Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution 2

Sid Meier's Civilization Revolution 2 from 2014 is the sequel to the mobile spin-off with which Firaxis Games first tried, back in 2008, to bring the Civilization series to consoles and touch controls. While the first game also came out on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo DS, the second one was built from the ground up for smartphones and tablets running iOS and Android, with controls adapted to a finger on a small screen rather than a gamepad or stylus.

The gameplay stays faithful to the first game's simplified recipe: a faster pace than the main series, a more streamlined tech tree, smaller maps, and matches that can be finished in tens of minutes instead of many hours. The four victory paths - military, economic, technological, and cultural/diplomatic - are also retained, along with the humorous animated leader sequences the Revolution series is known for. The game additionally offered asynchronous multiplayer over the internet, something the previous console entry lacked, which suited casual mobile play between other activities perfectly.

Revolution 2 therefore wasn't aimed at players of the main series who want complex diplomacy and deep tech trees, but at a broader mobile audience that wanted a taste of the Civilization concept without having to sit at a computer for hours.

The visuals were reworked to also work on smaller phone displays - units, cities, and leaders look more colorful and cartoonish, which fits the generally lighter, more humorous tone of the Revolution series compared to the more serious main Civilization line. Controls like the city menu or technology selection are designed to be operated directly with a finger, without the precise clicking required by the series' desktop entries.

Why play it: For anyone who wants to grasp the basic principle of Civilization - building an empire, researching, and competing with other leaders - in a few minutes on a phone, without having to study the main series' extensive manuals.