Editor's note: Although Daav is a long-time admirer of Sid Meier's, his love of the man won't stop his harsh, albeit constructive criticism. If your name is Sid, prepare to have your mind warped. If not, enjoy Daav's practical suggestions and opinions on the Civilization franchise and its newest iteration. -Omar

I can hardly describe the anticipation I have for the newest installment in your Civilization franchise. In fact, my anticipation is so great that I'm prepared to finally throw out my Tyrannosaurus computerex (Latin for "really old computer") and save up for a new one. Crysis, BioShock, and other flaunters of insane flash be damned! I'll upgrade my rig for a static strategy game with little to no razzle dazzle. How is that for irony?

Your keynote address at the Game Developers Conference on virtual civilization and games in general only fueled this anticipating fire. It's clear that you acknowledge psychological considerations when making your games, on top of your already impressive technical efforts. With no fear of modern standards, you successfully debated your ability to omit certain elements in the game, to make room for others. As you said, the human imagination is a powerful tool, from the looks of things, you're putting yours to good use.

You've reminded me of days when everything was a simple square. Indeed, the only indication of what that square represented rested in the game title. I am a strong follower of your philosophy on simplicity, and I believe that it may help make your newest title the best.

Luckily, developers were paying attention to your keynote speech. We can now see a growing trend of developers who are willing to cut small details to accommodate more gameplay value. Don't get me wrong; the most recently released footage proves that Civilization 5 will still impress us with its visuals. My point was: Civ 5 won't add flash for the simple sake of it. Trust me, that's a good thing. Why? I like to play my games, not watch them.

My opinions have been reinforced ever since I recently completed Konami's Zone of the Enders. Sure, the game looks and feels amazing, but before you can draw a second breath, the ending credits grace your screen. Without any replayability, Zone of the Enders seems to strike the formula for what I believe makes a bad game. It's just too short. Why not redistribute some of the development resources away from the graphics department? This philosophy of gameplay over visuals has helped cement Civilization among the industry's most memorable titles.

Despite my confidence in the skills of your team, I'm plagued by concern by the changes your studio has announced. For instance, a press release made it clear that the new hexagon tiles (pictured above) will radically change the game. I would have used the word "revolutionize," but this tile set has existed since the days of Master of Monsters. Regardless, I'm still very interested in seeing how this will affect the known world of Civilization! I anticipate that my most-relied-upon tactics will have to be discarded. Change is scary, but we'll have to bear through it.

Compound the new layout with other combat-oriented changes and it becomes clear that Civilization 5 will be an entirely new game. Yes, I know how that sounds. Of course it's a new game! But I meant to say an entirely new game, as opposed to a slightly altered edition in the franchise. I'm not sure if all these changes will sit well with me, but I hope they'll inspire fans in the same way your previous work has.

And here is where the real chatter begins, sir. I heard that you'll be making changes to some of the most beloved aspects of Civilization 4. It shouldn't be too hard, though, since we loved everything about that game.

To be more specific, I heard that random events won't be returning. I hope this isn't true because I patiently waited until the fourth installment for this feature to be included. I mean, be honest with yourself -- is anything more refreshing than the possibility of random occurrences? No way! They keep you paranoid and on your toes at all times.

Just like nature itself, most things are out of our hands. Don't listen to purists who demand absolute control over everything that occurs in-game. The element of randomness sincerely reflects our own world. I mean, we can't control volcanic eruptions. We can't control seismic quakes. We can't control violent weather. But that's the essence of life. And hey, not all natural events are bad. We discover new and amazing things every day -- things that improve our lives. Especially in the fields of medicine, agriculture, and energy. If video games have taught me anything, it's that spontaneity can be a very good thing. 

A perfect example of a good and a bad event (click to enlarge)

To elaborate, randomness helps increase longevity in video games. In fact, my favorite games employ random elements to their advantage. In Diablo 2, the rush of finding new items and clearing new dungeons compelled me to return again and again. Civilization offered players entirely new outcomes with each match. You allowed us to create worlds with different outcomes, different leaders, and different balances of power. It was as though we started new lives with each game.