Sid Meier's Civilization V

 PC
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2963 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,247 out of 2963
  2. Mixed: 454 out of 2963
  3. Negative: 262 out of 2963
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  1. Thomaswiden
    Oct 6, 2016
    1
    A friend convinced me to buy this crap game. I had read that it was dumbed down but I let myself be persuede i deeply regret that. I loved Civ 4 this is an insult to all the fans. The game took forever to play a round and that they had removed all the micro manegment. 2 hours play was enough for me. Hated it so much that I deleted it of steam. They have a lot to do to make up for thisA friend convinced me to buy this crap game. I had read that it was dumbed down but I let myself be persuede i deeply regret that. I loved Civ 4 this is an insult to all the fans. The game took forever to play a round and that they had removed all the micro manegment. 2 hours play was enough for me. Hated it so much that I deleted it of steam. They have a lot to do to make up for this **** hope civ 6 can save the series… Expand
  2. godunow
    Sep 19, 2016
    7
    Great game, most of the changes (unstacking, switch to hexes) turned out good.

    Maybe policy system was bit better in Civ 4, and I will miss Leonard Nimoy saying "Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know what leads you forward and what holds you back and choose the path that leads to wisdom."
  3. dogii
    Aug 7, 2016
    10
    Pretty much one of the best and most addictive civilization games I've ever played. My first game was a 2 on 2 with my friends and I was instantly hooked. The gameplay, strategy was so fluid you just couldnt wait for the next turn. Although its not its full form without the expansion packs its still filled with amazing replay-ability and makes you eager for your next Civ sesh.
  4. R77
    Jul 23, 2016
    9
    It isn't the greatest 4x game ever made, but with all its expansions and DLC in the mix, it's definitely one of the most fun.

    The Good: - The classic 4x mechanics are all here: you can explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate freely at your leisure. Gameplay is easy to pick up, but still deep and difficult to perfect. - While the war mechanics aren't perfect (more on that - and    It isn't the greatest 4x game ever made, but with all its expansions and DLC in the mix, it's definitely one of the most fun.

    The Good:

    - The classic 4x mechanics are all here: you can explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate freely at your leisure. Gameplay is easy to pick up, but still deep and difficult to perfect.
    - While the war mechanics aren't perfect (more on that - and diplomacy - later), combat is still at its most tactical and interesting in some time. The hexagonal map, along with the limited stacking available to units, leads to engagements that require thought and planning.
    - The style and look of the game gets a 10 out of 10, and comparatively the aesthetics are the best in the series (not counting Alpha Centauri). The art deco theme throughout the game is refined, but not too pretentious, and the cohesive feel of the menu screens and UI (particularly with all the expansions installed) helps everything come together.
    - The variety of different victory conditions and game settings make it possible to extensively tailor your experience, something I loved. While not all the Civs feel distinct or innovative, there's still enough variety and flavor to keep each new game feeling fresh and surprising. Just make sure you take out Gandhi before the Manhattan Project gets built.

    The Bad:

    - Diplomacy, even after two expansions, still feels like it got tacked on at 11:45 the night before the game went gold. You can trade resources, but otherwise it's all superficial. AI civs also stay mad about warmongering for way too long - I get that taking out my closest neighbor just cause I wanted his Pyramids was bad, but that was thousands of years ago! I've changed, and I want to be able to make fair trade deals again.
    - The religion system is fine, but the neverending stream of missionaries flooding my borders and making me waste religion points on inquisitors is weak. It's like the pollution mechanic from Civ 3, only with priests instead of orange nuclear waste.

    Civ 5 isn't perfect. The game has its flaws, but it's still an absolute blast - I feel like those 875 hours were well spent.    … Expand
  5. BigDegs29
    Jul 20, 2016
    10
    I'm highly anticipating Civ VI's launch in the Fall, so thought I'd give it's predecessor a short review given how obsessed I've been with it.

    I had never played any of the other Civs before this, but one boring afternoon I thought I'd pick up my first: Civ V. 8am the next morning I was left wondering what the hell just happened! I had literally played the game 16 hours straight!!    I'm highly anticipating Civ VI's launch in the Fall, so thought I'd give it's predecessor a short review given how obsessed I've been with it.

    I had never played any of the other Civs before this, but one boring afternoon I thought I'd pick up my first: Civ V. 8am the next morning I was left wondering what the hell just happened! I had literally played the game 16 hours straight!! That was the first of many marathon sessions with this game.

    I'm almost at 1000 hours recorded on steam in the last three years. That's insane to me. I think probably my second most played game after Civ V was Age of Empires 2 way back in the day, where I maybe put 400 - 500 hours into it. But no where close to 1000 hours. That's half a work year! No game is so addicting as this....

