Editing Civilization IV (section)

{{Short description|2005 video game}}
{{Infobox video game
| title = Civilization IV
| image = CivIVboxshot.jpg
| developer = [[Firaxis Games]]
| publisher = [[2K (company)|2K]] <small>(Win)</small><br />[[Aspyr]] <small>(Mac)</small>
| director = 
| producer = Barry Caudill<ref name="cavgames">{{cite web |url=https://www.computerandvideogames.com/142558/interviews/looking-back-civilization-iv/?skip=yes |title=Interview: Looking Back... Civilization IV |author=PC Zone staff |author-link=PC Zone |date=6 July 2006 |series=Interviews: PC |publisher=[[Computer and Video Games]] U.S. |pages=1–3 |format=PHP |id=142558 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726233931/http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=142558&skip=yes |archive-date=26 July 2010 |url-status=dead |access-date=28 February 2007 |quote=We pull up a pew with developer Firaxis and talk deep, dark diplomacy. }}</ref>
| designer = [[Soren Johnson]]
| programmer = Soren Johnson
| artist = Steve Ogden
| composer = [[Jeffery L. Briggs]]<br />[[Christopher Tin]]
| series = ''[[Civilization (series)|Civilization]]''
| engine = [[Gamebryo]]<ref name="gamebryo">{{cite web |url=http://games.ign.com/articles/595/595761p1.html |title=Sid Meier's Civilization IV Powered By Gamebryo |last=Coleman |first=Stephen |date=14 March 2005 |publisher=[[IGN]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070211162842/http://games.ign.com/articles/595/595761p1.html |archive-date=11 February 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| platforms = [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]], [[macOS|Mac OS X]]
| released = '''Windows'''{{vgrelease|NA|October 25, 2005|PAL|November 4, 2005}}'''Mac OS X'''{{vgrelease|NA|June 26, 2006}}
| genre = [[Turn-based strategy]], [[4X]]
| modes = [[Single-player video game|Single-player]], [[Multiplayer video game|multiplayer]]
}}

'''''Civilization IV''''' (also known as '''''Sid Meier's Civilization IV''''') is a 2005 [[4X]] [[turn-based strategy]] video game developed by [[Firaxis Games]] and published by [[2K (company)|2K]]. It is the fourth installment of the [[Civilization (series)|''Civilization'' series]] and was designed by [[Soren Johnson]]. It was released in North America, Europe, and Australia, between October 25 and November 4, 2005, and followed by ''[[Civilization V]]''.

''Civilization IV'' uses the [[4X]] empire-building model for [[turn-based strategy]] gameplay, in which the player's main objective is to construct a [[civilization]] from limited initial resources. Most standard full-length games start the player with a settler unit and/or a city unit in the year 4000 BC. As with other games in the series, there are by default five objectives the player can pursue in order to finish the game: conquering all other civilizations, controlling a [[supermajority]] of the game world's land and population, building and sending the first [[sleeper ship]] to the [[Alpha Centauri]] star system, increasing the "Culture ratings" of at least three different cities to "legendary" levels, or winning a "World Leader" popularity contest by the [[United Nations]]. If the time limit for the game is reached and none of the previous goals has been fulfilled by any players including game [[Artificial intelligence|AI players]], the civilization with the highest total game score is declared winner. A large departure from earlier ''Civilization'' games is a new [[game engine|graphics engine]] created from scratch, based on the [[Gamebryo]] engine by Numerical Design Limited (NDL).

The game has received critical acclaim and was hailed as an exemplary product of one of the leading video game producers in the turn-based strategy genre, and has been listed as one of the [[List of video games considered the best|best video games]] of all time. ''Civilization IV'' sold over 3 million copies by 2008 and won multiple awards, including several [[List of Game of the Year awards|Game of the Year]] awards. Its title song, "[[Baba Yetu]]", was the first piece of [[video game music]] to win a [[Grammy Award]]. Two major expansions were released, ''[[Civilization IV: Warlords]]'' and ''[[Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword]]'', as well as the [[stand-alone expansion pack]] ''[[Civilization IV: Colonization]]'', which were all combined in 2009 into one release edition titled ''Sid Meier's Civilization IV: The Complete Edition''.