Last week I wrote briefly about my first game of Civilization VII, which was still in process.  At the time, I was in the Exploration Age, playing as Spain with Benjamin Franklin.  My plan initially was to play as the United States of America in the Modern Age, but then I unlocked Siam.

While the USA was clearly the more fleshed-out Modern civ, the incongruity of going from ancient Rome to Middle Ages Spain to modern Siam was too tempting—and with Benjamin Franklin as the leader, it just seemed like a total blast.  Indeed, it was:  Siam was fun to play, especially their elephant-mounted ranged riflemen.

Siam’s whole conceit is to cultivate international influence, so I found myself edging towards the Economic Victory.  The idea is that you build enough railroad depots and ship enough goods to accumulate 500 railroad points, at which point the possibility of establishing the World Bank opens.  To open the World Bank, you have to establish a branch office in every foreign capital, which involves spending both money and influence (think of influence as the “currency” of diplomacy).  The cost increases in civilizations that are hostile to you.

I found this victory condition a bit underwhelming.  The Great Banker unit that peddles his Klaus Schwabian influence in the capitals of the world can travel instantly from one capital to the other, so that once he has spawned, it is just a matter of turns until victory, assuming you have the gold and influence banked up.  I more or less did, so it probably took me about twelve turns to achieve the victory once the Banker spawned.

Still, it was fun to see how the game ended, and I stayed up way too late last Thursday night finishing the game.  When I realized how close I was to victory, I made myself see it through to the end, as I knew I wouldn’t get a chance to play again until this week.

I immediately started daydreaming of my game, which I started this past Monday after a long day of travel and chores.  I decided to try the Mississippians, a proto-Native American civilization, and picked the legendary Muslim explorer Ibn Battuta as my leader.  The expansionist focus of the Mississippians paired nicely with Battuta’s focus on exploration, and in the Age of Antiquity, I soon found myself dominating my neighbors, the Khmer and the Greeks (the latter under the leadership of Machiavelli!).  The distant Romans, under Katherine the Great, were friendly.

In the Exploration Age, I decided to try Hawaii.  Hawaii unlocks Meiji Japan in the Modern Age, which I thought might be fun.  However, as soon as my first colony cultivated a wine resource, I was notified that I’d unlocked the French Empire.  I almost picked them in my last game over Siam, so I am definitely going to try them out this time.

I love the civ swapping mechanic in Civilization VII.  It is so fun seeing what kinds of wild combinations can emerge during a playthrough.  And, again, I love the incongruity of going from a Native American civilization to a Polynesian one to a European one in a single playthrough.

Also, I can safely say that, despite its flaws, Civilization VII is the best installment in the franchise so far—and the most radical departure from past games.  More on that soon.

Happy Civving!

—TPP