Looking at tech trees in the Civilization series, just y'know, as a study in tech tree design I suppose.
I've played all of them plus Alpha Centauri and Civilization 2: Test of Time, not to mention other similar 4X games. Out of the mainline Civ series, I definitely like Civ 6 the most. I am not a traditionalist. And Culture-based separate "tech" tree is a great idea.
I think Civ 2 is the most robustly designed and the most enduring. It strikes the best balance between relative simplicity and good gameplay. And Civ 1, out of the older titles, is the one I return to the most, because it's just... surprisingly timeless, something I can't say about like Civ 3 (LOL).
But in terms of tech trees, Civilization 4 is so good, nothing else even comes close.
I understand videosgame do not have to go for naturalistic verisimilitude, because games have to be y'know, GAMES. But in Civ games specifically, I think things making sense, feeling real, telling their own self-contained game-mechanical "story" is important, because it helps immersion, it helps things make sense and make the game seem more like an empire-building adventure and less like a board game on a computer screen.
And the Civ 4 tech tree is a thing of beauty.
One, it's so big and robust. So many advances and inventions that had a world-shaking impact when they first emerged, and that other games didn't include because they were often going for a more abstract, big-picture feel. Which is fine, but techs like Paper or Guilds or Rifling just tickle me the right way.
Two, the tree is organic and makes sense. Civ 5 had so many technologies that went "this needs to be after that, because gameplay", and when they patched the game soon after release, some connections were added to avoid slingshotting tactics. Which I get from game design POV, but that was so immersion breaking. And Civ 3, with its fixed tech eras and technologies like *checks notes* Motorized Transport, Ironclads and Free Artistry, which were there obviously to cram in advances that were needed at the beginning or end of a specific period in the game? Thanks but no thanks. In Civ 4, every technology makes sense when you look at the tech tree even if you've never played a video game in your life. I just think that's neat.
Third, related to the above, is that there are no weird quirks in tech progression. This is the first game in the series where, say, Alphabet is a technology that requires Writing, not vice versa. If you think about it for more than two seconds, how could alphabet be possibly invented before the concept of writing? xD not to mention, there's plenty of writing systems that are not alphabetic. Whatever. A (former) close friend and me used to make fun of Civ 3, where the unit you get from the Alphabet tech was the first naval unit. We joked the boat came in cardboard boxes Ikea style and the letters were only indicating which parts connect to which, because clearly that's what having an alphabet without inventing writing is.
Fourth, also related to two, is that a technology can be reached multiple ways. This is good for gameplay but also super flavourful. You can imagine what it means that your civilization can reach Writing either via Pottery, Animal Husbandry or Priesthood. It makes sense that either Philosophy or Divine Right are paths to Nationalism. You can imagine the story there, the kind of civilization you're leading. It's a little thing, but it's fun.
*shrug* it's just fun. Best tech tree in any 4X game, and I don't even like Civ 4 THAT much.
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