The William Shakespeare passages voiced by the scene actor are the opening and closing lines of the 'Chorus' first speech in Henry V.
The Attitude Advisor is a character who looks exactly like Elvis Presley, and nearly every sentence he says contains lyrics from Elvis songs, either verbatim or adapted.
The Pyramids count as 'a granary in every city' in the game, reflecting a misconception that ancient tourists mistook them for grain stores. In reality, apart from very small chambers set aside for treasure, they consist entirely of solid rock, and those treasures were looted shortly after being placed there, making them one of history's most enduring monuments to failure.
Stanley Kubrick tribute: when you win the space race and see your historical reign name, the soundtrack plays classical pieces featured in two consecutive Kubrick films. First comes Richard Strauss's 'Also sprach Zarathustra', the theme of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), followed by Ludwig van Beethoven's 'An die Freude', the theme of A Clockwork Orange (1971).
When the Medieval Military Advisor is happy, he sings John Dyer's 18th-century song 'Down Among the Dead Men'.
The theme music of the Statue of Liberty is John Philip Sousa's 'El Capitan' march.
The music of Isaac Newton's College is the 'Allegro' from Johann Sebastian Bach's Concerto in A Minor for Four Harpsichords.
The music of Johann Sebastian Bach's Cathedral is the composer's own Toccata and Fugue in D Minor.
The music of Adam Smith's Trading Company is George Frideric Handel's 'The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba'.
When Sun Tzu's War Academy is built, the video shows the Terracotta Army, built around 210 BC for the tomb of China's First Emperor.
Among the game's Wonders are four of the accepted Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: the Pyramids, the Hanging Gardens, the Great Lighthouse and the Colossus. The three not in the game are the Statue of Zeus, the Temple of Artemis and the Mausoleum.
Civilization II was a commercial success and sold nearly three million copies by 2001. It won numerous awards and has frequently appeared on 'best games of all time' lists. The game's sequel arrived as Civilization III (2001).
In Civilization II, cities occupy a single square and collect food, trade and production from surrounding squares. Units produce city improvements or World Wonders. Civilizations generally expand by founding new cities until the map is fully settled. Units resembling chess pieces vary in their roles and reflect historical soldiers and professions. Each unit occupies one square and can move each turn. Most units fight, while some serve non-military purposes.
Civilization II is a turn-based strategy game that simulates the historical development of human civilization. Players can choose one of 21 historical civilizations or create a custom one, while the computer controls multiple rival civilizations. Initially the game offered only a single-player mode until the Multiplayer Add-On was released.
Civilization II's gameplay takes place on a square-based map that players can generate randomly according to their preferences or select from ready-made options. Squares differ in terrain, special resources and improvements such as irrigation. Starting in 4000 BC, players begin with a few units, including settlers, to found their first cities. Apart from the area immediately around these units, the map is initially unexplored, making exploration a key goal of the early game.
The game features 21 playable civilizations: the Americans, Aztecs, Babylonians, Carthaginians, Celts, Chinese, Egyptians, English, French, Germans, Greeks, Indians, Japanese, Mongols, Persians, Romans, Russians, Sioux, Spanish, Vikings and Zulus. Barbarians appear as non-playable NPCs.
Civilization II's German translation is notoriously problematic. It was done by a MicroProse employee whose only qualification was 'having spent a few years in Germany'. This led to strange and incorrect phrases such as 'Russen einfangen Große Mauer' ('Russians catch the Great Wall').
Brian Reynolds and his team were initially hesitant to significantly change the original game's design, fearing they would be seen as 'the guys who ruined Civilization' (1991).
The PC version of Sid Meier's Civilization II appears in the book '1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die', edited by Ged Mulherin.
Sid Meier's Civilization II is a turn-based strategy game and the second main entry in the Civilization series. Developed and published by MicroProse, it was released on PC in 1996. The game was later adapted for the PlayStation by Activision.
Once civilizations make contact, they enter into diplomatic relations. During war, one civilization can capture another's cities, and if all of a player's cities are taken, that player is permanently eliminated from the game. Peace between civilizations can be restored when both sides accept peaceful relations.
Civilization II supports mods that change the game's graphics or mechanics. 'Scenarios' are pre-made game files designed to recreate historical, fictional or unique situations for players to experience.
Civilization II had two expansion packs that gradually introduced new features. The first, Conflicts in Civilization, added 20 new scenarios: 12 created by the developers and eight fan-made 'Best of the Net' scenarios. It also introduced an enhanced macro language for scenario scripting with advanced programming capabilities, although many found these features unnecessary. A programming bug in this expansion disabled the Encarta-style Civilopedia. The second expansion, Civ II: Fantastic Worlds, offered new scenarios with unique themes, including a Mars colonization scenario and a fantasy-themed Midgard scenario featuring civilizations such as Elves, Goblins and Mermaids. It also included scenarios inspired by other MicroProse games such as X-COM, Master of Orion (1993) and Master of Magic (1994) Jr. In addition, Fantastic Worlds included a new scenario editor that allowed players to customize unit statistics, city improvements, terrain and technologies, and to create event triggers and other gameplay enhancements.
Scientific research is at the heart of Civilization II. Players begin with primitive technology and limited options. As they advance through the ages from ancient times to the modern era, progress in science and society provides new abilities and strategic advantages.
Victory in Civilization II can be achieved in three ways: conquering all rival civilizations, launching a spaceship to the Alpha Centauri star system, or surviving until the year 2020 AD. After the game ends, the player's score is calculated based on their achievements.
Civilization II built on its predecessor with changes and additions to units, civilizations, wonders, tile features and technologies. New concepts introduced include diplomatic reputation and production waste. The world map shifted from a top-down view to an isometric view, and the artificial intelligence controlling rivals was improved.
Released in 1999 after Alpha Centauri (1999), Civilization II: Test of Time is a remake with a refreshed color palette and user interface. It introduced new elements such as animated units, a playable Alpha Centauri faction and additional campaign modes.
Civilization II was re-released on 9 December 1998 as Civilization II: Multiplayer Gold Edition. This version combined the two earlier expansion packs and offered multiplayer options, among other improvements. However, unlike the original Civilization II, which supported Windows 3.1, it required Windows 95 or later. The Multiplayer Gold Edition was later included in the Civilization Chronicles box set released in 2006.