Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth Reviews
Some of its new ideas work better than others, but Civilization: Beyond Earth retains its addictive 4X qualities.
Although its foundation in Civ 5 makes it familiar, Beyond Earth is full of interesting surprises that are pleasantly difficult to master.
Civilization has always had something to say about this stuff (and civilisation has always had something to say about this stuff) but Beyond Earth goes further than ever, suggesting that even if we do eventually live on Pluto, the distractions will have joined us there, and will probably have multiplied. When we get into space, the real danger - and the real wonder - will be the fact that we have brought ourselves along.
Civilization: Beyond Earth may seem a bit too familiar for a game supposedly set on a distant planet, but the roving packs of aliens and the new quest system make it an expedition worth embarking on.
An excellent spin-off that uses the science fiction setting to focus and expand the gameplay in interesting new ways, and yet remains as accessible and thoughtful as ever.
There's a ton to explore here within an inviting strategy shell, enticing those who have never delved into the 4X space and demanding the attention of genre fans
Civilization: Beyond Earth successfully injects new life into Sid Meier's long-running strategy series
Civilization: Beyond Earth's brave new world feels pretty familiar, but that's okay.
Firaxis' sci-fi spin on Civilization V has some intriguing ideas that, sadly, don't come together into an equally engaging experience.
The great Civ V experiment continues, and for the most part, it's a success.
I was worried going in that Civilization: Beyond Earth would be little more than a re-skinned Civilization V with a few added bells and whistles; but thankfully, the flow, structure, and overall feel of the strategy makes for a very different game. At the same time though, it embraces its roots, while also playing its sci-fi inspirations to the hilt. Firaxis Games can still take the concept further, but ultimately, I like the foundation they've laid with their latest foray into science fiction strategy.
Despite a few pre-existing flaws carried over from Civilization V, Sid Meier's Civilization: Beyond Earth evolves the franchise and has the potential to become an outstanding spin-off of its own.
If only there were more variety in the structure of the victory conditions between divergent philosophies, Civilization: Beyond Earth would be a perfect game. Even with that dissonance, it is damn close. The Civilization pedigree holds a lot of weight after all these years, and Beyond Earth more than lives up to its name.
It's easy to look at Beyond Earth and see it as nothing more than an elaborate reskin of Civilization V. In many ways, it shares a similar interface and borrows many components. Yet as soon as you get to the end of your first game, you're acutely aware of how different it feels. At this point, it's cliche to say how time consuming Civilization can be, but Beyond Earth only lends further credence to the phrase "one more turn."
Despite its faults, Civilization: Beyond Earth does fulfill its promise to take you to a distant world, where you'll find exotic alien life, meet future leaders of mankind... and conquer them.
Civilization: Beyond Earth is a solid attempt to bring back the glory days of Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. It isn't what everyone has hoped for, but if you have the time and patience to put into it, it makes for an enjoyable game for fans of the franchise, while simultaneously being pretty accessible to newcomers as well.
Not just 'Civ 5 in space', but excellent series additions are offset by problems old and new.
Sid Meier should be proud to have his name on Civilization: Beyond Earth. It's got its problems. But it's a game that will have you staying up late at night, itching to complete just one more turn.
Beyond Earth is a very good game, one that encourages the 'one more turn' addiction the series is famous for. But at its core, it isn't terribly different from Civ 5
Beyond Earth is still fun, and an immense time-sink – of course it is, it's Civilization. But would that it was truly beyond Earth, and truly beyond Civ V. Not a crash and burn – but the Prometheus of the Civ franchise, an interesting failure with much of value in the wreckage.