Civilization: 5 Open Source Clones Compared

Most entries here have too little documentation to compare meaningfully — Antiquity, Civ89, and OpenCiv1 have no more than a one-line description or none at all, and CivOne's README contains only the project's title, with its status listed as unplayable. [CELL]IVIZATION stands apart with substantial documentation: a complete turn-based 4X strategy game built entirely in Microsoft Excel for a week-long 2019 game jam, with two documented bugs that can break a game in progress (running out of units, or a unit getting stuck with no legal moves).

Comparison table

CivOne

Availability

Status: Unplayable
Platforms: None
Play in browser: No
Mobile: No

Project health

Development status: Halted
Last updated: 6y ago
Stars: 262
Contributors: 15
License: CC0-1.0
Engine: SDL2

Compatibility

Requires original assets: —
Multiplayer: —

Antiquity

Availability

Status: Playable
Platforms: DOS
Play in browser: No
Mobile: No

Project health

Development status: Halted
Last updated: 9y ago
Stars: 3
Contributors: 1
License: —
Engine: —

Compatibility

Requires original assets: —
Multiplayer: —

[CELL]IVIZATION

Availability

Status: Semi-playable
Platforms: Linux, OSX, Windows, Android
Play in browser: No
Mobile: Android

Project health

Development status: Not tracked
Last updated: Not tracked
Stars: Not tracked
Contributors: Not tracked
License: Not tracked
Engine: Not tracked

Compatibility

Requires original assets: NoOriginal game made in Excel with custom content.
Multiplayer: Local multiplayer

Civ89

Availability

Status: Playable
Platforms: TI calculator
Play in browser: No
Mobile: No

Project health

Development status: Not tracked
Last updated: Not tracked
Stars: Not tracked
Contributors: Not tracked
License: Not tracked
Engine: Not tracked

Compatibility

Requires original assets: —
Multiplayer: —

OpenCiv1

Availability

Status: Playable
Platforms: Windows, Linux, OSX
Play in browser: No
Mobile: No

Project health

Development status: Not tracked
Last updated: Not tracked
Stars: Not tracked
Contributors: Not tracked
License: Not tracked
Engine: Not tracked

Compatibility

Requires original assets: —
Multiplayer: —

Title	CivOne	Antiquity	[CELL]IVIZATION	Civ89	OpenCiv1
Status	Unplayable	Playable	Semi-playable	Playable	Playable
Platforms	None	DOS	Linux, OSX, Windows, Android	TI calculator	Windows, Linux, OSX
Play in browser	No	No	No	No	No
Mobile	No	No	Android	No	No
Project health
Development status	Halted	Halted	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
Last updated	6y ago	9y ago	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
Stars	262	3	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
Contributors	15	1	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
License	CC0-1.0	—	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
Engine	SDL2	—	Not tracked	Not tracked	Not tracked
Compatibility
Requires original assets	—	—	NoOriginal game made in Excel with custom content.	—	—
Multiplayer	—	—	Local multiplayer	—	—
Preview

Known limitations

[CELL]IVIZATION

gameplay: The game will break if no units exist; all settlers have been used up to build cities and all other units are dead.
gameplay: The game cannot proceed if a unit gets stuck with no available moves.

Frequently asked questions

Are the Civilization clones on this page open source?

Yes — every clone catalogued here is an open-source project. Availability, license, and development-status details for each one are listed in the comparison table above.

What license do these Civilization clones use?

CivOne (CC0-1.0).

Do I need to own the original Civilization to play these clones?

[CELL]IVIZATION runs standalone, no original files needed.

See the full write-up for each clone, or go back to Civilization.