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Difficulty levels and strategy games go hand in hand as franchises look to acclimate their player bases with the unique requirements needed to overcome the AI player, from the easiest to the hardest. Playing with the same stakes where gamers can predict the computer's moves doesn't bode well for a title's continuity and replay value, so the best in the business shake things up with their difficulty modes. Sid Meier's Civilization series has persevered from the early days of the 90s for its expertise in keeping its fans entertained with different experiences through its varied modes, and despite the stellar reception of Civilization 6, the franchise could use an injection of flair in its difficulty levels to distinguish Civilization 7 from its predecessors.

Civilization 6 was arguably one of the franchise's best installments, adding more layers of depth to Civilization 5's fairly straightforward gameplay mechanics. Strategy games have to toe a thin line of complexity, maintaining a balance of relatively smooth learning curves and just enough detail to be challenging -- and the series did an excellent job with its layered UIs and unique victory conditions in Civ 6. However, there's always room for improvement, and a source of discussion in the Civilization fan base is the difficulty tiers. The last two installments have featured the same levels with a few improvements around the edges, but Firaxis needs to address its AI system for Civilization 7 to spread its wings and fly.



Civilization 6's AI Could Use Some Tweaks
world leaders for the leader pass
Civilization 6, like most strategy games on the market at the time, made life harder for players as they climbed the rungs of the difficulty ladder, but that might not be enough for Civilization 7. Discussions in the fan base point to dissatisfaction with the AI system's unrealistic choices, and plugging the glaring holes in Civilization 6's gameplay is essential to Civ 7's success. Civilization 6's AI isn't really different from its lowest Settler tier to the ultimate Deity difficulty. The conditions surrounding the gameplay simply get tougher and limit players' room for error.

At the Settler level, the AI gets a minor debuff in combat while players get a +3 bonus, permitting easier victories -- as is expected for the beginner mode. Switching to the Prince level, players and the AI are pretty much on equal footing, but it's at the higher tiers that Civilization 6's weaknesses appear. In the Emperor mode, for instance, trades essentially become impossible due to unreasonable demands, and unjustified warmonger penalties are the norm. With the Diplomacy victory condition hinging on avoiding war, forming alliances, and being helpful with trades, the AI system presents a blockade on one of Civilization's core mechanisms.

The constant unfriendly attitude from the AI, most times without justification, doesn't allow for premium gameplay. Instead of almost blatantly trying to cheat the player, Civilization 7 could employ a more nuanced negotiation system where both parties make sensible compromises. While the Emperor's negatives are manageable with a few tricks, the Immortality and Deity modes need the most work. At extreme difficulty levels, games tend to favor the AI and put players at a massive disadvantage. Continuing the trend, Civilization 6 boosts its AI in the Immortality and Deity tiers with enormous bonuses, but ironically, its system lacks a clear strategy to utilize these benefits well.

The system's strengths lie in the overpowered nature of its troops and a significant technology lead in the Deity mode, so it can make bad choices throughout and still easily defeat players' careful planning. This dynamic is counterintuitive for a strategy game, and Firaxis would do well to level the playing field and employ a read-and-react approach to its AI system in Civilization 7. The same rules that apply to players should hinder the AI, instead of letting the system place its cities anywhere and build wonders twice as fast to gain complementary bonuses. Civilization 6's AI system's strategic planning is almost nonexistent, and Civilization 7 needs a reworked system to thrive.

Civilization 7 is in development.