Civ 7: Experts Should Still Use the Tutorial

Firaxis Games' creative director, Ed Beach, advises even seasoned Civilization players to utilize the tutorial for their first full Civilization VII campaign. In a Steam post, he highlights the game's significant departures from previous iterations, particularly the new Ages system (Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern). Each Age concludes with an Age Transition, where players choose a new civilization, retain Legacies, and witness a world evolution—a unique feature in the series. A full campaign encompasses all three Ages.

Beach explains the choice of a Small map size as the default, acknowledging veteran players' preference for larger maps. However, he argues that the smaller scale, with a manageable number of nearby empires, provides a smoother learning curve for newcomers navigating the new Diplomacy system and ocean exploration crucial to the Exploration Age. He also recommends the Continents Plus map type for easier introduction to naval exploration.

The tutorial, automatically enabled upon launching the game, offers timely tips and explanations for new mechanics. Beach strongly urges even experienced players to use the tutorial for their initial full campaign, emphasizing the significant system revisions. The game features four Advisors, each guiding players through specific gameplay aspects. Beach suggests focusing on one Advisor at a time to avoid information overload. Even after mastering the core mechanics, he recommends switching to the "Only Warnings" setting, which alerts players to potential setbacks—a practice even the Firaxis development team employs.

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