Since launching on mobile devices, Aspyr Media has been slowly releasing new DLC and updates Civilization VI (Free) on iOS and Android. The most recent content update is for the Leaders Pass, while we already saw a minor bug fix update a few months ago. Since the release of iOS 17.4, the game has not been playable on iOS or iPadOS devices running that game or 17.4.1. I haven’t played the game on mobile since the update, so don’t know that. Thanks to a tip from a reader over the weekend, I’ve been researching this issue and trying to launch the game on all the devices in my house. On four different iPhones and three iPads, the game no longer lets you play. It gives you an error on startup and remains on the startup screen as shown below. I tried reinstalling it without success. Aspyr confirmed it was aware of the issue more than a month ago, but currently has no estimated time for a fix.
Games and apps having problems on newer iOS versions are nothing new, but when you have a game like Civilization VI It costs more to get DLC and games (external sales) on mobile than on other platforms, so you expect a certain level of support. As of this writing, I would not recommend purchasing the game on iOS until this issue is fixed. Who knows how long that will take, since we haven’t even had an update that improved the visuals of the iPad from years ago, let alone the current one. If you haven’t played the game yet, read our original iPad review (here) as well as my updated review (which includes expanded content) and more, based on the game running on the latest iOS version . I also review New Frontier Pass content and the state of iOS games in 2021 here.You can have a try Civilization VI It’s available for free on the App Store for iOS, and I recommend double-checking when iOS or the game is updated to make sure it’s working properly before purchasing. I’ve contacted Aspyr to check the status of the fix and will update this news story if I hear back.