The name Sid Meier should ring a bell to any computer gamer older than 25. The prime objective in his prized franchise, Civilization, is a lot like what he’s done in the computer gaming world: conquer. With that accomplished, it looks like he was ready to take on the console realm. Civ Rev, as it’s dubbed, kept the franchise’s core elements and slapped on a fresh graphics coat to attract the console crowd. You’re free to be diplomatic, of course—and good luck with that online, by the way—just don’t complain if you end up like the Aztecs.

Xbox 360 – 2K

We interviewed legendary game creator Sid Meier—Director of Creative Development for 2K’s world-renowned Firaxis Games development studio, author of the timeless Civilization series, and Guinness World Record Holder.

What interested you in recently developing for console with Civ Rev, and previously Pirates!? We created Pirates! for the Xbox in 2005 because the game fit so naturally on the platform, and it presented a great opportunity for us to expand into console game development. We had some fun design ideas specifically for the Xbox that made the game a unique and really fun experience on that platform. We decided to bring Civilization to consoles now because the current generation of hardware allows us to really push the presentation of the game to a new level, and we think console and DS gamers are ready for a new kind of game experience.

Was there a different mindset with developing Civ Rev, compared to over a decade ago with the console (PSX) edition of Civ II? I was not involved in the development of the PSX edition of Civ II. However, I can say that it was essentially a port of the PC game. We had a completely different mindset in developing Civilization Revolution for the consoles and DS. All three versions were developed in-house by our teams at Firaxis, and I was the lead designer and programmer. We started from scratch with Civilization Revolution, and built the game from the ground up for the Xbox 360, PS3 and DS. It gave us a great opportunity to take all of the elements that have made Civ on the PC so successful and build that experience specifically for the consoles and DS, taking advantage of the many cool things those platforms offer. The core game is the same on all three platforms—we adjusted the presentation and controls to fit each system.

Are there any current changes to the status of a Wii iteration since being put on indefinite hold? No, there’s no new information to report.

Should we expect more Civ Rev in the future on the console side? Our approach has always been that if the fans want more we try our best to give them more. So, we’ll wait and see what the fans have to say!

What are your thoughts on making it in Guinness (record for most video game developer awards)? I was really surprised to have made the book. It is every kid’s dream to someday be in the Guinness World Records! I’m honored to have received all of the awards—it’s always rewarding to be recognized by gamers, reviewers and peers for the games we’ve made.

What games do you currently play on your spare time (if you have the spare time)? Now that we’ve finished development on Civ Revolution I have some spare time! Right now I’m playing Portal on the Xbox 360, and my son Ryan (who just graduated from high school) and I are having fun with Gran Turismo 3, World of Warcraft, Guitar Hero and Rock Band.