Firaxis Games' creative director, Ed Beach, advises even veteran Civilization players to utilize the tutorial for their first full Civilization VII campaign. In a Steam post, he highlights the game's significant changes, particularly the new Ages system (Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern), which drastically alters gameplay. Each Age transition involves selecting a new civilization, choosing retained Legacies, and witnessing world evolution—a unique feature in the series.

Beach explains the default map size choice (Small) is intentional. While veteran players often prefer larger maps, Small maps provide a smoother learning curve with fewer opponents, simplifying the new Diplomacy system and allowing players to manage Diplomatic Influence more effectively. He recommends the "Continents Plus" map type for its manageable ocean exploration, crucial to the Exploration Age.

The tutorial is automatically enabled for first-time players, but Beach strongly encourages experienced players to use it for their initial full campaign. The tutorial offers timely tips and explanations for new mechanics. He suggests focusing on one Advisor at a time to avoid information overload. Even after mastering the core mechanics, Beach recommends switching the tutorial setting to "Only Warnings," allowing Advisors to alert players to potential setbacks. Even the Firaxis development team uses this feature.

Firaxis recently revealed Civilization VII's post-launch roadmap during a livestream, noting that Great Britain will be released as DLC. Civilization VII launches on PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S on February 11th, with Deluxe Edition access starting February 6th.