Firaxis has officially revealed Sid Meier's Civilization 7 is currently in development, and fans of the series could not be more excited for what studio has in store. No gameplay or screenshots have been shown off, and a release window has not been announced yet. However, that has not stopped Sid Meier's Civilization 7 from becoming hotly anticipated within the community, and hopefully the eight-year wait is worth it.
Firaxis tends to try to redefine the series with each entry. Every Sid Meier's Civilization shares a similar core concept, but they are often quite different from each other. The studio likes to ensure that each new title is made up of a third of existing features, a third of improvements from previous Civilization games, and a third of new features. This approach is unlikely to change with Sid Meier's Civilization 7, and that means a slew of changes is on the horizon. No one quite knows what to expect, but if it gets certain things right it will surely be a treat for players.
More Engaging Victories
One of the biggest things that Sid Meier's Civilization 7 needs to get right is its victories. The aim of each game is to beat the rest of the world, and there are multiple ways to achieve victory. Civilization 6 offers players six different ways to win that all require vastly different strategies. This gives them many options for how they approach each game, but most of these victories feel pretty boring to play.
Firaxis will likely take a long look at its victories for Sid Meier's Civilization 7. The studio will rework some of them like it always does, and hopefully it makes every victory as engaging as Science or Domination. It needs to give players more flexibility in how they attempt to gain these victories, and it has to make these victories feel like they are worth the effort. More engaging Civilization victories will lead to an overall better gameplay experience and maybe give players a reason to finally pursue some of the less popular types.
A Stronger Diplomacy System
Diplomacy plays a major part of the Sid Meier's Civilization series, but it does not feel as strong as it could be. Sid Meier's Civilization 6's diplomacy is lackluster when compared to other strategy games. Most diplomatic relations are done via a simple trade screen where they can trade goods or sign pacts. A relationship bar will increase or decrease based on choices that the player makes, and each leader has a certain agenda that it wants other civs to adhere to. While this may sound like a lot, the system feels pretty underdeveloped.
Sid Meier's Civilization 7 needs to expand the diplomatic options and make it more engaging for the player. There needs to be more dynamic agendas, more things that civs can offer each other, alliances should feel more involved, and the World Congress needs to feel more lifelike. Diplomacy should be one of the strongest aspects of the game, but right now it feels like one of its weakest. Civilization 7 is Firaxis' chance to finally get it right, and the brand will be better for it.
More Advanced AI Mechanics
Players must constantly work alongside or against AI civilizations, but these AI civs are not particularly advanced. Each leader in Sid Meier's Civilization 6 has a particular agenda that guides it through the world, and players that do not follow that agenda quickly become the bad guy. Civs will also dislike other civs that follow different religions, reject deals, have different governments, harm City-States, or are warmongers. The relationships feel like they are simply boxes that need to be checked, and the AI do not tend to play like a player.
There does not seem to be a lot of AI self-preservation as they will pick fights with people they cannot beat or will spam useless units in their pursuit of something. It can also be fairly easy to manipulate these relationships, and it is not too hard for veteran players to work around the AI. They just do not seem particularly advanced and often make nonsensical decisions guided by their one-note agendas. Civilization 7 needs to make them feel lifelike and give them more mechanics so that they pose a significant challenge to even the most experienced of players.
Sid Meier's Civilization 7 is currently in development.