Hey, Civ fans! Welcome back to This Month in Civ!

This Civtember, we celebrated our 35th anniversary, and fittingly, it has been the biggest month for Civilization VII since its launch. We’ve had a ton of exciting announcements, launches, and reveals that are going to usher in a new age (literally) for Civ. 

But first, we want to look back and celebrate all the stories that have led up to this point.

There’s a lot to recap, so without further ado, let’s dive in!

Unveiling Arc of Tomorrow and Earthrise at PAX West 

We kicked off Civtember with a developer panel at this year’s PAX West in Seattle. During the panel, we unveiled Arc of Tomorrow, a massive free update for all Civ VII players coming next year*. Arc of Tomorrow will introduce the Atomic Age, a new fourth Age that extends the playable timeline from the 1950s to the 2050s. Its other additions include new period-specific civs and leaders, tech and civic trees, Triumphs, social policies, narrative events, and all-new gameplay systems centering proxy warfare, nuclear delivery and defense, diplomatic disarmament agreements, and of course, mutually assured destruction.

We also announced Earthrise, Civ VII’s first paid expansion, which introduces its own brand-new gameplay twists**. Earthrise expands your empire's horizons – taking humanity from charting the stars in the Antiquity Age to establishing a space agency in the Atomic Age, and then launching missions across the solar system. Meanwhile, back on Earth, navigate new tools to manipulate terrain, boost tile yields, and build civil engineering projects to protect against natural disasters, alongside (even more!) new civs and leaders.

For a more focused look at Arc of Tomorrow and Earthrise, check out the video below! Arc of Tomorrow will launch free for all Civ VII base-game owners in 2027, with Earthrise soon to follow. If you’re interested, make sure to wishlist Earthrise here!

While Arc of Tomorrow and Earthrise were the marquee events, we did have some more immediate news to announce…

*Base game required. This content is free for all owners of Civilization VII and will be delivered automatically in-game on release. Terms apply.

**Base game required. Some content requires unlocking via gameplay.

Update 1.5.0 and the Hall of History Collection

Earlier this month, we launched Update 1.5.0, which introduced the fan-favorite True Start Location Earth map, new Voronoi maps, more diplomacy options, and a handful of quality-of-life updates. 

Our new TSL Earth map is a Huge map that is handcrafted to emulate our planet's real geography as closely as possible, including terrain, river, Resource, and Natural Wonder locations. All campaigns start in the Antiquity Age, with your starting location determined by the historic capital of your chosen civ. 

Civ VII’s TSL Earth map also introduces a few twists and updates that we haven’t had in previous Civilization games. Major waterways like the Nile and the Amazon are now Navigable Rivers, and each map will always include seven Natural Wonders picked from a randomized pool. Tundra and empty Ocean tiles have been trimmed away, and areas like Europe, Hawaii, and Japan have been magnified to enhance gameplay. Civ VII’s True Start Location Earth map is the most detailed version the franchise has seen, and if you want to learn more about what went into making it, check out this From the Devs article written by our Live Lead, Taymoor! 

The TSL Earth map isn’t showing up alone, as we also added Voronoi versions of our popular Shuffle and Terra Incognita maps for a more organic and randomized game-to-game experience. And maps aren’t the only area of Civ VII getting some love in Update 1.5.0. Alongside the updates to maps, we made a handful of UI improvements (and introduced the new Radial Ruler map decoration), created new achievements for DLC leaders, and more. To dig into everything coming in Update 1.5.0, check out our Game Update Notes page!

Alongside Update 1.5.0, we dropped our latest paid Content Collection, Hall of History*. Unlike previous collections, this pack doesn’t focus on a specific region or time period, but brings back some familiar classics that Civ fans everywhere should recognize.

First up is the legendary Queen Elizabeth I, a cultural and economic leader adept at building expansive trade networks that span the world over. Joining from across the pond is the first president of the United States, George Washington, a diplomatic and expansionist leader who can help you slot more policies and accelerate your Happiness each time you do. They’re joined by three new civs, Babylon, England, and Gauls, each of which introduce all-new mechanics to Civ VII. For details on these new leaders, civs, and their Unique Abilities, Units, and Infrastructure, check out their Game Guides to learn more. 

*Base game required. Each DLC will be delivered automatically in-game. Terms apply.

Dev AMA: Arc of Tomorrow and Earthrise

From September 17 through September 21,  we held an AMA with Creative Director, Ed Beach, and Lead Designer, Matt Owens.

Across Discord, Reddit, and Steam, our community sent in a range of interesting questions about the Arc of Tomorrow update and Earthrise, ranging from balancing overall game pacing with the new Atomic Age, to the mechanics of proxy warfare, to how space exploration ties back into early-game Religion and Science Projects.

You can read the full Q&A here. A massive thank you to everyone who submitted a question for the team! If you found this interesting, we’d love to do more of these events in the future!

Update 1.5.0 Community Survey

Thanks to the thousands of players who shared their thoughts in the 1.5.0 Community Survey! We’ve gotten great feedback on your experience with the game and Update 1.5.0 in particular. Your insights help us decide where development should go next, and how we can keep improving Civilization VII ahead of its major releases next year.

We’re always taking a look at your feedback and opinions. If you have a spare minute, dropping a Steam review means the world to us and helps us shape what’s next for Civ VII. 

It has truly been a Civtember to remember, and it’s all thanks to you, our amazing Civ community! 

To stay connected, join us in our Official Discord, where you can keep up with the community and discuss every new update, new and forthcoming content, and all your other Civ favorites! For more info about guides, feature requests, mods, and more, check out our Steam discussions. And to stay up-to-date on all things Civ, be sure to sign up for our newsletter.

We’ll see you soon, Civ fans!