Civilization 7 is a blast to play.
The shakeup to age progression makes each game feel a lot less heavy.
The new military units make waging war a lot less tedious.
A look at one of my settlements in Civilization 7.
The newfound importance of map control adds another element to your overall strategy.
And the ability to mix and match leaders with civilizations opens up more strategies than ever.
Civilization VII
Civilization VII is a turn-based 4X strategy game expected to launch on February 11, 2025.
A look at one of my settlements in Civilization 7.
It’s now available to preorder on all major platforms.
I played for about 50 hours on the pre-release patch and had a couple of crashes.
The 1.01 patch hasn’t crashed yet in eight hours.
Landing a settlement here makes sense in terms of securing special resources in the Exploration Age.
Civilization 7’s visual tone sits somewhere between the grounded Civ 5 and the bubbly Civ 6.
Civilization 7’s visual tone sits somewhere between the grounded Civ 5 and the bubbly Civ 6.
Add some wonders and fortified walls, and you have a city bound to attract attention.
Some graphics settings available in Civ 7.
Music changes based on your chosen civ and the age in which you’re operating.
Antiquity Age music is generally basic, and Exploration Age symphonies highlight the progress you’ve made.
Researched a new tech or civic?
The screen you see when an Age ends in Civ 7.
You’ll hear an apropos quote.
There are some pleasant surprises, including a snippet from Thomas Pynchon in Christie’s calming tone.
Aside from some crowded menus on the 7.4-inch display, the game feels good in between the hands.
Policies allow you to roughly steer your civ through the random crisis.
Civ 7 makes some significant changes compared to its predecessors, and some may be divisive among Civ purists.
From a more casual viewpoint, a lot of the concern is overblown.
Many of Civilization 7’s new mechanics were built around player feedback from the older siblings.
Cities take shape organically as you improve tiles.
For example, developers felt that too many games never reached an ultimate conclusion.
Certain actions performed by any player during the age push the ever-present age timer forward.
When it reaches 100%, the age or the game ends.
Nuking the opponent who’s been harassing you for most of the game always feels good.
Around the 75% mark, a randomized crisis begins.
Civilization 7 is much easier to set down upon reaching the age’s end rather than some arbitrary point.
I know this change will also benefit multiplayer games with friends.
A victory through Science requires you complete specific goals in each age.
Deciding where to end the game during a limited hangout is a lot easier than before.
This is called “overbuilding,” and it’s a method to keep urban sprawl in check.
Don’t have a resource that you desperately need?
A look at planned post-launch content for Civ 7.
Time to take it with commercial savvy or by military force.
They can benefit everything from happiness to culture to military production.
Most notably, Commanders have up to six slots in which you could assign other military units.
In previous Civ games, this would have meant extreme micromanagement and clogged tiles.
Geography and positioning play an important role in Civilization 7.
Commanders each have a set of skill trees.
You can buy power-ups for your civ at the start of Exploration and Modern Ages.
Geography and positioning play an important role in Civilization 7.
So important, in fact, that the devs removed the Scout’s auto-move toggle present in Civ 6.
While the game does away with some of the more tedious parts builders, ungrouped military units, etc.
it adds more management where it matters most.
I played 15 hours for this?!
It just … ends with a “Defeat” page.
you could see your own progress in the defeat, but it doesn’t even tell you who won.
I thought this might be a bug with a pre-release build, but it continues in the 1.01 patch.
I also don’t exactly know what the right strategy is concerning research.
Messing around with leaders and civs has revealed some interesting strategic combinations, even if not historically accurate.
Do I really care if Confucius-led Greece becomes Spain becomes America?
It’s a video game.
Each civilization’s strengths and weaknesses apply no matter your leader’s avatar.
Something I wasn’t expecting is the game not having a true “Information Age.”
I want to wage cyberwarfare!
I want bullet trains connecting my cities.
And I want to navigate the perils of life in the 21st century.
Civ 7 doesn’t feel as complete without a post-modern era.
However, Civ 5 and Civ 6 had rather boring post-modern eras that were largely expanded via numerous DLCs.
Let’s talk about content, DLCs, and prices.
The second DLC, calledRight to Rule, is expected sometime between April and September 2025.
It adds the same content combo as the first DLC.
To secure both of the announced DLCs, you gotta buy the Civ 7 Founders Edition.
It goes for a whopping $130 USD or $167 CAD(!).
Civilization 7’s base game is enormous.
Civilization 7’s base game is enormous.
There are 20 leaders right off the hop, with 30 civilizations spread out over the three ages.
Compared to Civ 6 at launch, Civ 7 has more leaders, more civs, and more wonders.
It also has more unique units, buildings, districts, and improvements.
Yes, I’m recommending it to my gamer pals who have played past Civ titles.
There’s more than enough content available in the base game for hundreds of hours of playtime.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to world domination.
Civilization VII is a turn-based 4X strategy game launching on February 11, 2025.
It’s now available to preorder on all major platforms.
