First things first, this is a poorly coded and unoptimised game. No multi-player, limited save slots, very bad battle scenes and a poorly thought out interface conspire against this title. However despite these clear flaws this game is a triumph, for one reason and one reason alone.
Portability.
I generally carry my Touch where ever I go. It fits in all but the tiniest pocket and is slim and light enough to not weigh one down. Consequently I can play Civilization whenever I feel like it. The Touch does so much more than mere gaming, like Twitter, T'internet and Lasf.fm, to name a few, which only adds to the near certainty of me carrying it with me. It also supports custom soundtracks, with or without sound effects. Crushing the foes of The English to some hardcore Drum&Bass or defending the integrity of the Aztec Empire to some free jazz are experiences everyone should have.
I have a PSP which is perhaps better suited to the complexities of the game with its button based control system, yet the bulk of the PSP means it just will not he taken with me on my travels anywhere like as much as the Touch. That there isn't a version of Civ. Rev. on the system is a travesty that will never be rectified, but given the bulk of even the Slim & Lite's compared to an iPhone and the fact the PSP games don't have custom soundtracks(I can think of 5 that do out of the entire PSP library) it is only a minor inconvenience.
The DS, to be fair to it, does have a version of Civ. Rev. that I've not played. The Sweet Lady has a DS so it's not beyond my reach, but the iPhone OS version was £2.99 – the DS version is a full price retail game, lacking in custom soundtracks in a device that is larger than my Touch.
So I play the iPhone OS version like a crack-head plays the crack pipe when it's dole day. The game-play remains Civ. at its core so I can't stay away. Having Civ available anywhere is bad for my social life and interpersonal relationships, but like all addicts I WANT MORE!
There is so much that could improve the game. So many many small tweaks.
*Multi-player. There are more and more iPhone OS devices in my circle of friends seemingly each month. I can think of ten friends with either an iPod touch or iPhone. Local WiFi or blue-tooth (not for me sadly with my geriatric Touch) multi-player just makes sense.
*Improved Battle Scenes. The animation for these is appallingly shoddy. Advance Wars on GBA had better battle animation and that was in 2001/02. It doesn't take much guys. Animation that would be sub-standard on the SNES is just not acceptable in 2010s. Update it please someone at 2K.
*Increase the save slots. The lowest storage that this game will encounter is 4gb on the lowest 2G iPhone. Ten save slots is just piss poor. Sloppy. Let me allocate a set amount for them. I'd happily set aside at least 100mb to Civ. Rev. for this sole purpose.
*Reduce interface Clutter. There is way too much wastage of screen space, too many icons that could be be steamlined as you can see:
*Port to Android – the hard buttons, trackball/trackpad and tasty OS make Civ a sure fire winner on Android, and the 2.2 update means it would work a treat.
I heartily recommend this game if you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, albeit with a warning relating to its addictiveness.
