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Yours portly has finally dived back into Civilization VII after almost three months away from the game.  The hiatus was not due to disinterest, but rather to the overwhelming busyness of the end of the school year.  Longtime players of Civ games—or any other franchise or game in which picking up after an extended break is difficult—will understand how the thought of returning to a half-finished save file is challenging, as you’ve likely forgotten what you were doing and what your goals were.

That made it difficult to return to my last save file, but when I play Civ VII, I need hours of uninterrupted time to lose myself in the game.  I’ve never been good at playing for an hour or two and then heading to bed.  I need to know I have three or four hours to dedicate to the game, and that my plate is clear of any obligations or tasks.

Naturally, that state of limitless free time is rare for yours portly, except for two months every year:  June and July.  Yes, I’m keeping busy with writing blog posts, teaching lessons, practicing piano, filming silly YouTube shorts, planning a wedding, etc.; but after dinnertime, I’ve got hours of gaming goodness ahead of me.

That’s all to say that, after a few weeks of dipping into Colonization, I’m back to Civilization VII.  The game has had a number of updates (with version 1.2.2 coming soon, promising massive map sizes and other improvements), and they have really improved the gameplay experience.  It’s still not perfect, but the game is getting better.

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