Player Numbers

[HF22]

Looking at the Steam Charts today, I again noted that Civ 5 (of which I'm not a fan) continues to have more players than Civ 6.

No news there. But something I hadn't appreciated did strike me - The combined player totals of Civ 5 & 6 are still a little less than the Civ 5 player numbers before the release of Civ 6.

Which seems to suggest, unlike Civ 5, Civ 6 hasn't expanded the appeal of the Civ franchise.

I wonder if that has any implications for the future of Civ 6, DLC vs expansions etc. Any thoughts?

 

[Uberfrog]

I'm not sure it's a fair comparison to compare Civ VI 's player numbers now with Civ V's figures just before the release of VI. The equivalent time would be June 2011, just over seven months after launch. The data on Steam Charts doesn't seem to go back that far...

Interestingly the all-time peak (which occurred just after launch) for Civ VI (162k) is considerably higher than for Civ V (91k). In terms of owners, Civ V (10M) has over five times as many as VI (1.8M), but that is to be expected as it's been out much longer and been at a much reduced price many times.

I think it's too early to call, but Civ VI has by no means been a failure in terms of sales. It is true that player numbers have dwindled at the moment, but we're relatively far after launch, and in a DLC dry patch, so it's natural that players have drifted. The game has some serious issues in terms of AI and balance that aren't there in its predecessor, which has now had a full complement of patches and expansions, and has a much more developed modding scene.

Given that there are a healthy number of owners of Civ VI, I don't see why Firaxis won't continue to develop DLC and expansions, as they will presumably sell very well. We will also see renewed player interest when new content comes out.

It's possible the appeal of the franchise hasn't expanded much, as Civ V was a phenomenal success that represents a high water mark for players of any Civ game. It is however too early to judge what Civ VI's longterm appeal will be. If we see it having less than 10 million owners this time in five years, then you'll have a point. Until then it's not a direct comparison.

 

[Eagle Pursuit]

There are a great many people who aren't early adopters and are very patiently waiting for the game to mature before they begin to play regularly. They are content to play Civ V while they wait, especially with the highly developed mods that are available.

 

[HF22]

Well, on trends & trajectories, some conclusions may be possible. We can be sure 2K etc have already drawn many conclusions.

For example, I suspect DLC are not going to move the needle on player base. So maybe moving to an xpack earlier might become more likely?

 

[Uberfrog]

Well, on trends & trajectories, some conclusions may be possible. We can be sure 2K etc have already drawn many conclusions.

For example, I suspect DLC are not going to move the needle on player base. So maybe moving to an xpack earlier might become more likely?

My point is that we don't have this part of the trajectory for Civ V to compare it with (unless someone can rustle up 2011's player figures from somewhere I haven't found). While we can be sure that 2K have those numbers, we can't really say whether Civ VI is under- or over-performing its predecessor at this stage in its life-cycle.

What is clear is that between the two games, Civilization still commands a very enthusiastic player base for them to sell new content to. They obviously aren't going to create any new content for Civ V. So if they want to tempt those late-adopters over from Civ V, they're going to have to do that with attractive content. You might be right in that they could decide to do a full EP earlier than they did with Gods & Kings. I think I'd certainly welcome a substantial gameplay addition sooner.

 

[HF22]

@Eagle Pursuit

I think that is true of Civ veterans. But I doubt its true of people who didn't play Civ 5 - Civ 6 is presumably been and gone for most of that potential audience.

But then, maybe Civ 5 suggests otherwise. Did the big sales on that happen early, or after it improved with the expansions?

 

[God of Kings]

The player numbers are to be expected.

Give Civ VI half a decade before we judge.

 

[Leyrann]

@Eagle Pursuit

I think that is true of Civ veterans. But I doubt its true of people who didn't play Civ 5 - Civ 6 is presumably been and gone for most of that potential audience.

But then, maybe Civ 5 suggests otherwise. Did the big sales on that happen early, or after it improved with the expansions?

I believe it took a while before Civ V really got big, but I only got into it after BNW myself, so I'm not certain.

 

[HF22]

The player numbers are to be expected.

Give Civ VI half a decade before we judge.

I am uncertain if the modern games market is going to give Civ 6, or any game, that long to mature. But admittedly, without knowing the sales profile of Civ 5, it is hard to speak to that definitely.

 

[Victoria]

A few weekends ago my eldest stated he was going to have an all night civ multiplayer with his friends. On querying it was on civ V because they are all used to it. On querying the future use of civ 6 once it is expanded his response was that it was unlikely they would all buy and learn it because they play too many other games that are easier to learn and faster to play. That there is more fun to be had in a shorter time from Dota or lol and the supercell type games or many others like BTD fulfill their need.
Bottom line to me is market saturation nowadays limits numbers. However3 of his 4 friends own civ6, him and one other have played one game, the other two have never played it. One friend is a big EU fan and says there is no comparison between the two.

 

[God of Kings]

@Victoria

Your eldest and his friends might want to try Amplitude Studio's offerings. In fact, one of Amplitude's games, Endless Legend, is the closest recent competitor to the Civ series mechanic-wise.

Yes, Amplitude is formerly independent until purchased by Sega. Even then, its newest game, Endless Space 2, does not seem stifled by Sonic much.

 

[Victoria]

@Victoria

Your eldest and his friends might want to try Amplitude Studio's offerings. In fact, one of Amplitude's games, Endless Legend, is the closest recent competitor to the Civ series mechanic-wise.

My eldest is currently at the table building his own CPU on breadboards. He's moving away from games a bit. The younger lad is a solid LOL player. I am lost in my own little civ world here.