faster multiplayer games?

[bvanevery]

What do people have to do to get multiplayer games to go "faster" ?  I don't know how fast... I have very little experience with multiplayer.  Once upon a time a friend of mine and I played 2 person multiplayer, with a LAN setup.  We never finished games.  We'd get started, we might barely make contact with each other, then real life would intervene.  I find SMAC and Civ games in general way too long to even consider multiplayer, it's hard enough to get the things done in single player.  The vast majority of my games in the past 2 years have ended by me getting bored at 4 AM and quitting.  I just look at the game and say, this isn't even worth bothering with anymore.  I would think that waiting on other people in multiplayer would be incredibly boring.