Civ 7 Steam Version Suffers Deluge of Negative Reviews as Advanced Access Releases

Civilization VII's Advanced Access Launch Receives Overwhelmingly Negative Steam Reviews

Civilization VII (Civ 7), launched five days early via Steam's Advanced Access program, has been met with a deluge of negative reviews, resulting in a "Mostly Negative" overall rating. While anticipation was high for the first new Civilization title since 2016's Civ VI, the early access build has fallen short of expectations for many players.

The primary criticisms center around several key areas:

User Interface (UI): The UI is a major point of contention, with numerous players describing it as clunky, unattractive, and inferior to Civ VI's interface. Some have even gone so far as to compare it to a poorly-made mobile game clone. Accusations have been leveled against developer Firaxis Games, suggesting a console-first development approach has resulted in a limited and visually unappealing PC experience.

Maps and Map Customization: Players have voiced significant concerns regarding map selection, limited map size options (only small, medium, and large, compared to Civ VI's five sizes), and a lack of customization features. The lack of detailed information when browsing map types has also drawn criticism.

Resource Mechanics: The new resource system, which assigns resources to cities or empires via strategic management instead of direct tile gathering (as in Civ VI), is another major source of negative feedback. Players argue that the previous system offered greater replayability.

Firaxis Games has acknowledged the negative feedback, particularly concerning the UI, stating that improvements are underway and they are actively reviewing player comments. They also indicated that future updates and expansions will address map-related concerns. The overwhelmingly negative response, however, highlights significant challenges facing Civ 7 before its official release.