    While the game is damn near perfect with the BNW expansion, and a few tweaks with mods make it even better.

    Fair warning, don't pick up this game unless you want an extreme time sink!    … Expand
  6. JustSomeGamer
    Jun 30, 2016
    8
    This game is in my opinion somewhat overrated, but still pretty good. This strategy game is about nearly all aspects of empires, from trading and economy to city building, war and even religion. This is a pro as well as a con in my opinion. The diversity is fun but it lacks some depth comparing to other strategy games, esspecially if you don't own the expansions.
  7. chayshirin
    Jun 25, 2016
    8
    A good strategy game is one that makes you lose your job, find yourself divorced, and hated by those around you.
    This does not exactly reach those heights, but you'll certainly be poorer after you're done with this game.
  8. RavenThunderfal
    Jun 10, 2016
    9
    I have played Civilization since they started adding numbers to each new version. I love Civilization V, for a few reasons. The graphics are beautiful..2 The graphics are beautiful...3 The graphics are beautiful..4 Nice spread of world civilizations. And 5 Nice graphics. *laughs* That being said. I would like to behead ALL of my brainless workers. What makes me go totally mad, is when II have played Civilization since they started adding numbers to each new version. I love Civilization V, for a few reasons. The graphics are beautiful..2 The graphics are beautiful...3 The graphics are beautiful..4 Nice spread of world civilizations. And 5 Nice graphics. *laughs* That being said. I would like to behead ALL of my brainless workers. What makes me go totally mad, is when I use the 'road maker' where you can, or are supposed to be able to start at one point, have them make a road to end point. Sounds simple right. NOT. They will go back 50 miles UP the road they just built, to go further down the map as I assign them. I want to pull out MY hair and there heads. Is there NO way to fix this idiotic mess?????… Expand
  9. RamaMan
    Jun 2, 2016
    0
    Civilization, more like UNcivillized, because of terrible characters, boring game play, badly paced story, an unlikable main character, and dull set pieces.
  10. goldenelk
    May 16, 2016
    9
    The vanilla version of this game did seem a little bland, but the DLC they added greatly improved the game as a whole. There are also plenty of mods available that can further enhance game play as needed. I have spent around 1800 hours on the game so far and enjoyed almost every minute of it.
  11. Dal_ReviewedDat
    Mar 17, 2016
    10
    Lol - some people rated Civ5 a ZERO. Who are these morons?

    So... a perfect 10. Well... it's not a perfect 10 on it's lonesome, but hold out for a steam sale and get ALL the DLC, and you will have that perfect Civ experience you've craved since you were a 10 year old boy playing the original CIV. Maybe just me, but hey. I think one issue I'd always had with Civ was time itself.    Lol - some people rated Civ5 a ZERO. Who are these morons?

    So... a perfect 10. Well... it's not a perfect 10 on it's lonesome, but hold out for a steam sale and get ALL the DLC, and you will have that perfect Civ experience you've craved since you were a 10 year old boy playing the original CIV. Maybe just me, but hey.

    I think one issue I'd always had with Civ was time itself. Always starting 4000 BC and finding that by 0 AD you are mostly struggling to keep up with where science would be in real life, mainly because the game goes in huge chunks until it slows down in the 18c. Civ5 addresses this by slowing time right down (optional!) to a snails pace. This makes early exploration and warfare so much more interesting and unlike previous versions whereby I would rush to gunpowder to blow the enemy away, I now can take on other civs much easier with early combat units, and it's great fun!

    I found in my early play through's that I was consistently running at negative gold. Civ5 is a lot more rewarding than any predecessor come micro-managing. Never before has time spent on controlling workers yourself or manually doing city resources so effective. On the harder two settings, I find it near impossible to build an early wonder first without using workers to clear forests for extra production towards it. This feels more credible and stops the player running away with all the benefits come the medieval era.
    Trade reminds me of "Call to Power" slightly, in that you build the caravan from a city as you normally would, but you can't control them as normal units, instead you send them from a city on a trade route. The benefits of trading with other civilisations and especially city-states is hugely beneficial. This means I rarely have a play through whereby I'm at war with everyone at once. Balance feels a great deal more strategic than before.
    The culture element I still love. By increasing your culture, you move your boundaries out. Also, once enough has been accumulated, you can take up social policies. Instead of having flat governments, Civ5 gives you all the policies for all the governments and you can build up and unlock as you go, and develop them further in time. It works really well. Also, it affects the desire to build as many cities as you can. Instead, it maybe much more beneficial to have just 4 cities with high culture than 30 cities with rednecks in.

