Civilization 7 Dev Recommends Even Experts Stick With the Tutorial for Their First Full Campaign — Here’s Why

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 departure from previous iterations, emphasizing the introduction of a new Ages system (Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern) and its impact on gameplay. Each Age transition involves selecting a new civilization, retaining legacies, and witnessing world evolution – a unique feature in the series.

Beach explains the rationale behind the default "Small" map size, stating that it facilitates learning the intricacies of Civ 7, particularly the new Diplomacy system. Managing diplomatic relations with a limited number of opponents simplifies the process of understanding Diplomatic Influence. He also recommends the "Continents Plus" map type, citing its ease of access to ocean exploration, a crucial element of the Exploration Age.

The tutorial is automatically enabled for first-time players and is strongly recommended for veterans as well, especially for a complete three-Age campaign. The game features four Advisors, each guiding players through specific game mechanics. Beach suggests focusing on one Advisor at a time to avoid information overload. Even after mastering the core mechanics, he advocates for the "Only Warnings" setting, which alerts players to potential setbacks – a practice even the Firaxis development team employs.

Firaxis recently revealed Civilization 7's post-launch content roadmap during a livestream event (note: Great Britain is DLC). Civilization 7 launches on PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S on February 11th, with Deluxe Edition access beginning February 6th.