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Ken Levine plays video games. Shocking, we know! Speaking with IndustryGamers, Levine, who is currently working on a super-secret project, listed his ten favorite games. Occupying the top five spots in descending order are: World of Warcraft, Civilization, Beyond Good & Evil, Ultima Underworld and Company of Heroes.

Back in 2007, Levine produced a similar list for MSNBC. His top five have apparently shifted in the last two years, though, as Heroes of Might and Magic 2 and Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past have fallen even beyond the BioShock developer's top ten. How hast these games forsaken thee, Ken? What hast they done for thou to banish them from thy heart likest so?

Sid Meier has announced a Facebook version of the epic Civilization franchise. Dubbed Civilization Network, the game will make its way to the popular social networking site sometime in 2010. The game designer notes on the CivNet Facebook page that the company will be on the lookout for beta testers soon.

Meier mentions that the game will offer everything people love about Civ in a "fully persistent environment" and that it'll be "free to play." Coincidentally, Meier's announcement comes soon after Brian Reynolds, who designed Civilization II and Alpha Centauri, took the job of "chief designer" at social gaming developer Zynga. Apparently the two strategy designers see some major opportunities in the social gaming genre.

[Via Games.com]

The Civilization IV franchise appears to have come to a close as 2K Games announces Civilization IV: The Complete Edition, releasing May 12 for $40 on PC. The epic bundle includes Civ IV, the Warlords and Beyond the Sword expansions, plus the standalone Colonization expansion (it's practically a different game).

"The Complete Edition" title makes it sound like Civ IV won't be making another encore. We really have no idea what Firaxis is currently up to and we're unaware of any E3 plans.

Without a doubt, the biggest and best release of this week is Civilization Revolution. We're big fans of that Sid Meier guy, so his latest game immediately won us over. You can bet we'll be spending a large amount of time this weekend taking Abe Lincoln and the Americans to the top (their bonuses are just too awesome to ignore).

What about you all? Going to lead the revolution, as we are, or are you playing something else? How will you fill these last few days leading up to E3 2008?

What's better than a pin-up of Izuna? Well, a pin-up of Napoleon, for starters. Bow chicka wow wow.

In all seriousness, we do like this Civilzation Revolution DS poster better (although this blogger isn't exactly in hormone-crazy young male demographic that the Izuna pieces are meant to appeal to). Hormones aside, though, Napoleon is looking pretty badass here, and we're confident he could even conquer the Ziggy Pig looking like he does.

So, how do you get one? As with Izuna, this mini-poster comes as reversible cover art, so all you have to do is buy the game. We're starting to get spoiled here, though, and soon we're going to demand that every DS title comes with such an awesome feature.

[Thanks to ChristianBK for the tip and picture!]

We may have weighed in on the portable title, but what about the rest of the reviewers out there? Now that the title has been available for a little while now, many of the critics have put out their verdict. And, just as we enjoyed the game, the majority of them also found it to be a good time.

• Game Informer (85/100) gives it a good score: "Some few sacrifices have been made, notably the absence of the in-game Civilopedia, and the control is nowhere near as smooth as it is on a gamepad. However, you won't find a deeper or more replayable portable strategy experience anywhere. Civilization Revolution is a very worthwhile investment for any strategically minded DS owner."

• Gamespy (80/100) says it's barebones, but good: "While it won't be winning any beauty contests with its barebones 2D graphics, the play's the thing and the combination of solid controls and lots of content in the form of the technologies, units and variegated civilizations make Civ Rev an enjoyable and entertaining romp through the traditionally staid and somber realm of nation management."

• Nintendo Power (75/100) said the game lacks any competition: "If you're a fan of the genre, there are few better ways to get your fix on the go." [Aug 2008, p.89]

• GameZone (75/100) says the DS version loses a bit compared to the consoles, but is still a good choice for on-the-go action: "Civilization Revolution is a solid entry to the series, bringing the experience to a whole new audience. While the DS version loses a little bit in the translation, it's still worth a look from hardcore series fans looking for a portable version of their fix."

Few games have inspired as many different reactions -- all heated, all extreme -- in me as Civilization Revolution. There are few aspects of the game that are just "okay" for me; everything is either really awesome or really annoying, and in the end, it's difficult to condense all of those feelings into a simple yea or nay. The short version is that Civilization Revolution is a pretty good DS game. As a Civ game ... well, it's different.

Civilization is an intense experience. After all, you're starting with a few guys dressed in ill-fitting skins and attempting to conquer the world through a variety of strategies. The games are often enormous, sprawling across a map that can take up most of the globe (oceans be damned), and due to the sheer size of the games, they've just never worked well on consoles. This game changes that, but in a very intriguing way. Civilization Revolution isn't a port. It's not a remake, or even really a reimagining. It's a complete rebuild, with such radical changes in some areas that it hardly feels like the same game, and yet, the base gameplay of one of the world's best turn-based strategy franchises somehow manages to remain intact. It's not without flaws -- and some are pretty serious -- but Civilization Revolution does manage to accomplish a very simple goal, and that's stripping down Civ and making it a manageable (and fun!) portable experience.

Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution is out in the PAL lands and reviews on the "accessible," console-centric interpretation of the epic franchise are coming in. The common thread running through many of the reviews (for better or worse) is that Revolution isn't a console port of the PC's excellent Civilization IV; a point the developers have been incessantly repeating since Revolution was first shown last year. The Xbox 360, PS3 and DS versions of Civ Rev will be available in North America July 8.

• Xbox World 360 (85/100): "Away from the main single-player campaign you'll find a number of scenarios to tackle, there's the promise of a free downloadable 'game of the week' and the Live multiplayer options are comprehensive. While far from as deep as the PC games, Revolution is a fine achievement, extremely accessible and great fun to play."
• Eurogamer (80/100): "Unfortunately, I'd be lying, as the many punches Civ Rev pulls means its exhilaration is so often followed by slight dissatisfaction. An 8 may not be enough to convince cynical minds to suck it and see, which is a terrible shame. This slick new Civilization may be more reduction than Revolution, but it's easily one of the most distinctive games on 360 and PS3."
• NZGamer (75/100): "For new players, it may be a stepping stone to true greatness. Fans of the older Civ games may enjoy it for nostalgia. It may also serve as a 'nicotine patch' for megalomaniacs; a healthier alternative to wasting whole days taking over the world. The serious Civ fans, however, should keep to their PCs: this one isn't for them."

In GameDaily's 10 Questions feature, Sid Meier explains what happened to the delayed Wii version of his upcoming console-based Civilization Revolution. Meier explains that the company is still trying to decide what to do about the Wii version, but says the console is fantastic and they have "no intentions of turning [their] backs on it."

With work now finished on the Xbox 360, PS3 and DS versions of Civ Rev, it appears the title is on track for a July 8 release. The Civ Rev demo is currently available on Xbox 360 and PS3 to try out the streamlined, yet surprisingly Civ-feeling, console game.

2K Games announced today that they'll release Civilization IV: Colonization sometime this autumn. Don't let the title fool you, the game is a stand-alone product (meaning it doesn't require Civ IV) and is an update of the classic strategy game, Colonization, by Sid Meier and Brian Reynolds back in the Microprose days.

Colonization has players leading one of four European nations trying to take over the New World. 2K Games says the title will feature "all-new graphics" -- although we can't tell much difference from Civ IV -- along with improved diplomacy. Considering it's a stand-alone product, we understand the Civ IV name was put in the title to sell more copies; however, we hope Colonization doesn't feel like a missing member from the "scenarios" available in Civ IV: Beyond the Sword., many of which could arguably have been stand-alone products.

Dying for details on Civilization: Revolution? Yearning to know just what the reward will be if you're the first to get Masonry? Wonder no more, for the (incomplete) tech tree from the PS3/Xbox 360 demo versions of the game is available after the break. The DS version, it is worth noting, features the same gameplay, so the tree will apply.

Some technologies are locked and unavailable in the demo, so everything isn't covered here, but thanks to Sigmakan at the 2K forums, we've got a pretty good idea of what we'll be racing for -- and how we'll use it -- then the game hits our beloved handheld early next month.

Gamespot reports that a demo for console-centric Civilization Revolution will be available tomorrow on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The demo will fill about 1.08 gigglebytes of hard drive space and include both single and multiplayer demos. Players will have the option of playing as Cleopatra or Caesar up until 1250 AD in the turn-based strategy game.

The demo will become available tomorrow beginning at 5AM EST on Xbox Live and as part of the PSN update sometime during the afternoon. We're definitely looking forward to testing out the demo and seeing if our civilization will stand the test of time survive until 1250 AD. Civilization Revolution is currently scheduled to release on July 8 for Xbox 360, PS3 and DS.

[Via X3F, Thanks Jonah]

There will be a Civilization Revolution demo out this Thursday as part of this week's regularly scheduled PSN update. Since the title has been pushed back to July 8 instead of coming out on its original June 3 release, the folks at Firaxis and 2K Games thought it would be a good idea to give you something to play while waiting the extra month. The demo has two forces, Rome and Egypt. It also comes packed in with a tutorial for those new to the turn-based strategy game.

This demo sounds a lot like the one we've played previously, so perhaps you might want to read our hands-on impression to get ready for this Thursday. Also, if you're really interested in Civilization Revolution, then you better watch our video interview with the creator himself, Sid Meier.

The turn-based strategy genre is rather under represented on the 360 and the upcoming Civilization Revolution should help to fix that. While the traditionally hardcore conquer-the-world game is rather PC centric, there are tweaks to the gameplay and control scheme that should allow console gamers to get a handle on things fast. Of course, with the release of the demo at 2am on Thursday, gamers should get the chance to give the changes a try for themselves. Games of Civ can go on for hours, so just what form the demo will take should be interesting to find out. Even if it is just a simplified port, the 360 needs to expand its library with more games like this, so give the demo a download tomorrow.

2K Games announced today that Sid Meier has been entered into the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008 as the industry's most award-winning developer. Currently working on Civilization Revolution, Meier's awards span a lengthy career so far, with his latest being the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2008 Game Developers Choice Awards.

Meier took the opportunity to thank the critics for their recognition over the years and to plug Civ Revolution in his statement. Speaking of which, buried at the bottom of the press release was the news that Civ Revolution has been delayed until July 8 from its expected June 3 release. Perhaps the delay will allow Meier some time to figure out where he'll store all the Revolution awards?