Trends Reviews and Recaps

I'm not much for PC games. I own several, but I've spent very little time playing them. There is, frankly, no "inner game geek" here.

And I'll admit this: Although I think I could enjoy "Civilization III," the recommendation to purchase it coming from a normally dependable source, I'm completely inept at playing the game.

I keep trying, but I'm just not getting it. And even when I seem to be doing well, I'm not sure why exactly it is that I’m "winning" or "progressing" at "Civilization III."

I'll tell you one thing, though, my skill, such as it is, at "Civilization III" beats the hell out of my attempts to maneuver through "The Sims."

I've killed so many people and burned down so many houses over there I'm not sure the CD will let me enter the neighborhood the next time I try. Gee whiz, I can't even figure out how to get the damn urns with the victims' ashes out of their houses.

I'm left wondering whether there's some kind of particular personality profile possessed by those who grasp these games more quickly than others. Am I just not mentally wired for this form of entertainment? Is my situation hopeless? Should I just give up? Or do I need a tutorial, some kind of guidebook? Or perhaps some wunderkind -- or more likely, your typical 12-year-old -- could teach me the obvious elements of strategy for both games?

I'm getting desperate.