These semi-random tech choices in Old World and Ara seem like a band aid. With a sufficiently well-designed game you'd go for different choices of tech anyway depending on the situation.
In Old World you also got the opportunity to take one of those resource cards over a tech which is admittedly interesting.
I was skeptical about this at first in Old World, but now I really like it. Why? Because it still gives you choice, but is more organic. In Civ3, I can zerg rush Cavalry in the Middle Ages and dominate militarily, every game. In Civ4, I can zerg rush a religion and found it first. You can probably do similar things in V and VI, but I've found V's mechanics and VI's art style sufficiently off-putting to not play them much.
In Old World, I still have player agency, but I can't easily game it and be way advanced in one area while entirely ignoring others.
Some prefer the Alpha Centauri model where you can set it so you don't get to choose the next tech researched. I think the semi-random choices is a good compromise between that and the traditional Civ model.
Art style, I agree on stick with realistic if you are going realistic. The leaders shown here are not as bad as in Civ VI. But the faces are way too round - show some wrinkles, especially on the older leaders - and there is hardly any texture to the overcoat that the man with a wig is wearing - not so much of a problem for the suit of armor than Joan of Arc is wearing due to the nature of the garment. I'm less picky about the maps, though I'm curious how they plan to keep it from being too busy, or "all buildings, no forests".
But if it isn't even coming out for another year, I'm mostly on the "too early to care that much" side of the fence. Maybe this game will be a great one, maybe Millenia will be, maybe Firaxis will redeem themselves with Civ VII, or maybe we'll all be playing
Old World next year as well.
