Civilization VII is going to be showing its gameplay soon and I believe that it is important to talk about how the game will be portraying the Byzantine Empire. As I have stated before in another post on this site, I believe that the Empire should shy away from using Theodora as a leader, and probably choose either Justinian again or maybe Manuel I Kommenos as he was one of those titan leaders of that age of the 2nd Crusade between the Christian West and Islamic soldiers that were being led by the great Ayybuid Sultan, Saladin.
Age of Empires IV gave a version of the Byzantines that we generally do not see much in video games. They emphasized the Byzantine’s economy and the Olive oil industry which was huge in the ancient world and continues to have important role in Greece. They also showed the walls, which were an important aspect of how the Byzantines were engaging with their environment. Within the context of the game, the developers managed to make statements about the Byzantine Empire’s Greek origins as well as the importance they put towards having important structures protecting their cities.
Civilization VII should probably implement what Age of Empires IV has in their game. I think that religion and the Byzantines was already put into the Civilization VI game, and I think that the developers should try to honor the architectural as well as the economic prowess of the Byzantines.
Not everything about the Byzantines should be about Basil and Justinian.
I think that it is time to introduce the gaming audience to a more nuanced, complex approach to the Byzantine Empire. Theodora was important but Byzantine history is more than the 6th Century and people have to get an introduction to other eras of this great empire that was the link between Rome’s Ancient past and the Medieval era.
Byzantine-Empire.com 