Awesome. I’d pretty much only just managed to pry myself away from the relentlessly addictive grip of Civilization 5, and now Civilization 6 has been confirmed to launch October 21.
2K are publishing, while development is in the capable hands of Firaxis Games, the team responsible for the Civ V expansions, Gods & Kings and Brave New World.
Even better, Rock Paper Shotgun spoke to lead designer Ed Beach and associate producer Sarah Darney, who confirmed that almost every system from the final version of Civ V will be included in the new game.
That means trade routes, religious systems, archaeology and more will all be waiting for you in the base game.
Christoph Hartmann, President of 2K said:
We can’t think of a better way to celebrate the silver anniversary of our longest-running franchise than launching the eagerly anticipated Sid Meier’s Civilization VI, which will provide the most detailed, beautiful and complete experience ever featured in a Civilization game.
Of course, there are plenty of new features on the way to keep you hooked for longer than ever before. Civilization 6 will feature enhanced multiplayer across a “wide variety of situations”, more expansive empires than ever before, and the ability to advance quickly through active research.
Diplomacy will also evolve over the course of the game, from primitive first interactions, to late game alliances and negotiations. There’ll also be optional tutorial systems in place so as to cater for Civ players from all walks of life.
Ed Beach said:
We’ve added many exciting new elements. The visual presentation of the game is inspired by the maps and tools of the Age of Exploration, and we’ve made several key gameplay changes such as expansive cities and active research that makes Sid Meier’s Civilization VI an entirely unique experience while remaining true to what makes the Civilization series so special.
But I bet you want a trailer now, right? Course you do. Feast your eyes on Civilization 6 below. That’s Sean Bean on voice over duties by the way. Let’s hope he doesn’t die.
If you can’t wait till October 21 to see more, 2K also announced that Civ 6 will be getting a booth at E3, so we can all pore over the game come June.
Ewan Moore is a journalist at UNILAD Gaming who still quite hasn’t gotten out of his mid 00’s emo phase. After graduating from the University of Portsmouth in 2015 with a BA in Journalism & Media Studies (thanks for asking), he went on to do some freelance words for various places, including Kotaku, Den of Geek, and TheSixthAxis, before landing a full time gig at UNILAD in 2016.