Highlights
- Civilization 7 has the potential to stand out with new art styles, mechanics, and leaders, especially through its unique government systems.
- Governments in past games have felt stagnant, lacking realism compared to real life structures, but NPCs could change that in Civ 7.
- By introducing NPCs into government systems, Civilization 7 could create a more interactive and immersive gaming experience for players.
While nothing has been officially announced yet, fans everywhere are waiting to see what Sid Meier's Civilization 7 will entail. Just like with every entry before it, the title will likely shake things up with a new art style, new mechanics, new leaders, and so many little additions. And even though the studio may not want to make things too different from what came before, Sid Meier's Civilization 7 has the chance to truly stand out from the crowd, with one of the best ways being via its governments.
For years, the governments in Sid Meier's Civilization have been mostly barebones. They allow players to gain certain benefits while also penalizing them, yet the core feature has never really felt lifelike. However, Firaxis could change all of that if it injected a few NPCs into the system. Not just any NPCs either, but ones that actively work for or against them throughout the experience, making governments a more interactable feature in the process.
Related
Why Civ 7 is the Perfect Time to Greatly Diversify the Civilization Portfolio
With Civilization 7, Firaxis Games can expand the series’ horizons by including new nations and leaders that reflect the franchise’s global fanbase.
7
Civilization 7 Can Truly Shake Up Its Core Government Systems With One Addition
Governments Have Been Mostly Stagnant
Just like in real life, governments have played a major role within the Sid Meier's Civilization series. In Sid Meier's Civilization 6, this system was portrayed as a sort of deck builder mechanic. As players researched new techs and civics, they would often unlock new cards that could be slotted into one of four different sections, with each card giving them a bonus. Depending upon the government they have adopted, they would be given more or less card slots in each section, and as they progressed further into the game, they could unlock new governments that would further expand their capabilities.
This feature helped make governments more interesting, but they were still lacking a bit. In real life, governments are not built merely on policy, and there is far more to them than simple bonuses. Additionally, players would seldom have to edit this screen, especially if they already knew the strongest build for each civilization. So, although it was a step up from past games, the feature still felt a bit lackluster.
Adding New NPCs to the Mix Could Give Civilization Governments a Whole New Feel
Sid Meier's Civilization 7 has the chance to change all of that by stripping away this deck building feature and introduce NPCs instead. These NPCs could form the backbone of the government, with them being appointed to various positions within the civilization. Then, they could automate certain aspects, provide bonuses in other ways, and operate much like a real government person would. To make things even more interesting, Firaxis could make them actually feel real.
These NPCs could not only provide benefits, but they could also have their own personalities that dictate just how they treat their positions of power. While it would be nice if they all worked towards a common goal, Firaxis could give them their own wants and interests that they try to achieve instead. As they pursue said interest, they could also make certain demands of players or attempt to do things that may actively harm the civilization they are supposed to be helping.Just like in real life, it would be up to the player to work around this for the betterment of their country.
Adding these NPCs could help shake up the feature immensely, and if implemented well, may be exactly what the franchise needs. For years, it has felt like Firaxis has failed to fully capture the essence of a government structure. But, if it followed in the footsteps of titles like Stellaris while also injecting a few Sid Meier's Civilization features into it, it might lead to something truly special.
Sid Meier's Civilization VII
Developed by Firaxis and published by 2K, Sid Meier's Civilization 7 is a 4X grand strategy game all about building an empire that can rule the world. The project will be launching in 2025 on both PC and consoles.
- Franchise
- Sid Meier's Civilization
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS4 , PS5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series S , Xbox Series X , Switch
- Released
- 2025-00-00
- Developer(s)
- Firaxis Games
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Video Games
- Sid Meier's Civilization 7
- Civilization 6
Your changes have been saved
Email is sent
Email has already been sent
Please verify your email address.
You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.
Manage Your List
Follow
Followed
Follow with Notifications
Follow
Unfollow
We hope you like the items we recommend and discuss! Game Rant has affiliate and sponsored partnerships, so we receive a share of the revenue from some of your purchases. This won’t affect the price you pay and helps us offer the best product recommendations.