    Unlike previous versions, Civ5 rewards players for playing the hand their dealt. Often I would find on older versions that I tend to follow the same path and same achievements to get to any given end goal. In Civ5 this really doesn't pay off. Early research is much better to be aimed at resources and the land you've found yourself on. More than this though, Civ5 requires you to plan ahead. Decide early (by 2000BC at least!) what goal you wish to achieve, how you wish to win and then pursue it using all the elements. I love Civ5 for this. It's much more rewarding playing a 40hour game where the final 30hours have been pre-planned like a masters game of chess.

    My steam account shows I've put in nearly 1100 hours into Civ5. I think this says it all. A masterpiece I can always return to. For fans, it may take a little adjusting, but once you get the hang of it you will love it as I have. The DLC does add a lot more to it - but I won't go into that now    … Expand
  12. LilBaggins
    Mar 8, 2016
    10
    "Im gonna play this game for an hour" said no one who has ever played this game. Oh great and powerful gandhi please spare my city your... up nope, nuked me anyways!
  13. Arendelleawesom
    Feb 4, 2016
    10
    Out of all the RTS games i have played this is my favorite think of a complex take on the board game Risk and you have Civ V. The character animations are great looking, little armies and cities on each hex are very fun to look at. The graphics themselves aren't any Crysis or Battlefield 3 but they are nice and relaxing to look at. Where this game really shines is its soundtrack eachOut of all the RTS games i have played this is my favorite think of a complex take on the board game Risk and you have Civ V. The character animations are great looking, little armies and cities on each hex are very fun to look at. The graphics themselves aren't any Crysis or Battlefield 3 but they are nice and relaxing to look at. Where this game really shines is its soundtrack each empire has its own soundtrack(my favorite is probably Japan). Gameplay wise like i said above imagine a complex take on the board game Risk and you have Civ V. It has an incredible amount of depth to it with the tech trees and the unit upgrades and diplomacy. Not to mention that later on in the game there is a world congress(i think that's what it's named) that you use to consult with other Civilizations with and it really adds depth a type of warfare without guns begins here. The one bad thing i can think of is that it takes forever for matchs to end i think that i have only ever actually finished one match and that was against an AI(The AIs aren't bad but they aren't exactly great either)

    Over all great gameplay great soundtrack great game.    … Expand
  14. sandutter
    Jan 30, 2016
    0
    I loved Civ 1 (yes, 1). After that, things started to go wrong. I've tried several later versions, but to me, the 3D view is horrible. It just doesn't give you the overview that makes it enjoyable. Another thing with Civ5 is that it's so SLOW. I spent 2 hours trying to capture a tiny city-state with like 8 cannons. I think it must have been a bug, but what does it matter. It's a lousyI loved Civ 1 (yes, 1). After that, things started to go wrong. I've tried several later versions, but to me, the 3D view is horrible. It just doesn't give you the overview that makes it enjoyable. Another thing with Civ5 is that it's so SLOW. I spent 2 hours trying to capture a tiny city-state with like 8 cannons. I think it must have been a bug, but what does it matter. It's a lousy game. And oh yeah, you can no longer control your city's economy, i.e. relocate tile production. The whole thing is boring, slow, confusing, idiotic, completely forgettable...… Expand
  15. mevsthevoices
    Jan 22, 2016
    9
    Having put in atleast a thousand hours, well qualified to tell you, this game is great. Whatever the price is now, it's a steal.
    Maybe this sort of game isn't for everyone, but if you are a turn based strategy fan, then this is one of the best there is.
  16. paranoid77
    Jan 20, 2016
    10
    As a fan since CIV 1 (1991), CIV5 is very good in every way. I ll write a short review.Gameplay and AI at their top. The best game in its genre and dont beleive a better will come.
    Play in deity difficulty level, you will have much fun. Worth every cent given.
  17. Lich_Master
    Jan 8, 2016
    8
    Good ideas were wasted here.
    Hexes and 1upt cover the fact that this game was released as CIV for dummies - and even after 2 expansions it is screaming STREAMLINES! STREAMLINES EVEYWHERE!

