Summary
Civilization 7’s release has been a mixed bag for developer Firaxis. Some players love the new game-defining ages feature, while other players detest it and have likely returned to Civilization 5 or 6 in protest. However, everyone, both proponents and detractors of Civilization 7, seems to agree that the game’s user interface is not up to scratch. UI issues are one of the most common complaints in Civilization 7’s Steam reviews, which currently sit at ‘Mixed’.
Well, Firaxis may have found a solution in one of the community’s most renowned modders, Sukrit ‘Act’ Tan (commonly known as Sukritact) has been hired by Firaxis as a Tech Artist (nice spot,VG247). Tan confirmed their appointment in aBluesky post, saying “Way back in high school, I started modding Civilization 5, and honestly, that’s what started me down this path of working in game dev. So today, I am beyond thrilled to be able to say that I’ve joined Firaxis as a Technical Artist!”
User Interface Extraordinaire
In all likelihood, Tan’s hiring has probably been in the works since before Civilization 7 launched and isn’t explicitly because of the game’s unpopular UI. However, user interface is under the purview of technical artists, and Tan is known for creating mods that improve UI.
Tan’s “Simple UI Adjustments” for Civilization 6 has been downloaded over 650,000 times, while their “Global Relations Panel” diplomacy UI overhaul mod has also been downloaded a similar number of times. Tan specialises in creating UI screens that make important information easier to access and digest, a convenience that players complain Civilization 7 does not offer.
Tan creates more than UI mods, however. Sukritact is a prolific modder and popular figure in the community, having uploadedover 250 itemsto Steam’s Workshop over the years. Although everyone is happy that Sukritact is now being compensated for their hard work, they’re also disappointed Tan won’t be creating mods for the community anymore. However, if Sukritact is empowered by Firaxis to make improvements in areas that are lacking, then perhaps we won’t need their mods anymore.
Firaxis has had troubles of its own recently, as the studioseemingly released unfinished contentonto Civilization 7’s live patch yesterday.
