When we talk about retro gaming, we’re always talking about games on old hardware, probably 1970 through to 2010.
Except this time. Here, we’re looking at the dreamy eyed Redditor who couldn’t afford Civ for his computer so created a version in a school notebook while not paying attention to class. Introducing the revelation with a collection of images, Redditor Alexander-00AK has attracted over 150 comments at the time of writing.
Before I ever had money for civ, I had to make up my own version that could be written out and played on paper. I called it “paper civ”
by inciv
Understandably, fellow Redditors on the CIVIT subreddit were entranced by the concept of Paper Civ and the rules. Alexander-00AK shared the original game map, rules, and icon pack.
But what about the rules?
There is so much that is wonderful about this, from the down-at-heel, no pocket money approach to 4X gaming to the reaction of fellow Redditors. Could Paper Civ be set for release as a genuine game? Certainly some fellow Redditors feel that way about it.
Civ has had a bizarre evolution. Meier’s game was made in the knowledge of a Civilization board game that existed some years earlier. A new version of the board game was released when Meier’s Civ became popular. With Civilization II, a new Meier-inspired board game was released, and most versions of the game since have been accompanied by a board or card game.
How strange to think that way back in the 1990s, some kid somewhere was so inspired by the idea of Civ that they developed their own paper-based version. Amazing!
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Christian Cawley is a writer and editor who covers consumer electronics, IT, and entertainment media. He has written for publications such as Computer Weekly, Linux Format, MakeUseOf.com, and Tech Radar.
He also produces podcasts, has a cigar box guitar, and of course, loves retro gaming.