Like a few other CivFanatics I was able to test the game for a few days before the release thanks to Catoninetales_Amplitude.
disclaimer: I also own the game, this had no influence on this review content...
I was hoping to post this yesterday like everyone else, but I had the time for only one full game the last week, and the default level was too easy and I wasn't able to appreciate the end game as I was dominating every other AI.
So I took the time to start a second game, this time at "Empire" difficulty, but hasn't finished that second run yet, so here are my first impressions based on one run and a half.
First thing, forget what you've learned playing Civilization, this is a very different game and you will have some difficulties to adapt at the beginning, I know I had, and spending some time reading the Humankind Encyclopedia would be a good idea.
I've played Civilization since the first, mostly role-playing, following the "lead a civilization to stand the test of time" motto to the letter.
I've lost that feeling in the franchise with civ5 and civ6, and I was hoping that Humankind could give it back to me.
From those first runs, I'd say it's looking good so far, not perfect, but pretty good.
I had my doubts about the Neolithic Era, but after restarting a few game after a dozen turns, it's a nice change. Sure there is a bit of luck involved, but not more than having a Barbarian scout sending hordes of units on your first city after a few turns in civ6.
Discovering the map around you before choosing your initial culture, choosing the safety of keeping your hunters close together or spread them to cover more ground, finding the best region and position for your first outpost(s), there is enough content to keep that part interesting.
below: the starting location of my second run
The mechanism of regions, outposts, cities is also a nice change, it's in my opinion a good balance between Old World pre-placed city sites and Civilization cities spamming.
You have enough space between cities, but still get to decide where to place the "main plaza" on the map.
Speaking of the map, I love the graphism, and I love the elevation of the terrain. One of the first thought I had when civ6 was released with cliffs on the coast was "but why not cliffs on land ?"
I also like that there are many variation of the terrain texture, civ6 graphisms were pretty good, but lacked such variety.
below: an outpost in the "Virgin Komi" wood, which was worth of a notification during exploration
Another nice touch is the customizable avatar and how your appearance (and your opponents appearance) will change with eras and cultures.
On the other hand, I'm not a fan of the voices, animations and dialogues during diplomacy, so, like for civ6 leaders, I just ignore them.
Diplomacy. Yep, what made me stop playing civ6...
Thankfully Humankind is much better on that side, I've not played enough for a definitive judgement, but the actions (and consequences) make sense, you're facing leaders making decisions, not some caricatural (and sometime schizophrenic) historical figure getting mad because of an arbitrary threshold for number of ships, cities, resources, ...
About cultures, and switching with eras, while I love how your cities keep some graphical elements of the founding culture, I'm still not convinced by the ability to pick any available culture from the pool. That's one of the few element of the game I really hope will be moddable, I'd much prefer to have the ability to separately pick any available traits, and choose from a limited pool the appearance of your civilization/avatar for the next era based on the previous ethnicity.
It's also a bit confusing to follow who's who when your opponents change eras.
below: my capital, a few eras later
Another good point the combat system with limited stacking and unstacking for tactical combat rounds. I also had my doubts on that part, and was expecting to use mostly the auto-resolve option, thinking it would still be better than 1UPT anyway, but in the end I like it, really.
It can get a bit confusing when a lot of units are involved, but it works and is well thought, with battle spanning on multiple turns and possible reinforcements.
below: see the limits of the tactical section of the map in which a battle will take place
I've also liked the dynamism of the smaller factions on the map, with tribe spawning, sometime getting a city, then declining, and the patronage mechanism to allow options like resources trading, hiring mercenaries, and finally the ability to absorb it into your Civilization.
I was playing a "Terra Map" in my second run (yes, that's an option in setting), which allowed me to expand quickly at a moment my Civilization was near the bottom at the fame ranking (so much better from my point of view than arbitrary winning condition BTW) by putting everything in exploration.
I've lost a courageous Cog crew a few tiles from the shore, but they paved the way for the Dutch's Fluyt transporting my troops...
And so I was one of the first to reach the new world, and after absorbing a declining tribe, I used their troops to help me secure multiple regions (and their resources)
below: the lost tribe on a high plateau
A word about resources, I like how "luxuries" effect can stack, but the "strategic" resource seems to be always available in low quantity only, and starting without Iron or Horse is still a pain.
They are relatively easy to get from trading with other civs, but some units require 2 or even 3 units of a strategic resources.
Some stockpiling and supply/healing mechanism would be welcome IMO, but I doubt those kind of change will be easy to mod. We'll see.
Because if you don't know me, modding is what will make the difference in the long run for my implication in the game, and at this time the game's capabilities on that side are still unknown, except for a map builder on release.
So overall, my first impressions are very good, I'm still reserved on the balance for late game, and I'll need more game to confirm if the last era is enjoyable, but I'm confident that if it's not Amplitude will do their best to improve it.
Yes, sorry, this was a relatively short review, but I've got just another turn to play you know.
disclaimer: I also own the game, this had no influence on this review content...
