Zelnick Excited About Civilization 7 Despite High Play Rates of Civ 6 and 5 on Steam

The launch of *Civilization 7* on Steam has been rocky, to say the least. Since its debut in February, the strategy game sequel has struggled to attract players on Valve's platform. With a 'mixed' reaction from Steam users and fewer players than both *Civilization 6* and the 15-year-old *Civilization 5*, it's clear that the game is facing challenges on PC, the core platform for the franchise.

While the Steam performance is concerning, it's worth noting that *Civilization 7* also launched on PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch. An upcoming version for the Nintendo Switch 2, utilizing the new Joy-Con mouse controls, is set to release soon. However, the heart of the Civilization series lies with PC gamers, and it's here where *Civ 7* is struggling the most.

Despite these challenges, Strauss Zelnick, CEO of Take-Two, the parent company of developer Firaxis, expressed optimism in an interview with IGN ahead of the company's latest financial results. "I'm thrilled with *Civ 7* so far," Zelnick stated. He acknowledged initial issues but praised the efforts of the Firaxis team in addressing them, expressing confidence that further improvements will lead to a successful title.

Zelnick highlighted the long sales cycle typical of the Civilization franchise, suggesting that *Civ 7* will follow this pattern. "The history of all the Civilization releases is that initially some of the changes that we make cause consternation among our consumers because they love the Civilization franchise so much," he explained. He believes that over time, players will recognize the improvements and the game will perform well.

At launch, players pointed out issues with the user interface, a lack of map variety, and the absence of expected features. Zelnick's comments about the initial nervousness of hardcore Civ players likely refer to significant changes introduced in *Civ 7*, such as the new Age Transition system. This system involves progressing through three Ages—Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern—and choosing a new civilization and retaining Legacies during each transition, a feature unique to *Civ 7*.

Take-Two has yet to release specific sales figures for *Civilization 7*, but the company is actively seeking to expand the game's audience. This includes the recent launch of *Civilization 7 VR* for Meta Quest 3 and 3S, and the upcoming port for the Nintendo Switch 2.