Now, you can actually build a civilisation that lasts the test of time in Civilization VII. The Civilization VII Test Of Time update is a free update that reworks two specific points of contention that the latest entry to the historic historical 4X game series have had since launch: civ-switching and the Legacy Paths system leading to victory.
Civilizations in Civ VII post-Test Of Time update will not be locked to a specific Age anymore. Initially, the idea of civ-switching is to emphasise the era of their power and also reflect the idea of how historically civilisations rise and fall through time. As developer Firaxis found out the hard way, that’s a very unpopular design choice, so we’re reverting back to how Civilization, the game, has done.
Players can now opt to stick to the same civilization during Age transition or play like old Civ VII and switch civs, enemy AI will follow what the player does whether to civ-switch or not. Civs can now make use of Syncretism to gain access to Unique Units or Infrastructure of a civ in its Apex Age (i.e. Civ VII still keeps track whether a civ was designed for each Age in mind) or double down on your civ’s uniqueness with Affirmation.
Legacy Paths, the 12 ways to victory (or the 11 other attempts to capture the magic of the Space Race victory condition) have been replaced with Triumphs. Triumphs are big objective checklists you compete with other civs to complete each tied to the six attributes (rather than just four with Legacy Paths): Militaristic, Cultural, Scientific, Economic, Diplomatic, and Expansionist. Triumphs, on paper, won’t make it feel like you’re playing the same game, progressing through the same path every time. But now you can build what you believe in and chase these Triumphs in various ways every playthrough.
Victories have been reworked in a way that it’s now even possible to win a game before reaching Modern Age. Victory in Civ VII rewards dominating the competition via four ways: Military (conquer settlements, settle in the Distant Lands), Cultural (Wonders, Unique Buildings, Unique Infrastructure and Celebrations), Economic (Resources slotted, Gold Buildings, Treasure Convoys, slotted Factory Resources) and Scientific (Space Race).
In regards to the Space Race, you can build progress for this even outside the Modern Age. Civ VII is tallying the Innovation score, which you can gain across the three Ages. You still win by completing the three Modern Age Projects to launch the rocket, but through Innovation (gained by slotting Codices, researching Tech Masteries, completing the final Project) you can win via Scientific domination.
All these features have gone through the Firaxis Feature Workshop, a way for players to try out upcoming features and provide feedback to the development team. So hardcore players have had their hand in shaping the new Civ VII, so hopefully it can turn around the player sentiment around the title currently sitting at Mixed reviews on Steam.
The cherry on top of this massive free update to Civ VII is the addition of a new leader: Alexander The Great. One can argue he shouldn’t been there at launch, a similar thing one can ask when the game added gigachad Gilgamesh as a free update, but hey, he’s here now. If you love Wonder building and settlement conquering, his bonuses will be up your alley.
Development of Civilization VII will continue after the release of this update.
Civilization VII is out now on PS4, PS5, PC (Steam, Epic Games Store), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. Civilization VII Arcade Edition, a different version of the game for Apple Arcade, is also available now. Check out our review of the game based on the 1.0 release here.