Civilization VI PC Performance Review

Conclusion

Civilization VI is a game that runs like a breeze on modern PC hardware, though that does not mean that it is a perfect PC release.

On our test system, all of our GPUs were able to run the game at a steady 60+FPS during gameplay, at either Ultra settings or with a few minor settings tweaks, which is great to see with a modern AAA release.  

Sadly AMD GPUs will not get the same levels of performance at their Nvidia counterparts, though these performance shortcomings can be mitigated by lowering the game’s MSAA levels. 

Civilization VI is a game that is made to run on a very wide range of system configurations, allowing the game to look fantastic with high-grade MSAA options, reflection details and high-resolution shadows and textures on high-end PCs, or with a more basic/minimalist aesthetic to run on even the most basic gaming systems. 

Most of today’s PC gamers will be able to play Civilization VI at Ultra settings with only two minor graphical changes, moving Leader detail to Medium and MSAA to 2x, 4x or off. This will allow the game to play with a steady framerate in most situations, though expect some minor dips between turns. 

While the visual style has become much more cartoonish since Civ V, the overall aesthetic of Civilization VI has been significantly improved, with characters having a lot more personality and wonders/cities gaining a lot more detail than previous games. Graphically speaking there is very little that can be criticised, with the game offering high levels of graphical fidelity while still being easy to run on most modern gaming systems. 

Control wise, Civilization remains as accessible as ever, being fully playable with just a mouse while also having the option to play the game with a large selection of hot-keys and other shortcuts, allowing the controls to be as complex or as simple as you desire.  

All in all Civilization VI is a high-quality PC port, with the only major sticking point with us being the game’s uneven performance on AMD and Nvidia GPUs. Hopefully, Firaxis and AMD can address these performance issues with a future game patch or driver update, but even then the game is far from unplayable on AMD hardware.  

 

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