So far I think it's much better than V was at the start. Most of the Civ I've played in the last couple years has been IV with Caveman2Cosmos, though, so it's a bit unfair to compare it to that. (Especially since C2C is so resource-hungry that it basically breaks the game's engine after a while.) Thoughts:
Good:
- I generally like the district system. It's not perfect (I hate not being able to buy/use a worker to repair damaged district buildings), but it's nice to see all of the buildings we construct represented on the map. Probably the best implementation of wonders so far, too...they look great.
- The great person/great works system revamp is cool. I like having the artists/musicians/writers produce real things that we can keep forever (and can be stolen). Archaeology is cool too.
- I generally like the culture/civic system better than V.
- The music is fantastic. The way it progresses through the eras is just great. Really one of the best parts of the game - I just wish I didn't usually play it with the sound off.
- There seems to be more variation in the art styles of cities.
- Leader portraits, while a bit cartoony, look beautiful.
- City-States are more meaningful.
- Sean Bean
Neutral
- The quotes that accompany tech advances/etc. are generally tongue-in-cheek. I don't have a problem with this on its face, and in fact like it, but it contributes to the cartoonish, less-serious vibe of the game that I'm not a fan of.
- The leader personality traits are cool and actually mean something now, but they don't always lead to logical actions by the AI.
- I have no idea how AI aggression really works. I like that they'll still declare war on me when I'm the strongest faction in the game, but when they do so is often nonsensical.
Negative
- The graphics. Ugh. Like a lot of people have said, the art style is straight out of a mobile F2P game. Civ graphics have never been grittily realistic, but this time around I feel too much like I'm moving pieces around on a board.
- There's little pomp and circumstance for transitioning into a new era (I usually don't even notice when it happens), and the Medieval, Renaissance, and Industrial eras go by way too quickly. I feel like there are too few techs in general.
- Because of the above - and this is hardly new for a Civ game - having your civ's unique unit be from one of those eras is fairly wasteful. My first playthrough was with Japan, and I had literally one combat with a Samurai unit.