    Good game on it's own
    Bad step for series
  18. dualbunny
    Dec 31, 2015
    10
    One of the best strategy games for the PC Master Race platform. This is my first Civ game, after playing it I couldn't get into previous games in the series. I think it gets so much hate here only because it's different from the previous entries in the series. It's just more streamlined and easier to get started.
  19. SL539
    Dec 26, 2015
    9
    Civilization V is probably one of the best turn based strategy games I've played. If you don't have it you should probably pick it up, especially since it's pretty cheap on sales. Every minute you play you'll have fun and it's pretty addicting (maybe too addicting) with a "one-more-turn" eventually turning into a hundred more turns. Mods greatly enhance the fun and diversity of this gameCivilization V is probably one of the best turn based strategy games I've played. If you don't have it you should probably pick it up, especially since it's pretty cheap on sales. Every minute you play you'll have fun and it's pretty addicting (maybe too addicting) with a "one-more-turn" eventually turning into a hundred more turns. Mods greatly enhance the fun and diversity of this game but none are necessary as base-game is just as good. Every match you play will be different in some way. The only downfall to this is that it takes up a lot of time in the sense of research, expanding, exploring etc. Some single matches can last up to a month, so if you don't really have much patience it may not be the best experiance, you can make the game go faster but even then it still can drag on up to a month.

    Highly Recommended.    … Expand
  20. pokrishka
    Dec 7, 2015
    8
    It's a very strong entry to the series of a well-deserved praise. I rate Civ V as a whole game with all the expansions so you might wish to buy some sort of golden edition for a complete experience since expansions add a lot.
  21. Robobob
    Nov 28, 2015
    10
    I've been playing Civilization games since the first in the 90's and I can say after must deliberation that this is the best one, though I love Civ 4 almost as much.

    What is better? The hex maps and halt to unit stacking are genius. This allows so much more strategy where before the bigger stack (usually) won. They finally got range combat down and after the expansions and updates it    I've been playing Civilization games since the first in the 90's and I can say after must deliberation that this is the best one, though I love Civ 4 almost as much.

    What is better? The hex maps and halt to unit stacking are genius. This allows so much more strategy where before the bigger stack (usually) won. They finally got range combat down and after the expansions and updates it is finally balanced. There are a plethora of Wonders to build so there's a good chance each civ can build at least one and I like that some have prerequisites so that the AI doesn't seem to spam them instantly so I have a greater chance of completing them. The resources system works great and encourages trading and diplomacy. Just one of my favorite games of all time.    … Expand
  22. zigazaga
    Nov 27, 2015
    2
    Having played a previous version of Civ, I thought this one might be an improvement. Sure, the graphics are nicer, but it still gets very boring very quickly. Build monument, build granary. Settler. Worker. Click - build, click - build. Annex city. Build armory, harbour, barracks etc. This unit is out of moves. Discover same technologies as last time. Picture of half naked man. He'sHaving played a previous version of Civ, I thought this one might be an improvement. Sure, the graphics are nicer, but it still gets very boring very quickly. Build monument, build granary. Settler. Worker. Click - build, click - build. Annex city. Build armory, harbour, barracks etc. This unit is out of moves. Discover same technologies as last time. Picture of half naked man. He's angry. I promise not to settle in your lands. Oh, no! It's war. Upgrade artillery unit. Hexagons. Wait your turn. Yawn. Exit to windows. Uninstall.… Expand
  23. Negativvv
    Nov 16, 2015
    0
    I've played Civilization since 1 back in the 90's. Played 2 to death, and quite a bit of 3 and 4 too.

    Sid Meier needs a real job, rather than living off the back of a board game and re-skinning exactly the same game year after year. The idea is great but it's time to let it die and slip into history. Maybe I'm just jealous as I'd do what Meier does if I could make money with that    I've played Civilization since 1 back in the 90's. Played 2 to death, and quite a bit of 3 and 4 too.

    Sid Meier needs a real job, rather than living off the back of a board game and re-skinning exactly the same game year after year.

    The idea is great but it's time to let it die and slip into history.

    Maybe I'm just jealous as I'd do what Meier does if I could make money with that level of imagination and effort...    … Expand
  24. NoWorries
    Oct 28, 2015
    9
    Having played every installment of Civilization since the first one, for me getting Civilization V was a no brainer. Initially, I thought the new graphics and approach to units (i.e., eliminating stacking) was a little off-putting. But I grew to like it. Together with all of its expansions, Civilization is one of the classic games which every aficionado of strategy games should have inHaving played every installment of Civilization since the first one, for me getting Civilization V was a no brainer. Initially, I thought the new graphics and approach to units (i.e., eliminating stacking) was a little off-putting. But I grew to like it. Together with all of its expansions, Civilization is one of the classic games which every aficionado of strategy games should have in their video game library, even if it seems to nod a little much toward a console friendly point of view.… Expand
  25. TsukasaHiiragi
    Oct 9, 2015
    7
    Civilization V is the the best Civ game to date and its my favorite in the series, however that being said, there are some highly negative aspects to the game, and that is mainly because the A.I is programmed to cheat at higher difficulty settings instead of being programmed to adapt to player strategies, and this has been a problem since the very first Civilization games and hasn'tCivilization V is the the best Civ game to date and its my favorite in the series, however that being said, there are some highly negative aspects to the game, and that is mainly because the A.I is programmed to cheat at higher difficulty settings instead of being programmed to adapt to player strategies, and this has been a problem since the very first Civilization games and hasn't really improved that much - okay, at least the AI doesn't spawn/teleport nukes next to your cities in this one....but still....

