A new era for the iconic Sid Meier's Civilization franchise dawns with the upcoming release of Civilization VII (Civ 7), ushering in changes in how you lead and develop your civilizations.
Civ 7 Changes How Leaders and Civs Work Hand in Hand
Leaders No Longer Limited to Respective Country and Players Can Create Completely New Stories
Among the changes coming to Civilization 7, the latest installment of the Sid Meier turn-based strategy franchise, Civ players will now be able to choose leaders for the first time in the franchise's history. This will be a new era of the series "giving you the freedom to create all-new strategies by mixing and matching gameplay bonuses," 2K and developer Firaxis said.
Mixing and matching historical leaders and civilizations will allow players to create their own stories, as well as allow them to flexibly switch up and put their strategies to action as they see fit. Moreover, each leader in Civ 7 has their own Unique Ability that can be further improved using customizable attributes earned through gameplay. Each leader also possess Attributes that can improve their set of skills.
Civ 7 will feature "an unprecedented level of depth for how you choose to build your empire," according to the game's team. Throughout their gameplay experience, players can expect to continually discover different combinations for each leader's Unique Ability and each civilization's "Unique" elements such as its Unique Trait, Unique Infrastructure, Unique Military and Civilian Units, and more.
"We’ve known for a long time that our community has wanted a ‘build my own civilization’ tool kit," creative director Ed Beach said, per a report by news site The Verge. He further shared that this feature was a priority for the franchise's latest installment, but that developing this feature was not feasible for the previous Civ games due to issues with game balance, like the difficulty and rewards system, that could affect players' experience with the game. "If we make all the leaders balance with each other and all the civs balance with each other, then mixing and matching will work."
Civ 7 also has a system that’s "listening to events that are happening in the game world," Beach said in addition. "And it has multiple thousands of little stories that can come out of the game because something has triggered." According to the hands-on demo report by The Verge, each decision you make are being kept track of, along with your chosen Legacy Paths. These paths are a series of objectives players complete, which are categorized as Science, Military, Culture, and Economy, during a single game's playable chapters, called as "Age" in the game.
It is important to note, however, that the leader "remains the same for the entire match," for both gameplay and narrative purposes. "For multi-Age campaigns, your leader will always stay the same, even as you choose new civilizations for each Age Transition," Firaxis said. "Having leaders in a match stay consistent across Ages helps bring a sense of 'who' you're playing as or against." As you move on to the next chapter of history, you get to pick a new civ to lead based on the choices you've made.
Additionally, Civ 7 is expected to have the "most diverse rosters yet" throughout the franchise's history. The game will feature a variety of historical figures "from traditional heads of state known for their militaristic might or political prowess, to visionary leaders who made everlasting impacts in philosophy, science, human rights, and more." More details about leaders' Attributes are expected to be shared in the future, along with deep-dives on the leaders themselves and their corresponding Unique Abilities.
Civ 7 Partners with the Shawnee Tribe for Portrayal of the Culture and Chief Tecumseh
One of the new leaders introduced in Civ 7 is Tecumseh, a chief of the Shawnee Tribe, a federally-recognized Native American Indian tribe based in the state of Oklahoma. Together with his brother Tenskwatawa, Tecumseh spread a message of unity and resistance among indigenous people during the westward colony expansion of early USA in the 17th and 18th centuries.
To better capture an authentic representation of the Shawnee Tibe and its chief in Civ 7, the developers reached out to the current Shawnee Tribe chief, Benjamin "Ben" Barnes. "For us, it’s really about a cultural expression of cultural hegemony," Barnes said in an interview. For the Shawnee chief, it is also an opportunity for the tribe to be represented and celebrated in popular culture. "Why not us? Why not? Of course we should be in a video game title. Of course we should see ourselves reflected in every media," Barnes added. "So we took advantage of the opportunity to make our star shine."
Civilization series founder Sid Meier and other studio executives have acknowledged past mistakes in the game franchise’s portrayal of history and its peoples, including its treatment and use of Indigenous groups and colonization. "We never realized people would take it as seriously as they do," Meier said. "We always kind of felt, ‘Here’s a way that you can change history.’ Maybe we can make Stalin a good guy. But that might have been stretching things a little too far," adding that they have "learned a lot as time went on."
This has led to a deeper reevaluation of the game's design, as well as its collaboration and partnership with the Shawnee Tribe to "make sure it’s an authentic, sincere recreation" of the Shawnee Tribe's culture, game producer Andrew Frederiksen said. "Firaxis was asking questions about language we never would have thought to ask," Barnes shared in a conversation during the opening of a new language education center.
If you're interested in reading further about Civ 7 and more, check out our related articles linked at the section below!
Source:
Civilization 7 lets you mix and match history — and it’s a blast
Civilization 7 makers work with Shawnee to bring sincere representation of the tribe to the game
Choosing leaders and civilizations in Civilization VII
The Shawnee Tribe website
