The turning of a new era is always met with a mix of excitement and trepidation, especially when it comes to beloved franchises. With Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, the question isn’t whether it’s a good game – it’s a Civilization game, after all – but whether it innovates enough to justify the purchase. Civ VII is a compelling entry, but it simply plays it a little too safe for its own good. It refines and polishes existing systems, introduces some intriguing new ideas, but ultimately falls short of the revolutionary leap some might have hoped for.
Editor’s Note: Reviewed up until Patch #3 (version 1.0.1)
The distance between Civilization games has been growing with each entry, as the last full release was nine years ago now. I got my start with this series with Civilization IV, and have been playing since. The core gameplay loop – settling cities, researching technologies, building units, and interacting with other civilizations – remains as addictive as ever. The “one more turn” syndrome is in full effect, and I often found myself losing hours to the game without even realizing it. The game includes features there were once expansions like the inclusion of weather and natural disasters as core systems to react to.
There are some oddities, though. One will affect a small portion, but it’s missing multiplayer hot seat, a core component of the game ever since it was released. Leaders can now be different than the civilization they would historically belong to, meaning you can have Benjamin Franklin leading the Egyptians – weird. Perhaps the strangest is the game now ends in the modern age. There are now only three ages: Antiquity, Discovery & Modern Age. And between them, there’s a soft reset with the start of a new age to give you chances to redeem your civilization, but this also creates a disconnect in your progression that it doesn’t feel like prior advancements really carry over into the new age. The path to victory is still: economic, military, cultural, and science.
Tech trees are streamlined this time around, so returning players will see this as too simplified, but new players can grasp the concepts a bit better. And by ending in the modern era, science is least viable due to late game advancements like the “space race” being something to drive players towards a finish line that meant something.
Civilization VII introduces crises, these are turning points that occur when any civilization has entered the next age. And depending on where you are at this time, can make or break a civilization. Ones who are having trouble can be an opportunity for you to help them, or hurt them to take advantage of their predicament. It’s an interesting concept that keeps all civilizations from outpacing the others.
Another area where Civ VII shines is its expanded city management. Now you can settle towns, which are smaller than cities as you accrue the strength to convert them into their final form. Additionally, you no longer build workers to improve on cities, this happens with adding districts within cities. The new “specialization” system allows you to focus your cities on specific areas, such as science, culture, or production, leading to more diverse and specialized empires. This adds a satisfying layer of strategic depth to city building and makes each city feel unique, while still driving towards your goals.
One of the most notable additions in Civ VII is the revamped diplomacy system. While previous Civ games often felt like a series of predictable interactions, Civ VII introduces more nuanced AI personalities and agendas. Leaders now have more complex motivations, and building relationships feels more organic. Forming alliances and trade agreements requires careful consideration of each leader’s individual traits, making diplomacy a more engaging and strategic element. Civilizations are better aware of your actions, and will remember things far longer, meaning the path to mending fences takes a bit more time than before. Though the portrait screen when meeting new or talking with other civilizations looks like a Mortal Kombat face-off screen.
Another minor gripe is the lack of significant changes to the combat system. While the unit balance has been tweaked and some new units have been added, the core combat mechanics remain largely unchanged. The game instead introduces commanders, who can scoop up nearby units and head towards battle to unpack them for deploying in and around an enemy’s main city. During battles, there’s better animations to watch things unfold and see how you’re doing in the overall scheme of things.
One particular area where Civ VII could have done more is in its handling of late-game mechanics. As you approach the modern era, the game can often feel like a slog, with turns taking longer and the map becoming cluttered with units and cities. While the new civics and technologies offer some interesting late-game options, they don’t fully address the core issue of late-game bloat. I often found myself losing interest in games as they dragged on, opting to start a new game rather than finish the current one. In the times I’ve won, they are wholly unceremonious, quickly splashing a “VICTORY” on-screen by way of economic or otherwise, and then dumping you to the main menu.
Right off the bat, Civ VII is a visual treat. The world is vibrant, dense, and detailed, with each civilization’s unique architecture and units popping off the screen. The art style, while a clear return to the Civ V style of character and world art that was so popular. Even zoomed out, the map is a joy to behold, with distinct biomes and terrain features that genuinely impact gameplay. The UI looks unfinished, with its black marble and gold display, and some menu items hidden for the sake of minimalism, is not the best. Thankfully the visual smorgasbord makes up for it. This game also runs incredibly well, even in the late game I was maintaining around 125-140fps.
My PC Specs:
– Microsoft Windows 11 Pro
– Intel Core i9 13900K @ 5.8GHz
– ASUS ROG RYUJIN II 360 ARGB AIO Liquid CPU Cooler
– G.SKILL TRIDENT Z5 6000MHZ 64GB (32×2) DDR5 RAM
– ASUS ROG Strix GeForce RTX 4080 16GB GDDR6X
– WD_BLACK SN850X M.2 (4 TB)
– LG UltraGear 34GP950B-G (21:9 Ultrawide @ 3440×1440)
Ultimately, Civilization VII feels like a safe bet. It’s a game where the additions are best for new players, and there’s not much new that returning players would care about. A lot of the changes feel like they exist simply for the sake of changing things up. Firaxis is aware that there are issues with the game, and successive patches have improved already since launch. Sid Meier’s Civilization VII introduces some interesting new ideas, streamlines the tech tree, and gives more control to city settlement and growth. It pushes the boundaries of the genre make it a refinement, not a revolution. In time this can be a great game, but for now, Sid Meier’s Civilization VII is simply okay.
A Steam code for the Founder’s Edition was provided by 2K for review purposes
