'Civilization VII' Peak Player Counts More Than 50% Less Than 'Civilization VI'
Firaxis’ latest Civilization installment, which released at the beginning of the week, currently has an all-time peak player count more than 50% less than Civilization VI.
SteamDB reported that Civilization VI hit an all-time peak player count of 162,657 when the game released back in October 2016.
As of writing, Civilization VII currently has an all-time peak player count 74,503. It is likely that the game will see that number go up especially when the weekend roll arounds. Most recent releases have seen their peak player counts spike during the weekends.
Nevertheless, after a day of release, the peak is 54% less than Civilization VI.
Not only are the game’s peak numbers down compared to the previous installment, but the game currently has Mixed reviews.
SteamDB currently reports that the game is only receiving 52.4% positive reviews and 47.6% negative reviews.
Here’s what a number of gamers are saying about the game:
Jorgdenhaag wrote, “I've been a Civilization fan since the original CIV and couldn't wait to play CIV VII. Unfortunately... I'm deeply disappointed. The developers clearly poured their hearts into the graphics, but all that detail ironically turns the game into a confusing mess. It doesn't help that they skimped on the UI - no handy maps or tables to guide you, no alerts about what's happening in your cities. You can't even tell at a glance what you're building!”
He continued, “Civilization was always about crafting your strategy both in the details and the big picture. That magic is completely gone. Instead, we're left with what many reviewers rightly call a game that should never have been released in this state - especially not to die-hard fans. Only my love for Civilization stops me from calling it worthless.”
“The religion and trade systems have been stripped to the bone. The game's depth seems to have shifted... but to where exactly? I'm honestly at a loss. Once again, I'm thoroughly disappointed and would advise potential buyers to wait about six months or so before taking the plunge,” he concluded.
vkorobov0 wrote, “After 24 hrs of gameplay, I have seen enough. Too many basic features a missing and so much more... I might come back in a few years.”
dgp returned the game and wrote, “At my age money is not a issue. If the game is good they can charge whatever they like in my opinion. Went into this hoping to put in hundreds hours first week, what a disappointment. With over 3000 hours in Civilization 6 it took me 110 minutes to see that Civilization 7 is a desperate cash grab scheme for an alpha product with no prior testing.”
”Bugs around every corner, placeholder icons, unfinished civilization codex, performance issues abound and a game completely devoid of any soul. Save your money,” he recommended.
Jdlunn619 gave the game a recommended review. He wrote, “I've played every Civilization game in the series (with the exception of the first Civ) and this captures all the addictive qualities of earlier games. The developers clearly put a lot of thought into the new features they added and the ones they streamlined or cleared out.”
“Things that I really appreciate is that each civilization feels much more unique with unique buildings, wonders, and culture research,” he continued. “I like the diplomacy system a lot more in this and feel it is much more coherent on how to keep friends in the 2nd and 3rd act when attacking other civs. The graphics are a big improvement and I think the wonder completion scenes are the best since Civ 2. The music is top notch and will just get better as they expand more cultures into the game. I like how the transition from each act introduces new game concepts and lets others fade into history.”
However, he then added, “Now don't get me wrong the game is by not means perfect and I know some things will get sorted out in the next months and other things are just not design decisions I would make. The AI seems improved slightly from Civ 6, but so far I'm still seeing a lot of haphazard attacking and defending. The ‘crisis’ finishing off each age could use some more challenge and impact on the gameplay. At the time of my review, there's also many things I've found that are incomplete texts, missing graphics, placeholders, hidden hotkeys, and UI annoyances which unfortunately seems to be in every major game at launch these days, but none are at a level at a point where I want to stop playing, alas work is calling and Valentines day next Friday, so one more turn will have to wait until later....”
Nigerian Prince also recommended the game. He wrote, “My first impression is generally positive as the new mechanics make for a fresh experience. However, whoever designed the UI deserves to be tried in The Hague.”
Machine001 wrote, “This is not a Civilization game. This is terrible. I tried to give it a shot but here are my issues:
1. Leaders and civs feels very disjointed. If you like immersion this game is NOT for you.
2. You can just feel the game was built for consoles.
3. Maps are SMALL. Biggest size is STANDARD.
4. You get 3 or 4 options to customize your game.
5. Cannot turn on or off victory conditions.
Positives:
1. The growth building system is actually really cool.
2. The army system is pretty decent.
Overall: Wait for a sale or pass.”
The developers are already addressing a number of the bugs and other issues. They released a 1.0.1 Patch on February 10th after they received feedback from Advanced Access players.
“Today’s 1.0.1 Patch 2 for PC/Mac/Linux/Steam Deck addresses some player feedback received during Advanced Access and is the first in a series of upcoming patches intended to do so. Stay tuned for larger, more substantive updates to come in the future,” they wrote.
What do you make of Civilization VII’s current all-time peak concurrent player counts?
NEXT: Rumor: Blizzard Employee Who Said "Kill Your Local MAGA" Had Official Slack Account Deactivated
Seems like they're sticking to the trajectory of each Civ game being smaller and more dumbed down than the last, but prettier. If you liked Civ 6 better than Civ 5, no reason you shouldn't like 7. Shocked it wasn't released as an iOS/Android exclusive with a CivCoin shop and cows to click to maintain your civilization's dairy production.
This trend has held since the second entry in the series. No reason to expect it to change now.