Sid Meier, sometimes referred to as the godfather of video games, is one of the most prolific game developers in the industry. In 1982 Meier was a co-founder of Miroprose; a company that started many popular video game franchises, like X-Com and Civilization, which are still going strong today. Meier would leave Microprose in 1996 and form Firaxis Games.
It is often easy to tell which games Sid Meier helped develop, as many of them carry his name in their title. However, there are many of these “Sid Meier’s” games in which he really wasn’t involved much. By far Meier’s most famous and beloved game series is Civilization; now on its sixth entry in the series. Here are ten great games from Sid Meier that aren’t part of the Civilization franchise.
10 Sword Of The Samurai (1989)
Sword of the Samurai puts the player in the role of a minor samurai in the Sengoku period of Japan. The player chooses what province they will be from, their family’s specialty, and their clan. The game judges clans and samurai based on honor, land, weapon skill, army size, and leadership ability. Sword of the Samurai also focuses on family; death is permanent in this game, and the only way to continue is to have an heir.
This game was released by Microprose back in the '80s, so getting hold of physical copy (and getting the game to work) today might be a problem. Fortunately, this game can be played via Gog.com and Steam.
9 Sid Meier’s Covert Action (1990)
Covert Action is an addicting game where the player takes on the role of special agent Max Remington, who was clearly inspired by James Bond. This game has numerous game elements to it besides espionage; there are puzzles and real-time, arcade-style action sequences as well.
The different play styles in Covert Action were one of the few complaints critics had for it at the time. Covert Action was released by Microprose for the PC and Commodore Amiga (which is the better of the two versions). Gamers wanting to give this game a try can find it on Gog.com and Steam.
8 Sid Meier’s Railroads! (2006)
This entry is for the Firaxis game released for the PC. The Railroad Tycoon series was actually begun by Sid Meier in 1990 though, when the first title was released by Microprose. The rights to the Railroad Tycoon franchise was acquired by PopTop Software in 1998, so the two sequels were developed by them.
Although they are not Sid Meier games they are still great games – in fact many players prefer Railroad Tycoon 3 over the others. With Sid Meier’s Railroads!, Meier decided to take the series in a new direction and incorporated many direct real-time strategy elements into the game. This game has a Metacritc rating of 77 and a User Score of 5.6.
7 Sid Meier’s Antietam! (1999)
Sid Meier’s Antietam!, released by Firaxis, was a follow-up to Sid Meier’s Gettysburg!. Antietam! allows the player to pick the Union or Confederate forces, and to either pick a single scenario or a campaign of linked scenarios. As with many of Sid Meier’s games, this game is rich in historical fact and detail.
Antietam! won many awards, including many “War Game of the Year” awards. This game was also an experiment by Firaxis to test an on-line only sales model; Antietam! was not given a physical copy when it originally released. Sid Meier’s Antietam! has a Metacritic rating of 82.
6 Magic: The Gathering (1997)
Here is an entry that might be a surprise to some – believe it or not, Sid Meier helped develop a Magic: The Gathering game. This was released by Microprose, and would be the last title Meier developed for Microprose before leaving to found Firaxis Games.
Microprose was not doing well financially at the time and wanted Meier to be on the development team for the prestige his name would attach to the game. The game mixes duels via card-play with a procedurally generated, isometric view map to explore. Many players of this game absolutely love it; it has a Metacritic User Score of 8.8.
5 Sid Meier’s Colonization (1994)
This entry is for the original Sid Meier’s Colonization, released by Microprose for the PC, Amiga, and Macintosh. There is a more recent version, titled Civilization IV: Colonization, that is also a great game, but it lacks that special quality the original possessed. Colonization plays very much like Civilization, but focuses on the colonization of the New World by the European powers.
The player sends ships back and forth across the Atlantic Ocean, which allows the player to sell their goods and pick up passengers heading to the Americas. The player must also establish new towns, lead troops in battle, oversee resource extraction, and decide how those resources are processed. The 1994 original has a Metacritic User Score of 8.7; while the remake in 2008 has a rating of 83 and User Score of 6.7.
4 Sid Meier’s SimGolf (2002)
This may not sound like it would be an entertaining game, but it is considered a hidden gem by many. Sid Meier's SimGolf is the product of a collaboration between Firaxis and Maxis. The object of this game is to design successful golf courses and eventually build a golfing empire.
The player is free to alter the landscape, presented in a top-down isometric view, as they wish. To assist the player is their own customizable golfer. The player can use their golfer to test their golf course designs and to even earn money playing golf in tournaments. Sid Meier’s SimGolf has a Metacritic rating of 84 and a User Score of 7.6.
3 Sid Meier’s Gettysburg! (1997)
Sid Meier’s Gettysburg! was the first game released by Firaxis Games. This is a real-time strategy game covering the Battle of Gettysburg in the U.S. Civil War. Gettysburg! was the winner of numerous awards, and has been praised for its historical accuracy. The battles play out in real-time; though the player can slow or increase the flow of time.
The player is free to pick either the Union or Confederate forces, and can play one scenario or a campaign. The voice-acting in Gettysburg! is also very well-done – with attention given to make sure the appropriate accents were used for portraying specific officers. This has a Metacritic rating of 92 and a User Score of 7.4.
2 Sid Meier’s Pirates! (1987/2004)
The original Sid Meier’s Pirates! was released by Microprose, and was a huge hit with critics and players at the time. The remake - released by Firaxis in 2004 - improved on the original in nearly every way, and is a must-play for any fan of pirate games. The remake has a Metacritic rating of 88 and a User Score of 8.3.
Also, the original Pirates! is notable for being the first game that had Sid Meier’s name attached to the title. This was done in the hopes that it would attract fans of Meier’s games who might not buy Pirates! if they didn’t know he developed the game. Let's just say this idea worked way better than expected.
1 Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri (1999)
There are a lot of gamers that consider Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri to be the best turn-based 4x empire building strategy game ever made. This game is essentially a follow-up to Sid Meier’s Civilization that answers the question of what happened to the colony ship that is sent to Alpha Centauri as a victory condition.
Factions soon arise among the crew as to the direction the colony should take in terms of societal structure. To make matters worse, there is a fungal life-form native to Alpha Centauri that is hostile towards the colonizer!
The expansion pack, Alien Crossfire, adds new human factions, two alien factions, the ability for players to customize their faction, and the ability to build cities upon open waters. Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri has a Metacritic rating of 92 and a User Score of 8.8. This game can be purchased on Steam and Gog.com.