Sid Meier's Civilization VI News

Civ creator warns industry to "focus on gameplay", not monetisation

It's been over five years since the release of Civilization VI, and over 30 years since the first entry in the great 4X game series came out. In a new interview, Civilization's legendary creator Sid Meier warns the game industry to be more focused on gameplay as opposed to monetisation.

Civilization is one of the greatest turn-based strategy games on PC and it hit its 30th anniversary in September last year. To celebrate, the BBC spoke with creator Sid Meier - who's been making games for far longer than that - about how the games industry has changed and what publishers and developers need to be focusing on.

"The real challenge and the real opportunity is keeping our focus on gameplay," Sid Meier says. "When we forget that, and decide it's monetisation or other things that are not gameplay-focused... when we start to forget about making great games and start thinking about games as a vehicle or an opportunity for something else, that's when we stray a little bit further from the path."

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"Two decades' worth" of Civilization games are going cheap right now

The Civilization series has long been a staple of the strategy games scene and, with six major entries and ton of DLC in between, there's a whole lot of it to sink your pearly whites into. If you've been tempted but haven't yet given some of the major Civ games a go, now might be a great time - there's a whole bunch going cheap with a new Humble bundle.

Humble's new Sid Meier's Ultimate Collection bundle offers 21 games and items from across the legendary designer's catalogue. The highest tier - which will set you back $15 / £11.09 and nab you all of the bundle's offerings - includes the latest in the Civ series, Civilization VI, as well as eight expansions and DLC. There's Rise and Fall and Gathering Storm which, between them, add new game systems, civilizations, leaders, and world wonders. Smaller DLC include various scenario and civ packs, with the Vikings, Poland, Australia, Persia and Macedonia, Nubia, and Khmer and Indonesia options in the bundle.

There's additionally a $15 New Frontier Pass coupon, which lets you pick it up at that discounted rate for a limited time. The Civilization III, IV, and V Complete Editions also feature, which each come with their own bunch of extras on top of the base games.

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Get 21 games, including Civilization 6, in the Sid Meier's Ultimate Collection Humble Bundle

Want enough Civilization to keep you playing for the rest of human history? Humble Bundle is currently offering a 'Pay What You Want' deal on Sid Meier's Ultimate Collection, which includes 21 Sid Meier games and expansions...
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XCOM and Civilization devs form a new studio focused on turn-based strategy games

A group of former Firaxis developers has just announced a new studio. Called Bit Reactor, the studio will focus on the same sort of "turn-based tactics" games its founders are known for, with a focus on "high-end production values, riveting storytelling, and innovative design". Bit Reactor already has unannounced games in development.

In a press release, co-founder and CEO Greg Foertsch says that Bit Reactor has "assembled an amazing group of talented, experienced and dedicated game developers to inject rich storytelling, immersive presentation and rock solid game mechanics to give this genre it's rightful time to shine - a golden age of turn-based games is upon us."

Bit Reactor's announcement materials focus heavily on the team's experience on XCOM, but members of the studio have also worked on the likes of Civilization and Elder Scrolls Online. Foertsch himself worked at Firaxis for over two decades, and served as art director from 2005 to 2019 on everything from XCOM and XCOM 2 to numerous games in the Civilization series.

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Six new ways to play Civilization 6

Earlier this year, Civilization VI players bade farewell to the 4X game's New Frontier Pass and its promise of continuous updates. There haven't been any further patches since Firaxis released a sweeping balance pass in April. Without the excitement of new Civ 6 leaders and game modes, nor any certainty around further patch support, veteran players may be running low on ways to keep the fun alive in their favourite strategy game.

Fortunately, there's no right way to Civ (except maybe don't lose). From meme strats to trying to plan out the perfect Panama Canal or generating those disgusting tile yields, there are plenty of ways you can challenge yourself when launching a game of Civ VI. The only limit is your imagination, although even that needs a hand every once in a while, which is where we come in.

As Civ fans await updates on the franchise's future (and dream about what they'd like to see in Civilization 7), there's plenty of time to explore new ways to play and win Civilization VI.

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