Civilization 7 is a turn-based strategy game about managing massive civilizations with many settlements. The mechanics of the new game aren't drastically different, but there are enough little things featured in the new title that it will definitely feel like a new game.
Civ 7 takes on a new approach when it comes to managing settlements. Instead of directly creating cities, players will start off with towns (other than their starting city). Towns differ from cities in the sense that they can't produce anything, as all of their production is converted into gold. After these towns grow a little, they can specialize into different areas, becoming something like colonies for the player to export all of their products to cities. This means that the distance between these towns and cities plays a crucial role when players are trying to build a sustainable empire in Civilization 7.
Civilization 7: 10 Best Beginner Tips
These ten Civ 7 tips will help beginners and experienced Civ veterans alike understand the new game's complex and overhauled mechanics.
Does Distance Between Settlements Matter In Civ 7?
The short answer is yes. The long answer is that it's a little complicated. Essentially, distance isn't the limiting factor when it comes to creating settlements; it's actually connectivity.
How Long is Civ 7? (Civilization VII Campaign Length)
A standard Civ 7 campaign will last around twelve hours, although players can speed things up considerably by tinkering with the game settings.
When players put down a new settlement further than 8–10 tiles from their other settlements, they need to make a road connection between them, or else the new settlement won't be able to trade food and resources. Since the main reason for creating new settlements in Civ 7 is to use their resources, this means that having a settlement cut off from the network is almost useless unless you manage to connect it afterward or grow it into a city.
How To Connect Settlements In Civ 7
The main method of connecting settlements in Civ 7 is through the use of roads. You'll only need roads if your settlement isn't within trading range of your other settlements (i.e., within 8–10 tiles). If they are outside that range, then you'll need to use a merchant to create a road in order to connect the new settlement with the others.
Merchants are civilian units that can be produced after the player gets the Code of Laws Civic in Antiquity, and Economics in Exploration. Once the associated civic is unlocked, players can train a merchant (or specialized version of it) in any of their cities or towns.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 77%
- Released
- February 11, 2025
- ESRB
- Everyone 10+ // Alcohol and Tobacco Reference, Mild Language, Mild Violence, Suggestive Themes
- Developer(s)
- Firaxis Games
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
WHERE TO PLAY
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC
- Genre(s)
- Grand Strategy, Turn-Based Strategy, 4X