    I'd really hope to see a really decent AI in a future game, something that is a challenge to the player, but without getting insane bonuses, or spawning instant units or more or less breaking the rules that the player is forced to follow - such as having extremely large armies whilst ignoring caps, happiness and upkeep or instantly building wonders when you have 1 or 2 turns left on building them yourself.

    Playing at higher difficulty settings the cheating starts to become obvious and heavily lets the game down - we've all witnessed it, there isn't any denying it. Even Firaxas themselves have openly admitted it that is just easier to program AI with bonuses and 'unseen' abilities working in the background to give the player more challenging gameplay, this is fine when its hidden and not openly obvious, and that is where Civilization V fails the most, because it is that obvious.

    Sid Meier//Firaxas - I openly dare you to create a proper adaptable AI for Civilization VI without resorting to these cheap AI tricks of the trade. Give us something that can best Civilization V -

    For new players to 4X games - Civilization V is the best of the best, but just be warned on its infamous AI.

    + Best turn-based strategy
    + Best in class 4X
    + Classic and loved franchise
    + High replayability

    - Poor AI
    - AI cheats at high difficulty settings    … Expand
  26. jelikey
    Sep 10, 2015
    9
    A fantastic addition to the Civ franchise. My greatest complaint with previous Civ games, which I've been playing since 1991, was that large armies were extremely unwieldy and frustrating to manage. Sea transportation logistics were also a frustrating time sink. Both of these problems have been solved with Civ V. Everything about the game screams polish and it runs like an absolute dream,A fantastic addition to the Civ franchise. My greatest complaint with previous Civ games, which I've been playing since 1991, was that large armies were extremely unwieldy and frustrating to manage. Sea transportation logistics were also a frustrating time sink. Both of these problems have been solved with Civ V. Everything about the game screams polish and it runs like an absolute dream, haven't had a hitch yet which is becoming so rare with new releases.… Expand
  27. Derringer
    Jun 28, 2015
    1
    You ruined this game!

    Its almost impossible to reach the scientific victory from the Prince difficulty & above, Also the 2050 Time Victory (If nobody achieve any kind of victory the one who has more points instantly win at turn 300) is a F***** BS! Besides, You cant manage your culture and religion like CIV IV. You cant trade maps or technologies with other players. So tell me exactly    You ruined this game!

    Its almost impossible to reach the scientific victory from the Prince difficulty & above, Also the 2050 Time Victory (If nobody achieve any kind of victory the one who has more points instantly win at turn 300) is a F***** BS! Besides, You cant manage your culture and religion like CIV IV. You cant trade maps or technologies with other players. So tell me exactly how this game could have the merit to call itself "The V game of the franchise" if it is worst than the others?    … Expand
  28. ThePCGamer101
    Jun 24, 2015
    10
    A wonderful strategy/simulation game, this is what strategy game should be and Civilization V shows us the true and classical feel of strategy. One of Sid Meier's best Civilization game!
  29. habibitheimpale
    Jun 23, 2015
    10
    My leader was Julius Caesar so therefore I named my first city Caesar Salad. Currently losing to the french

    Best game of the Year, every Year.

    10/10 IGN
  30. Azuth
    Jun 9, 2015
    9
    Excellent in every way, one of the best strategy games I have ever played. Armies are more manageable than ever and the policies add an interesting meta. (It would have been a 10 with the xpack included)
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Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best PC Game of 2010
5
#5 Most Discussed PC Game of 2010
3
#3 Most Shared PC Game of 2010

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 66 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 70
  3. Negative: 0 out of 70
  1. Thunderbolt
    Apr 3, 2011
    90
    Despite my gripe with the animations in multiplayer, Civilization V is the perfect entry for the series' debut in the current generation of gaming.
    Read full review
  2. games(TM)
    Jan 20, 2011
    80
    We're just a little bit disappointed that this Civ evolution isn't as polished as we'd expected. [Issue#102, p.108]
  3. Eurogamer Spain
    Jan 15, 2011
    80
    An old franchise that knows who to evolve to adapt to modern times. Its latest new ideas might not be perfect, but serve the purpose of making the game even more interesting.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »