player. It should be there by default in multiplayer, or at least in PBEM; there should be a hotkey to get it to come up if it's not there.

I believe it can also be collapsed, in which case you will only see your own line from the list. To uncollapse it from this form, click the arrow to the right of the list (which will be facing downwards in this case, unlike in this screenshot).

[Kassian]

Hi guys,

i need some help.

Whats the name of this Utility you can see on the screenshot below?

I know its a scoreboard which the game displays, i know what it does but i dont know the name or if it is part of the original game (and if how i can activate it).

I have searching some time now and cant find anything - please help.

Thank you.

[Toby Rowe]

Originally posted by vmxa1
"Originally posted by Toby Rowe"

"Once the AI has your territory map "it" (all AI nations) know exactly where all your troops are- If you get caught out by the AI doing a mass attack on one city: if they enter your territory but can't reach the city they want to attack before declaring war- weaken a more distant city by removing a unit or two, then watch the AI units take their turn. The AI once you trade the map knows your co-ordinates perfectly IMHO."

Two things, I already told you the AI knows the tiles without a map, all of them. They may or may not trade thier maps with each other.
I see many games where they do not and many where they do, it depends on what is going on.

If they know your map, then they can change directions and head towards a weaker location. They always knew the locations strength, just not how to get to it.

This does not in fact help them, it hurts them. If you are inclined to take advantage of the AI, you can simply move units around and have them chase their tail as you pick off units.

It is known as the naked babe ploy.

"On my second game, I can confirm that the AI does almost keep pace with you as the AI hands out freebies in tech's based upon your own level."

I cannot address this as I have no idea of the level of the game and the overall settings. As I said it is not hard to out research the AI on medium levels like Monarch.

Above that you may need a bit of time to get ahead, depending on the land you start with and the level.

"This negates your entire point of playing the game as their isn't any reward for playing well! (why have 6 levels if the levels are based on cheating?)"

What cheating are you talking about? You keep making this claim, but what are the specific? The only one you have demomstrated is the one I have already grant. They know the tile disposition.

So they know if oil will be on this tile from the start of the game, ok big deal.

"Patrician II, Europa Universalis I & II and Preatorians all have good AI. Civ 3 has cheats instead of AI."

How does it cheat? You keep saying that, but never define it. I cannot speak to those games, but I doubt they sold as well or have active sites years later.

"Put a sub in enemy territory, watch a warship come out a attack it. Build a Privateer, leave it unprotected in your waters, but within about 10-ish squares of a rival city- by magic a warship will turn up and attack it."

Duh, they know all tiles disposition. So if you put a unit someplace, they all know it at all times. So they may elect to attack it. Again they will attack Privateers as they are hidden nationalities, IOW no DOW for attacking them.

"Civ 3- the only game where all nations except yours had satellites in 1060 AD."

Really, I have never seen this, not on this site or CFC. In fact it is very rare for the AI to get that far in tech, even on Sid.

"I want credible AI, I've seen it in many games, and in many real world applications oddly enough.
Losing an expensive court case for the right to make Civ 3 cost so much money that the game didn't get developed fully due to financial constraints- the blatent AI cheating (its easy to programme) was the result.
The result ruined the reputation that Civ 2 continued, onwards all the others were poor."

Firaxis was not in any law suit in the US, so I do not know what that is about. Micropose was in the suit a long time ago and they are long since gone.

As far as I can tell, Civ3 is a far better game than Civ2 or any of the civ pretenders. I have never played another Civ2 game, since III came out and I had ranked Civ2 as my number 2 game prior to that time.

You know little about programming, if you think it is easy to create a
flawless AI for a very complex game like Civ. Civ2 was so much less complex than III, it is not even funy.

Civ3 was hampered by being built on top of the base code for II. Civ4 started from scratch.

"Fans of games might one day be listened to- I think the marketeers call them the "core market" in the car industry>"

Fans are listened to and an attempt give them what they want is the plan. How sucessful they are at it is up to the public to determine. Since it sold millions of copies, I am guessing it was very good at it.

"In Civ between 2 and 3 we just wanted better diplomacy and the ability to switch off certain aspects of the game that grew tedious. Civ 3 ignored all requests and actually increased the aspects most already felt tedious, as if to say, "**** you, you will enjoy this cake and eat it" Such arrogance for a seller is striking."

This is just a tirate that is incorrect. Witness the sales numbers and the fact that another sequel was created.

"As for Sid Meiyer? Once he had the midas touch, now it seems everything he touches turns to dust- over complex and boring- He forgot that games should be overall like films: entertaining, not a trial. I hope he doesn't remake Pirates!! for the PC or even my magic memory of that will be spoilt as well."

I thought he already did remake Priates and it was acclaimed? I did not play either version, so I do not know.

Hi mate (VmxaI).

Computer rushes are exactly what any Civ game shouldn't be: this is the game that sporned games, along with Railway(sic) Tycoon and Pirates. They set the "bench-marks" (scribing steel in early mass production), bow used to mean another thing Apolyon!, and still does.........

Pirates was remade for console: good, it's a fun game without violence, other than staged, the right type of game for our nippers.

"What cheating are you talking about? You keep making this claim, but what are the specific? The only one you have demomstrated is the one I have already grant. They know the tile disposition"

Thanks for granting it mate, and thanks for confirming that the AI even knows the disposition of other troops! I'm mortified.

Look mate, good AI is designed to build in a "I've had a good evening, now I'll sleep". Designers have been "sailing close to the winds" on this since about 2000, I've noticed no intelligent development of AI since the year 1998. Whilst a Car company in Japan powers away with an intelligent Robot, gamers suffer the same computer rushes Colonisation did in 1994.

I expect better by now.

The name "Civilization" is a huge wealth creator for any company that owns it. Civ 3 is a poor game partly due to the legal reasons outlined above, once combined with company greed.

Civ3 has much to offer, It's a shame the programmers never got to test it before. Pollution you can't ever rid and 60-80 repetitive commands (on average) per turn to deal with , without any recourse- soooo frustrating and ultimately "naff".
No matter how Green you'd like to be as a player.
Corruption?

The worker who decided that, (through no fault of our own), would suffer the reptition of "clean pollution" sequences for ever within the game need not work in gaming ever again.

Slang? Ok, I reversed it. (I prefer the latter, US Term), slang aside, lets keep the roots strong and without censorship for the benefit of both.

Ps They 'aint "pant" in the UK, "pantaloons" no longer exist. Trousers and pants (as under-wear) is ok, the Yank firms selling stuff just don't get it yet! What the hell is a "pant" outside of running, or sex, or breathing?

Respect the culture and language those firms wish to standarise, jeans are french, pants are.....



Toby

Hope this makes sense started this eon's ago,

La de la.

[Toby Rowe]

Originally posted by vmxa1


I am not sure if you are serious on this one. I am pretty sure you know that it is used as a vulguarity, a slang word to reference female genitalia.

That's the original meaning in anglo-saxon, nobody uses it in that way now and hasn't done so for a long time. "I feel a right **** or "he is a right **** is it's highest meaning.

I can think of many other words to describe the above you referred to, but most are American-English: Starting with cat, although Fanny is another, but that is also the name for a woman in recent past times "Fanny adams" for cockney slang eg)

Only one word that is wholly English in origin that means exactly the same meaning is the "c" word. How it was also used beyond that original meaning we'll never know- but to have such a word that originally meant one thing 2000 years ago and now means something else entirely might be stiffled progress- it's an awful word, I hate it, only ever derogatory in meaning.

Apparently only about 100 real words from the inhabitants of England survived before we became Anglo-Saxons (Both North German tribes:- Engles and Saxons) and that word is one of them. Even "To" is Norse "Tu").

I only wish I was richer in the 5 million words the OED has in it's full edition, alas time is too short- I do love my language I grew up and understood; I do get fed up with US bores who invent words when twenty others already existed and already meant exactly the same for 1000 years!!!

I'm a working-class bloke and no written wordsmith, but verbally......

Inventing words? Pah!!

Toby

[vmxa1]

"Originally posted by Toby Rowe"

"Once the AI has your territory map "it" (all AI nations) know exactly where all your troops are- If you get caught out by the AI doing a mass attack on one city: if they enter your territory but can't reach the city they want to attack before declaring war- weaken a more distant city by removing a unit or two, then watch the AI units take their turn. The AI once you trade the map knows your co-ordinates perfectly IMHO."

Two things, I already told you the AI knows the tiles without a map, all of them. They may or may not trade thier maps with each other.
I see many games where they do not and many where they do, it depends on what is going on.

If they know your map, then they can change directions and head towards a weaker location. They always knew the locations strength, just not how to get to it.

