Firaxis Games' creative director, Ed Beach, urges even seasoned Civilization players to utilize the tutorial for their initial Civilization 7 campaign. His Steam post highlights the game's significant departures from previous iterations, emphasizing the need for guidance.
Civilization 7 introduces a novel Ages system (Antiquity, Exploration, Modern), drastically altering gameplay. Each Age transition involves selecting a new civilization, retaining legacies, and witnessing world evolution—a unique feature in the series.
Beach explains the default "Small" map size, suggesting it's ideal for learning the ropes. The reduced number of empires simplifies diplomacy and ocean exploration, crucial aspects of the Exploration Age. He recommends the "Continents Plus" map type for a smoother introduction to naval exploration.
The tutorial, automatically enabled on the first playthrough, provides timely tips and explanations. Beach strongly advises veterans to keep it active for their first full campaign, despite initial reluctance. The game features four advisors, each offering guided quests; Beach suggests focusing on one at a time.
Even after mastering core mechanics, Beach recommends switching to the "Only Warnings" setting. This allows advisors to alert players to potential setbacks, a practice even the Firaxis development team employs.
Firaxis also revealed Civilization 7's post-launch content roadmap during a livestream, noting that Great Britain will be released as DLC. Civilization 7 launches on PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on February 11th, with early access on February 6th for the Deluxe Edition.
