Recent reviews by Calzoner

Four hours in and overall enjoying many of the changes that have been made, but the UI really is a massive detriment to the experience. It is tough to feel immersed and get lost in the game like in past Civs because of that, and its a shame because the game itself looks so good. Information is presented inconsistently, the general look/feel does not match the gameplay, and in general there are just a lot of poor design choices. The game itself feels a bit more simplified compared to past versions, and that feeling is compounded by how bad the UI is.

There is a ton of room for improvement in the overall experience if the UI is improved. It has all the right components of a great Civ game, but the UI and the way you as a player interact with the game itself is where it falls short. The good part is this can be fixed either by mods or the developers themselves, but the shame is this wasn't addressed years ago in development. In its current state, it feels like you are playing a game in early access that is to be released in a year. The reality is this game is being fully released in 5 days, and that is disappointing to see for a game this expensive, made by a AAA studio, who spent 8 years developing it. In its current state, I cannot give it a thumbs up.