This does not in fact help them, it hurts them. If you are inclined to take advantage of the AI, you can simply move units around and have them chase their tail as you pick off units.

It is known as the naked babe ploy.

"On my second game, I can confirm that the AI does almost keep pace with you as the AI hands out freebies in tech's based upon your own level."

I cannot address this as I have no idea of the level of the game and the overall settings. As I said it is not hard to out research the AI on medium levels like Monarch.

Above that you may need a bit of time to get ahead, depending on the land you start with and the level.

"This negates your entire point of playing the game as their isn't any reward for playing well! (why have 6 levels if the levels are based on cheating?)"

What cheating are you talking about? You keep making this claim, but what are the specific? The only one you have demomstrated is the one I have already grant. They know the tile disposition.

So they know if oil will be on this tile from the start of the game, ok big deal.

"Patrician II, Europa Universalis I & II and Preatorians all have good AI. Civ 3 has cheats instead of AI."

How does it cheat? You keep saying that, but never define it. I cannot speak to those games, but I doubt they sold as well or have active sites years later.

"Put a sub in enemy territory, watch a warship come out a attack it. Build a Privateer, leave it unprotected in your waters, but within about 10-ish squares of a rival city- by magic a warship will turn up and attack it."

Duh, they know all tiles disposition. So if you put a unit someplace, they all know it at all times. So they may elect to attack it. Again they will attack Privateers as they are hidden nationalities, IOW no DOW for attacking them.

"Civ 3- the only game where all nations except yours had satellites in 1060 AD."

Really, I have never seen this, not on this site or CFC. In fact it is very rare for the AI to get that far in tech, even on Sid.

"I want credible AI, I've seen it in many games, and in many real world applications oddly enough.
Losing an expensive court case for the right to make Civ 3 cost so much money that the game didn't get developed fully due to financial constraints- the blatent AI cheating (its easy to programme) was the result.
The result ruined the reputation that Civ 2 continued, onwards all the others were poor."

Firaxis was not in any law suit in the US, so I do not know what that is about. Micropose was in the suit a long time ago and they are long since gone.

As far as I can tell, Civ3 is a far better game than Civ2 or any of the civ pretenders. I have never played another Civ2 game, since III came out and I had ranked Civ2 as my number 2 game prior to that time.

You know little about programming, if you think it is easy to create a
flawless AI for a very complex game like Civ. Civ2 was so much less complex than III, it is not even funy.

Civ3 was hampered by being built on top of the base code for II. Civ4 started from scratch.

"Fans of games might one day be listened to- I think the marketeers call them the "core market" in the car industry>"

Fans are listened to and an attempt give them what they want is the plan. How sucessful they are at it is up to the public to determine. Since it sold millions of copies, I am guessing it was very good at it.

"In Civ between 2 and 3 we just wanted better diplomacy and the ability to switch off certain aspects of the game that grew tedious. Civ 3 ignored all requests and actually increased the aspects most already felt tedious, as if to say, "**** you, you will enjoy this cake and eat it" Such arrogance for a seller is striking."

This is just a tirate that is incorrect. Witness the sales numbers and the fact that another sequel was created.

"As for Sid Meiyer? Once he had the midas touch, now it seems everything he touches turns to dust- over complex and boring- He forgot that games should be overall like films: entertaining, not a trial. I hope he doesn't remake Pirates!! for the PC or even my magic memory of that will be spoilt as well."

I thought he already did remake Priates and it was acclaimed? I did not play either version, so I do not know.

[vmxa1]

Originally posted by Toby Rowe
No idea why T-W-A-T has been banned, it's used mainly as a term of endearment nowadays, and not often in anger amongst us lower classes and is a Northern English word in origin, and is a lot older than me and the moderators as well: No wonder original English is dying on it's feet.

Toby

I am not sure if you are serious on this one. I am pretty sure you know that it is used as a vulguarity, a slang word to reference female genitalia.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Toby Rowe
Hi mate,

How'd you mean? At end of game you have a chronology if you can bear to wait for the loading times for it.

Well it depends how anal you are I guess. I have a substantial number of saves from every Civ game I have ever played on a PC. You never know when you will need to check how many beakers you were producing using a given strat etc.

[Toby Rowe]

No idea why T-W-A-T has been banned, it's used mainly as a term of endearment nowadays, and not often in anger amongst us lower classes and is a Northern English word in origin, and is a lot older than me and the moderators as well: No wonder original English is dying on it's feet.

Toby