So, the way I see it, there are several ways the game can end and a winner be declared:

• Turn Limit Only
  • This is a very traditional one: after a set number of turns the game ends and the fame total is tallied.
    • Pros: Easily balanced for and customizable. It gives an easy to understand goal and works best for any "endgame bonuses" like "highest population" or "largest army" if they want to use anything like that as a last minute bonus that could add a little unpredictability to the endgame.
    • Cons: Unless they use these endgame bonuses and make them significantly large then it risks running into the problem of victory in the late game being inevitible if the lead player has built up a significant fame lead. It also doesn't allow the players to manipulate when the game ends except during setup, especially if they include a mechanic to prevent players from being eliminated.
• Single Player Acheivement
  • In this version, once a single player has acheived a particular goal the game ends. There could be a singular one, such as getting a particular tech or getting enough stars in the last era, or several options that different players can work towards. This is a little like traditional victory conditions, except it only decides when the game ends, not who wins.
    • Pros: Allows for an interesting dynamic where if a player is stronger at the moment but is still behind in fame (e.g. they've had a few later game wars that have put them ahead in production and tech but did poorly in the early game) they will actually be motivated to delay the end of the game until they can get more fame, and vice versa. If there are multiple goals, having one of the goals accomplished could give you an "End Game" button that you'll only want to push if you are winning. (You could also abstain if you are going for a high score).
    • Cons: While the fame mechanic should keep it from getting out of hand, it could still lead to players rushing to the end in a way that doesn't give the trailing players time to catch up. Depending on what the conditions are it could also lead to short games if one player rushes to those conditions, even if it doesn't get them victory. It also seems a little odd to have one player decide "We will only count the cool stuff up to this point."
• Acheivement + X Turns
  • Like the last one, except getting the acheivement starts a countdown for how many more turns the game will last instead of ending immediately.
    • Pros: A bit of a balance between turn timers and acheivements. This would give players who were holding things in reserve to rush anything they can, e.g. spend their gold to finish that wonder or throw their entire army at their foe. If there's a catch up mechanic where the players who are behind get bonuses to the fame they receive during the last turns the player in the lead would have to be careful to not rest on their laurels.
    • Cons: It also has the downsides of both the previous ones, in that it can still cause an inevitible victory and can lead to short games. It may also be difficult to code an AI that can change it's playstyle when it sees it only has a little time left.
• Multiplayer Acheivement
  • Players still have endgame acheivements, but this time more than one player has to acheive them in order for the game to end, or at least a single player may have to get enough different ones if they want to force the game to end. It could also require a certain percentage of players to have passed a minimum threshold before the game ends, e.g. at least half of the players have to be in era 5 before the game can end.
    • Pros: It keeps the end from being dictated by a single player while still being in the control of the players collectively. It also gives the players who are behind a chance to catch up by gaining fame in ways that don't get them closer to the acheivements.
    • Cons: It heavily penalizes players who are doing really well, and it seems anticlimatic for a middle of the pack player to have something happen to them and the game suddenly ends. It might distort incentives too much.

Those are all the ones I can think of, except maybe combining them. What do you guys think of these ideas? Do you have any others?

Since the only win condition is Fame, my guess is that the game runs for a fixed number of turns and the player with the most Fame at the end wins.

HappyHead wrote:

well, i mean... Fame and Domination. I would be very suprised if Amplitude found a way to outright nix domination.

Still, it's very cool how all the victory types merge into fame. Can you out-culture my money?

I'd like if they found a way to nix domination, if only for the novelty. When will the fame be counted though?

Everyones a winner (: 

I guess I assumed it's at the end of the 6th era.  Which isn't a specific turn count, but whenever someone's ready to "complete" that era.

We haven't heard a lot on the era advancing mechanism, yet.  We know it takes 7 fame "stars" (as there are additional sources of fame that don't seem to give stars).  It's implied that you're not forced to advance once you reach that level, as it's been indicated that you have the ability to wait and try to earn more fame in that era before moving on.  Since there are a limited number of fame points available per era, I suspect that once any player has moved into the next era, all players have the option to move on, too, but whether that's how it actually works we don't know.

Regardless of the specifics of the era advancement system, I assume it a similar process that triggers game end at the end of the 6th era.

Finally, re the domination route, I'm also in the camp that I don't view "domination" as a good fit for a game about the history of human civilization as I don't see conquering the world as a realistic possibility for any group of people, at least not up to this stage of history (possibly with future tech, that will no longer be true). However, I also recognize that a lot of players play Civ to "conquer the world" and for them, that's what the game is all about.  Trying to balance the interests of that group of players with the interests of players who want a more "realistic" view of empire management has always been a struggle for the Civ series, resulting in mechanics that are an awkward fit for both groups in an effort to compromise.  Amplitude will likely need to try and find the same balance, unless it wants to abandon one group all together, which is not likely to be a commercially-wise decision.

I actually like the way that the first to reach a new era can take the others with them if they like.

This might prevent situations where you are in the modern era and your opponent is still dealing with catapults and building city walls in the middle age.

It stays interesting. I am very excited for new infos.

tomsonhagen wrote:

I actually like the way that the first to reach a new era can take the others with them if they like.

This might prevent situations where you are in the modern era and your opponent is still dealing with catapults and building city walls in the middle age.

It stays interesting. I am very excited for new infos.

Where did you hear that?

Dinode wrote:

HappyHead wrote:

well, i mean... Fame and Domination. I would be very suprised if Amplitude found a way to outright nix domination.

Still, it's very cool how all the victory types merge into fame. Can you out-culture my money?

I'd if they found a way to nix domination, if only for the novelty. When will the fame be counted though?

They could nix domination as a victory type simply by say the game ends when

1. Any player finishes the Contemporary era

2. The sole surviving player has more fame than any eliminated player. (since fame can only go up)  [This way you aren't forced to play past the point where the win is automatic]

I rather they stick with old civilization rule sets where I can win by conquest only, not fame or domination or science victory when I feel these are two easy to achieve for me, I rather be conquest only to keep things interesting, expectually when bigger mods comes around the corner, victories help me out on getting the most out of these bigger mods when they ever appear.

the game can be forced to end in multiple ways. the eays we punlicly know are: Eliminating all other players, anc completing the science tree: