It's probably safe to describe fans of the PC strategy game Civilization as cultlike. When a sequel was being designed in 2004, an online community of self-proclaimed "CivFanatics" drafted a 300-page "wish list" of things it wanted to see in the game and sent it to Hunt Valley-based Firaxis Games.
So there was an understandable sense of apprehension among the computer gamers when Firaxis announced last summer that a new version of the game, Civilization Revolution, would be released for the current generation of home consoles: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and the hand-held Nintendo DS.
Those handy with a mouse and keyboard who sat before the computer screen for days at a time with the game of micromanagement, making every political, military, economic and religious decision for a virtual civilization from conception to world domination, were skeptical. It was difficult to believe that the franchise could make the transition to the more rudimentary controller and television screen.
But Firaxis knew that. And it accepted the challenge. With this week's release of Civilization Revolution, the company that has traditionally developed for the PC has embarked into the unknown - but more mainstream - territory of consoles.
"The consoles are obviously a very large and lucrative market," company president and Baltimore native Steve Martin said, explaining why the company made the move. "The consumer base is large, and the platforms are very exciting."
Martin said he sees Civilization Revolution as an important move for Firaxis.
"We're not necessarily a major player on the consoles," he said. "I think that this will establish us in the console world. We have been a major player in video gaming for the past two decades. We are very confident that we are continuing that reputation."
According to Ryan Geddes of the Xbox team on IGN.com, Civilization Revolution has the opportunity to open up a new world for console gamers in an industry that's seeing an explosion in casual gaming.
"They're kind of a niche game in a lot of ways," he said. "What Civilization Revolution has the opportunity to do is to widen the strategy market a bit."
The decision to make the move to consoles came from Firaxis founder and director of creative development Sid Meier, who ultimately wanted to make a "fun game." He developed Civilization Revolution from the ground up, initially experimenting with a small team and a prototype nearly three years ago. According to Martin, the differences were approached from the very beginning.
