Civilization VII Looks to the Stars with Arc of Tomorrow Update and Earthrise Expansion
Celebrating the franchise’s 35th anniversary at PAX West, 2K and Firaxis Games have announced what’s next for Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, with the game set to expand its historical timeline into the modern era and beyond through the upcoming Arc of Tomorrow update and its first paid expansion, Sid Meier’s Civilization VII: Earthrise. Coming in 2027, Arc of Tomorrow will be a major free update for all players, introducing an entirely new fourth Age that spans roughly from the 1950s through to the 2050s, bringing with it period-specific civilizations, leaders, units, buildings, visuals, music and new gameplay systems. Later in the year, Earthrise will take things even further, exploring humanity’s relationship with space and the environment across the entire campaign before eventually sending players and their space agencies on missions across the solar system. Before either of those arrives, however, players can look forward to Update 1.5.0 later this month, which will introduce a number of quality-of-life improvements alongside the long-requested True Start Location: Earth map.
Arc of Tomorrow introduces the Atomic Age
At the heart of the Arc of Tomorrow update is the introduction of the Atomic Age, giving Civilization VII a new fourth Age that extends the playable timeline from the 1950s into the near future. Alongside the new Age, Firaxis is adding a range of new content designed to reflect the changing world, including sweeping urban architecture, updated technology and civic trees, new Triumphs, social policies and narrative events. There will also be a new roster of period-specific civilizations and leaders, including the return of Gandhi. The Atomic Age will also bring expanded nuclear gameplay, with new offensive and defensive options and units, as well as a new twist on the concept of mutually assured destruction, giving players even more to consider as they navigate the increasingly dangerous later stages of their civilizations.
Empire management is also being expanded, with new tools allowing players to recognise the independence of their Settlements and release them as City-States, providing another way to deal with the challenges of empire size and loyalty. There are some more unusual additions coming as well, including Great Works of Film, where Film Crews will search for the ideal filming location depending on the desired genre, with the eventual benefits determined by the quality of the film produced. Manufactured Goods will also allow players to follow recipes that combine specific commodities to create new and powerful resources, including Enriched Uranium. Players will also have the opportunity to sign up for a chance to playtest Arc of Tomorrow content through the Firaxis Feature Workshop, with the first round of playtesting taking place later this year.
Earthrise takes Civilization VII into space
While Arc of Tomorrow will expand Civilization VII into the modern world and near future, Sid Meier’s Civilization VII: Earthrise is set to take the series in a much more literal direction by exploring humanity’s relationship with space and the environment across the entire campaign. As the first paid expansion for Civilization VII, Earthrise will be themed around the historic space race and will eventually allow players to establish their own space agency before launching missions throughout the solar system. That journey begins much earlier, however, with the Antiquity and Exploration Ages allowing players to chart the night sky and name the celestial bodies above them, expanding their understanding of the solar system while considering their own planet’s place within it. During the Modern Age, players will be able to launch early orbital missions around Earth and the Moon, laying the groundwork for the space operations that will follow. Once the Atomic Age arrives, those ambitions can finally stretch across the solar system, with an established space agency launching missions to discover planetary features and untapped resources, with the benefits of those discoveries feeding back into the power of the civilization here on Earth.
Space isn’t the only focus of Earthrise, though, as the expansion will also introduce new ways for civilizations to respond to environmental changes. New unit abilities and technologies will allow players to alter the terrain and bonuses of tiles within their empires, while new civil engineering structures can help combat increasingly severe Natural Disasters as global temperatures rise. Players can even work towards reversing that warming, while greater proficiency in working the land across specific biomes can provide civilizations with new gameplay advantages that improve their abilities within those environments. More details about Earthrise will be revealed in the coming months.
Update 1.5.0 adds True Start Location: Earth
Before players can begin exploring the Atomic Age or launching missions into space, Update 1.5.0 will arrive later this month with a collection of quality-of-life improvements and the long-requested True Start Location: Earth map. The new Earth map will generate the land, features and resources of the real world, allowing players to start their campaigns in locations representative of where their chosen civilization began historically. Natural wonders will also spawn in their natural locations, with each game generating a different selection to help keep even a familiar map feeling fresh. The update will also make changes to the Terra Incognita and Shuffle map types, which will now use the Voronoi map generation algorithm to create maps that are more varied and natural-looking. Resource generation is also being improved, with map loading and generation becoming faster while resource placement should feel more varied from game to game. Diplomacy is receiving an update too, with players gaining the ability to use Influence to remain in an alliance without being forced to join their allies in wars they would rather avoid.
Finally, a number of user interface improvements will be introduced, including updates to plot tooltips, settlement banners and game setup, alongside a new tile ruler designed to make city planning easier. Sid Meier’s Civilization VII is currently available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, as well as Mac and Linux via Steam. Arc of Tomorrow will be free for all owners of Sid Meier’s Civilization VII and will be delivered automatically in-game when it releases in 2027. Sid Meier’s Civilization VII: Earthrise will be paid post-launch DLC and will require the base game, with its exact release timing still to be announced.
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