Sid Meier's Civilization VI can be a helpful learning tool for history, as long as a decent understanding of history and historical concepts is understood before starting the game. Obviously there are certain historical inaccuracies that come with the format and design that is Civilization. Bringing a single country, tribe, or empire from essentially the stone age to modern times simply hasn't happened, however the concepts that occur in the game can certainly applied to learning history. However, each Civilization or leader choice does effect gameplay with some historical accuracy, looking at the historical behavior or advantages of the respective Civilizations and applying them both the players advantage or disadvantage, as well as how the bot characters behave. The interactions with the bot characters is one of the most historically accurate aspects of the game in fact. A players interactions with bots in the game can determine the success of the players game setup. For instance, a historically aggressive civilization is more likely to take advantage of players, lie to players, and attack players in attempt to take over their cities or territories. Furthermore, none of the bot civilizations in the game are there to hold the players hand or to simply bolster the players own experience and success in the game. Alliances certainly are possible to obtain in the game through a couple historically accurate ways. One way is military alliance, which is both difficult and expensive for players as it should be according to history. The second way, which is an easier way to obtain alliances is through trade and diplomacy, although this way of obtaining alliances is more economically sound however they are more vulnerable and leave the alliances sometimes weaker depending on the civilization or leader that the alliance is made with. Overall, the game and it’s concepts are fairly historically accurate, details aside. The game doesn’t reward players for making the wrong decisions as far as expansion and diplomacy. Another layer to the game, which focuses more on inward development instead of outward expansion, is equally important. The happiness and conditions of the people in a city are extremely important to the health of the civilization and can greatly effect a players success. The growth of a population essentially only has one solution which is to build more cities however this is tied into the outward expansion aspect of the game as well. The development of politics also effects the health and happiness of a population, as well as what advantages a player may receive in other aspects of the game. Although this could be seen as somewhat historically inaccurate, it is fairly accurate. The Roman Empire for example, had their own polytheism and government greatly intertwined by elevating Augustus eventually to the status of a God. Another important aspect to the game is the culture and scientific elements of the game, culture and religion are deeply connected in the speed and success that the two develop. Scientific development however may be the most import aspect of the game on the inward development face of the game. Science affects a players ability to travel both overland and sailing, as well as how successful a player will be in developing their military and the success of the military as the bot players develop.
As a medium or a video game, the game is great way to learn how history works and the concepts around history, however it will not teach a player the details of history. A player can learn why certain civilizations throughout history are so successful or why some failed, they’ll learn the importance aspects of history such as trade, military, culture, and expansion or development. Even certain aspects of civilizations can be picked up, such as the aggressiveness of some or the friendliness and diplomacy of others. However, a player will not learn about dates, battles, or specific leaders and historical context. A good example of this is that a player will learn that Rome was extremely successful for a multitude of reasons, but they won’t learn the specifics of Roman government or the timeline of their expansion and conquests.