I was hoping to post this yesterday like everyone else, but I had the time for only one full game the last week, and the default level was too easy and I wasn't able to appreciate the end game as I was dominating every other AI.
So I took the time to start a second game, this time at "Empire" difficulty, but hasn't finished that second run yet, so here are my first impressions based on one run and a half.
Spoiler :
First thing, forget what you've learned playing Civilization, this is a very different game and you will have some difficulties to adapt at the beginning, I know I had, and spending some time reading the Humankind Encyclopedia would be a good idea.
I've played Civilization since the first, mostly role-playing, following the "lead a civilization to stand the test of time" motto to the letter.
I've lost that feeling in the franchise with civ5 and civ6, and I was hoping that Humankind could give it back to me.
From those first runs, I'd say it's looking good so far, not perfect, but pretty good.
I had my doubts about the Neolithic Era, but after restarting a few game after a dozen turns, it's a nice change. Sure there is a bit of luck involved, but not more than having a Barbarian scout sending hordes of units on your first city after a few turns in civ6.
Discovering the map around you before choosing your initial culture, choosing the safety of keeping your hunters close together or spread them to cover more ground, finding the best region and position for your first outpost(s), there is enough content to keep that part interesting.
below: the starting location of my second run
Spoiler :
The mechanism of regions, outposts, cities is also a nice change, it's in my opinion a good balance between Old World pre-placed city sites and Civilization cities spamming.
You have enough space between cities, but still get to decide where to place the "main plaza" on the map.
Speaking of the map, I love the graphism, and I love the elevation of the terrain. One of the first thought I had when civ6 was released with cliffs on the coast was "but why not cliffs on land ?"
I also like that there are many variation of the terrain texture, civ6 graphisms were pretty good, but lacked such variety.
below: an outpost in the "Virgin Komi" wood, which was worth of a notification during exploration
Spoiler :
Another nice touch is the customizable avatar and how your appearance (and your opponents appearance) will change with eras and cultures.
Spoiler :
On the other hand, I'm not a fan of the voices, animations and dialogues during diplomacy, so, like for civ6 leaders, I just ignore them.
Diplomacy. Yep, what made me stop playing civ6...
Thankfully Humankind is much better on that side, I've not played enough for a definitive judgement, but the actions (and consequences) make sense, you're facing leaders making decisions, not some caricatural (and sometime schizophrenic) historical figure getting mad because of an arbitrary threshold for number of ships, cities, resources, ...
About cultures, and switching with eras, while I love how your cities keep some graphical elements of the founding culture, I'm still not convinced by the ability to pick any available culture from the pool. That's one of the few element of the game I really hope will be moddable, I'd much prefer to have the ability to separately pick any available traits, and choose from a limited pool the appearance of your civilization/avatar for the next era based on the previous ethnicity.
It's also a bit confusing to follow who's who when your opponents change eras.
below: my capital, a few eras later
Spoiler :
Another good point the combat system with limited stacking and unstacking for tactical combat rounds. I also had my doubts on that part, and was expecting to use mostly the auto-resolve option, thinking it would still be better than 1UPT anyway, but in the end I like it, really.
It can get a bit confusing when a lot of units are involved, but it works and is well thought, with battle spanning on multiple turns and possible reinforcements.
below: see the limits of the tactical section of the map in which a battle will take place
Spoiler :
I've also liked the dynamism of the smaller factions on the map, with tribe spawning, sometime getting a city, then declining, and the patronage mechanism to allow options like resources trading, hiring mercenaries, and finally the ability to absorb it into your Civilization.
I was playing a "Terra Map" in my second run (yes, that's an option in setting), which allowed me to expand quickly at a moment my Civilization was near the bottom at the fame ranking (so much better from my point of view than arbitrary winning condition BTW) by putting everything in exploration.
I've lost a courageous Cog crew a few tiles from the shore, but they paved the way for the Dutch's Fluyt transporting my troops...
And so I was one of the first to reach the new world, and after absorbing a declining tribe, I used their troops to help me secure multiple regions (and their resources)
below: the lost tribe on a high plateau
Spoiler :
A word about resources, I like how "luxuries" effect can stack, but the "strategic" resource seems to be always available in low quantity only, and starting without Iron or Horse is still a pain.
They are relatively easy to get from trading with other civs, but some units require 2 or even 3 units of a strategic resources.
Some stockpiling and supply/healing mechanism would be welcome IMO, but I doubt those kind of change will be easy to mod. We'll see.
Because if you don't know me, modding is what will make the difference in the long run for my implication in the game, and at this time the game's capabilities on that side are still unknown, except for a map builder on release.
So overall, my first impressions are very good, I'm still reserved on the balance for late game, and I'll need more game to confirm if the last era is enjoyable, but I'm confident that if it's not Amplitude will do their best to improve it.
Yes, sorry, this was a relatively short review, but I've got just another turn to play you know.
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