Colonization (game)
Introduction
Colonization is a computer game by Sid Meier released by Microprose in 1994. It's a turn-based strategy game themed on the early European colonization of the New World starting in 1492 and lasts until the age of independence in 1800. It was originally released for DOS, but later ported to Windows and the Amiga (1995).
Play
The player can choose one of four European powers, each having advantages that reflect the nation's historical proclivities, e.g. the French are good at cooperating with the natives, while the Spanish are better at conquering them.
The game revolves around managing a large number of colonist units representing various colonial professions (carpenters, sugar planters, preachers, etc.), which the player must put to effective use to grow crops and generate income selling goods to the natives or back in Europe (where taxes may be imposed). Specialists, who produce more per turn, can be trained or recruited. Specialist buildings and special squares, as in Civilization, also have greater output. Ships and wagon trains move goods around.
Investigating Lost City Rumors can be extremely profitable.
Relationships must be carefully maintained with Indians and other colonial powers, including waging war if necessary or having very strong defensive units and buildings. All the while, the player must pay attention to political development and recruiting Founding Fathers, to ensure a successful independence revolution, which is the climax of the game, the only path to victory.
The mechanics of the game are fairly unique in the turn-based strategy genre, although players of Civilization will be familiar with some aspects.
Maps include a standard North and South America (quite good as a representation except that Great Salt Lake is too far north), but, as in Civilization, there are any number of possible alternatives, somewhat randomly generated according to criteria set by the player. Unlike later games such as Civilization II, Colonization does not let you design your own map.
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