A free Civ 6 demo is available now for Steam users who have yet to discover the glory that is Sid Meier’s Civilization 6. 2K and Firaxis announced the free Civ 6 demo today alongside (surprise!) a sale on Civ 6 and some of the DLC (Australia not included, sorry Dundee nerds). Civ 6 released in October so it’s been a little more than 6 months since launch, which feels like appropriate timing for an out-of-the-blue sale. The discounts are 20 percent for the base game and 25 percent for the Digital Deluxe edition that includes all the DLC. Not insignificant if you’re a new player, but can the demo sell the game?
READ : ‘Civilization 6’ Review: Is It The Best Game In The Series?
Probably. There are a number of restrictions on the free demo that will either recruit new members into the One More Turn cult or turn people off who are try-curious only. Steam users who download the Civ 6 demo will only have access to one faction, Qin Shi Huang’s China, and play a game that is capped at 60 turns. Most players usually only have two or three cities by turn 60, and full games can take 250 turns or more, so this is merely a taste of what Civ 6 has in store.
China doesn’t feel like a particularly exciting faction to me either (I’m a Russia man) but it could very well be that this release is targeted to gain new players in the Asian market instead of the U.S. Regardless, with only 60 turns and no prior experience I don’t see new players walking away with an understanding of the nuances that exist among the different factions in the game anyway.
There’s a tutorial mode, too, so demo players will get a crash course in Civ 6 turn management. As a Civ 6 fan I feel like this demo is a little too light to entice new players, only because Civ is well-known among strategy fans. It is one of those “buy one game this year” kind of purchases and shows up on the radar of even casual genre fans.
So it’s hard to imagine anyone who is aware of Civ 6 not already having a buy it or not decision in their mind, and those that do might not be swayed by such a truncated demo. But it’s a nice gesture for curious gamers and launching it alongside a decent sale could help nudge a few more into the One More Turn addiction.
