In the eight years since Civilization 6 was first released, the 4X genre has changed immensely. Sid Meier’s strategy management series of exploration, expansion, exploitation, and extermination has always dominated – but over the last decade, rivals have risen.
In Civilization parlance, we’ve entered a new era. There’s more viable alternatives to Civilization now than there have ever been – and that puts developer Firaxis in an interesting position going into the rare moment of the introduction of an all-new Civilization. In a first look, it certainly appears as though Firaxis is stepping up to the plate without a shred of complacency.
Civilization 7 is about change. It’s clear that Firaxis has taken a long, hard look at several of its recent contemporary rivals. No Civ tradition was off the table, it seems. This combined with day-one releases on every platform imaginable, not just PC, and a dedication to cross-platform play and progression, has defined the game. It’s forced the team to think differently.