Highlights

  • Civilization 6's AI lacks finesse, with issues such as unreasonable voting topics and illogical decision-making. Civilization 7 needs a more logical computer player.
  • The loyalty mechanic in Civilization 6 poses problems for players, leading to constant city revolts and the need to raze cities.
  • Micromanagement aspects in Civilization 6, such as road-building and era score, intrude on the overall gameplay. Civilization 7 should allow players to better define their own goals.

It's hard to talk about strategy without giving Sid Meier's Civilization its flowers, as the franchise has been at the forefront of the turn-based 4X Strategy scene since it burst on the scene in the early 90s. The latest iteration, Civilization 6, has had a solid post-launch run since its 2016 debut, giving gamers new content through Leader Packs and other updates. With Firaxis confirming Civilization 7's development last year, it's worth asking what the developer can do better than ever in the upcoming game. While Civilization 6 has had a stellar performance, there's always room for improvement, and there are certain mechanics that could use a revamp for Civilization 7 to hit its predecessor's lofty heights.

Civilization 6 is regarded as one of the best installments in the franchise due to its variety of features and added depth in terms of Victory Conditions. There have been several changes to the game's elements since launch, some for the better and others not as much. With Civilization 7 on the horizon, though still missing an official release date, Firaxis needs to review functions to determine what stays the same or needs retooling to appear in the new game. Civilization 6 had its fair share of unpopular mechanics, and the developer would need to address a few of them for Civilization 7 to be an instant hit with strategy fans.

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Civilization 7 Might Have to Go Back to the Drawing Board

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Civilization 7's AI Needs to Get Smarter

While Civilization 6 might be among the most advanced strategy games on the market, most avid players would agree that AI lacks finesse. Some of its flaws can be masked in the Immortal and Deity modes, but hanging around the King category reveals some areas the AI system is lacking. For starters, the World Congress has the reputation as a problematic feature due to unreasonable and sometimes irrelevant voting topics. For example, luxury resources can be difficult to harness, and when players have found a way to benefit from them, the World Congress votes to ban said materials.

It's one thing if an enemy from a previous age is behind the crippling motion, but agreements from other nations that haven't even met the player yet can be frustrating. Similarly, civilizations on the other side of the planet can bear grudges ages into the future for a player responding to attacks from a neighboring non-ally. Coupled with the gimmick of the AI threatening players for fun and the lack of retaliatory options, it makes for clunky gameplay. The AI's decision-making can sometimes be puzzling, to say the least, and Civilization 7's AI needs to present a more logical computer player.

Loyalty and Micromanaging Need Reworks

Another bone of contention often mentioned in Civilization's fan base is the loyalty mechanic. While loyalty was probably engineered to check military aggression and aid Diplomacy, its implementation poses more problems than it solves for players. Cities revolt after their initial capture and flip back to their previous nation even when surrounded by enemy troops and having a Governor installed. To combat this incessant flipping, players usually raze Civilization cities to the ground, which incurs diplomacy penalties and defeats the mechanic's perceived purpose.

Civilization 6 has also received criticism for some of its micromanagement aspects, with trivial mechanics like road-building and era score. Roads can't be auto-built by designated builders, and players often have to send valuable traders to accomplish these mundane tasks. For a game as large-scale as Civilization 6, gamers have so many other areas of interest and concentration, and this aspect of micromanagement intrudes unpleasantly on the overall gameplay. Similarly, era score is arguably an outdated concept that takes away from specialized playstyles. Civilization 7 needs to allow players to define what they want out of the game instead of placing arbitrary goals to be met. Some of these revamps would go a long way to improving Civilization 7's outlook on the market.