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Apple Game's latest article takes a break from featuring specific games to provide an interview with Sid Meier. One of the most recognized names in gaming, Meier is the man behind the Civilization juggernaut as well as a variety of other successful titles. Apple's article explores Meier's early days in gaming, the history of the Civilization series, and offers some hints at potential future projects.

At Firaxis, Meier continued the Civilization series with the third and fourth installments, in addition to heading into outer space for Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri, sailing the high seas for Sid Meier’s Pirates! (a remake of the MicroProse release), and even hitting the links with Sid Meier’s SimGolf. He reveals that a game which never made it past the prototype stage was one starring dinosaurs. “It’s a great concept for a game,” he admits, “and it’s based on a topic that I find really interesting, but we couldn’t find the right design to really bring it to life and make it fun. We don’t currently have plans to resurrect it, but you never know.”

He adds: “Interestingly enough, another game that we shelved during the first development attempt was the original Civilization. Again, we just couldn’t figure out how to make it really fun, so we shelved it, made another game, and then came back to it with some fresh ideas. The rest, as they say, is history.” Meier smiles at the pun.

Given the lack of a fun factor pushing both efforts into limbo, it’s not a surprise that Meier puts the concept front-and-center when embarking on a new project. “Our only hard-and-fast game design philosophy is to find the fun first,” he says. “We don’t make big game design documents, rather, we start by creating a playable prototype and play with it for a while to make sure we’ve nailed the fun factor.

Apple Games: Sid Meier, Game Designer Profile

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