Civilization III: Conquests Windows game

Nearly ten years after its original release, The Third World War 1989 scenario for Civilization III has been re-uploaded and is at your fingertips. The game is now capable of running with the CXE patch, which allows new modding options never before available to Civ 3. The result is a game that runs more stable, faster, and much deadlier than ever. As NATO nations, expect a more terrifying Soviet onslaught that threatens to overwhelm Western Europe. As the Warsaw Pact, you will need to balance speed and caution lest NATO's devastating airpower bleeds your forces dry.

As there are too many updates to allow for a changelog, here is a list of the major changes in this version.

• Speed and stability - the primary goals for this version. Just about every area where memory use could be saved was affected. Primarily, this means that the number of starting units has been severely cut down, with emphasis on reducing battalion-sized forces and reserves. A great number of reserve units are now represented by what you build after the scenario begins. The Guyanan conflict was removed, and the Caribbean States replaced by Syria. AAA guns for the most part were removed and the AA defense of appropriate line units increased in response. Neutral nations not in combat on day 1 have been trimmed. The result is a game that runs noticeably better with shorter in-between turn times and fewer crashes.

• Overhauled combat - While the map may look the same, every aspect of land, sea, and air warfare has been updated. Hit points, attack and defense values, and special abilities have all been tweaked with the combat calculator as reference. The result has been greater realism, improved combat, and more tactical choices for the player. Air defenses values are improved across the board, and artillery is more effective. Submarines now have stealth attack for greater lethality. Warfare hasn't gotten any prettier, and with the reduction in unit numbers, mistakes can have grievous consequences.

• Comprehensive tech tree and unit-building update - each nation has been individually updated to have a wider range of options in the tech tree. Military Alliances and Mutual Protection Pacts have been removed to stabilize the international game, but more build options mean you can drive through different eras or sub-branches to reach unique units or hedge your bets and do a little of each. Airborne, air assault, mountain, and marine infantry are available, as well as ships for naval powers and more import options. Although this build stretches the bounds of credibility in terms of nations raising new brigades in a matter of weeks, it makes for more balanced gameplay. And while the number of starting units is cut down, the number of unit types has been expanded with graphics from Delta Strife and gwendoline and a few new units as well. Higher prices across the board also reduce AI unit spam early on. But the map will get crowded late game for sure.

• Improved economics, resources, and map - The new strategic resources are Automotives, Machinery, and Consumer Goods. Resources have been balanced, with many corresponding to their real world locations. This helps national trade to be more effective, especially among the Warsaw Pact, with appropriate surpluses and shortages. Individual city improvements have been updated for many cities. Certain areas of the map have been redrawn to be more accurate, including the Caucasus, northern Norway, Spain, the Carpathians, Russia, and of course Germany. The Alps are better organized to disallow movement if the Austrians and Swiss stay neutral, but still allow connections if they are invaded. There are plenty of regional tweaks from Syria to Jan Mayen, so watch out for how units flow differently. National forces are also more historically accurate as new information has become available the last few years, with changes to the U.S., East Germany, and Czechoslovakia.

• Flintock capable, but not dependent - This was the balance I was trying to strike. CXE has allowed for Civ III miracles to be performed, but this incredible tool remains in development. The game is still capable of being run normally without CXE, but a large number of changes are now available. Chief among them is the use of "stealth bombardment", that is, the ability to choose targets for stealth attack when bombing or bombarding. This means counter-battery fire for long-range guns and rockets, SEAD and interdiction for aircraft, and more lethal bombardment. It will get ugly. A CXE config file will be included with my recommended settings for the current R16 release. Twiddle with these settings at your own risk, as I've spent a great deal of time choosing those I think work best without wrecking game balance. For example, allowing airborne units to attack after dropping allows even the dummy AI to overrun NATO on the first turn, so this setting is off by default. CXE also reduces the chances for crashes and lag, especially the dreaded "failed to save game" bug. It is highly recommended to use CXE to run the game now, but still not a requirement.

• Updated civilopedia - It's all for nothing if the player has no idea what's going on. New units have new entries, and existing units have been updated with corrected hit points and abilities. There are new entries on which special abilities are available with which units, and separates the regular version from Flintlock-only upgrades. There are also some GCON icons for historical interest.