Bringing Civilization to Facebook

For two decades, Sid Meier has remained atop the video game world by constantly refining and improving Civilization, a game he invented in which players build virtual empires. Now, Meier is gunning for the latest must-conquer territory on the gaming landscape: Facebook. This summer, Meier’s company, Firaxis Games, is introducing CivWorld, a scaled-down version of Civilization aimed at casual gamers on the social network. “You could spend hours doing this,” Meier says as he plants an orchard near the virtual city he has created in CivWorld.

Civilization has sold more than 10 million copies over the past 20 years by challenging gamers to create nations and achieve global dominance through diplomacy, trading, war, and scientific development. That success has earned Meier accolades in the industry. Game reviewer Gamespot.com in 1996 proclaimed him one of the world’s most influential game designers, “our Hitchcock, our Spielberg, our Ellington.”