FROM THE DEVS
Read insights from the Firaxis developers about the updates and improvements coming to Civilization VII !
DEVELOPER UPDATE
Hear directly from the Firaxis devs in these Developer Update videos!
The Devs Talk Llamas
We've been watching the chatter around the Civ community about the Llama resource. "Why are they in the game?" "Why do they give happiness and production?" And of course, "Why are they so cute?” We're tagging in Taymoor from the Game Design team to reveal the inspiration behind the addition of Llamas.
Firaxis Game Designer, Taymoor, says…
"When we're looking for Resources to add into the game, there are a lot of things to take into account. In the 1.2.0 update to Resources, the biggest factors were biome, mechanical effect, and how well we were representing various natural resources from around the world. Llamas were suggested early and made everyone smile every time we talked about them, so they had to go in. We figured they'd be a hit with our audience too (the internet loves llamas!). Given their use as pack animals in South America, we knew some of their effects had to be production-based, but with how much joy we had in bringing them to the game, their main effect ended up focusing on Happiness."

Developers Share Their Favorites
You'll never find a shortage of passion at Firaxis. We asked the devs: “What was some of your favorite work in Civilization VII?”
FINN
“Bulgaria was a favorite of mine to work on. A persistent threat to Byzantium, the Bulgarian Empires had a rich militaristic, artistic, and spiritual history that still resounds today. It was a fun challenge to adapt their unique style and strengths to Civilization, and to highlight notable moments through Narrative Events in their first foray into the series.”
RACHEL
“My favorite leader that I have gotten to work on was Harriet Tubman. It was such an honor to get to animate on such an inspirational person. We also had an amazing voice actor who brought me to tears with her soulful singing and performance.”
DMYTRO
“My favorite sound effect I created for Civilization VII must have been the Diplomacy Actions, especially the new ones for the Independent Powers. I really loved the idea of having fun sound effects happening when I embark on diplomacy, and making some sounds with some older flutes was a blast! It's also fun to just think about "What is the sound of befriending? Bolstering the military? Espionage?" and then try to make those sounds a reality.”
DANIELLA
“My favorite civ to make materials for was hands-down the Shawnee set. I got to work directly with the Shawnee Tribe to pick out colors and patterns that would be culturally appropriate, and we were able to get a lot of very cool references from them. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I’m very proud of the work that we did for that set. "
Daniella - Materials Artist
"This was my favorite material that I made from that set; the Shawnee utilize a lot of quilting in their crafts, so we recreated some of their patterns including the Squash Blossom.”
