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4X is a genre of strategy-based video and board games in which players control an empire and "eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, and eXterminate". The term was first coined by Alan Emrich in his September 1993 preview of ''Master of Orion'' for ''Computer Gaming World''.〔〕 Since then, others have adopted the term to describe games of similar scope and design. 4X computer games are noted for their deep, complex gameplay. Emphasis is placed upon economic and technological development, as well as a range of non-military routes to supremacy. Games can take a long time to complete since the amount of micromanagement needed to sustain an empire scales as the empire grows. 4X games are sometimes criticized for becoming tedious for these reasons, and several games have attempted to address these concerns by limiting micromanagement, with varying degrees of success. The earliest 4X games borrowed ideas from board games and 1970s text-based computer games. The first 4X computer games were turn-based, but real-time 4X games are not uncommon. Many 4X computer games were published in the mid-1990s, but were later outsold by other types of strategy games. Sid Meier's ''Civilization'' is an important example from this formative era, and popularized the level of detail that later became a staple of the genre. In the new millennium, several 4X releases have become critically and commercially successful. In the board (and card) game domain, 4X is less of a distinct genre, in part because of the practical constraints of components and playing time. The ''Civilization'' board game that gave rise to Sid Meier's ''Civilization'' computer game, for instance, has no exploration and no extermination. Unless extermination is targeted at non-player entities, it tends to be either nearly impossible (because of play balance mechanisms, since player elimination is usually considered an undesirable feature) or certainly unachievable (because victory conditions are triggered before extermination can be completed) in board games. ==Definition== The term "4X" originates from a 1993 preview of ''Master of Orion'' in ''Computer Gaming World'' by Alan Emrich, in which he rated the game "XXXX" as a pun on the XXX rating for pornography. The four Xs were an abbreviation for "EXplore, EXpand, EXploit and EXterminate".〔 Other game commentators adopted the "4X" label to describe a game genre with specific gameplay conventions:〔〕〔〕〔〕 * ''Explore'' means players send scouts across a map to reveal surrounding territories. * ''Expand'' means players claim new territory by creating new settlements, or sometimes by extending the influence of existing settlements. * ''Exploit'' means players gather and use resources in areas they control, and improve the efficiency of that usage. * ''Exterminate'' means attacking and eliminating rival players. Since in some games all territory is eventually claimed, eliminating a rival's presence may be the only way to achieve further expansion. These four elements of gameplay have been described as the four phases of a 4X computer game session.〔 These phases often overlap with each other and vary in length depending on the game design. For example, the ''Space Empires'' series and ''Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar'' have a long expansion phase, because players must make large investments in research to explore and expand into every area.〔〕〔〕〔〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「4X」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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