Our preview talked about how a lot of the updates help make the world feel more alive - that the game board itself is consistently shifting. There are just… a ton of incredibly unique (and esoteric) leaders that will drastically affect the way you play the game. Phoenicia’s Dido can move its capital by simply completing a unique project. The Ottomans, led by Suleiman, have a unique governor that can be installed in any civilization’s city. Mansa Musa of the Mali is a gold generating machine that utilizes their massive bank reserves to outright purchase units, tiles, and power. That’s because his per-turn bonuses make up for it.
Kupe of the Maori starts the game on an ocean tile and can actually get away with waiting to choose the perfect spot. As England, you have a lot of power to keep expanding to new continents in the first few eras. France is a mid-game powerhouse, able to convert city after city that dares be too close to the leader’s cultural boons.
And those cities can skip the Free City step by just converting straight into one of Eleanor’s own. The great works in her cities cause -1 loyalty per turn if they’re within nine tiles. And with all the new changes, it’s honestly almost easy to overlook just how radical of a departure a lot of the new leaders are.Įleanor of Aquitaine can serve as the leader of either France or England. It’s still a game about managing a semi-historically accurate civilization to military, economic, cultural, or scientific dominance, though. Gathering Storm grabs just about every single Rise & Fall feature and further expands upon them, making them more integral and satisfying in the process. Flavor features like the civilization timeline and historical moments are complemented by on-map labels for geographic features and real-world weather events. Firaxis scrapped and reimagined the previous emergency system as an integral part of the new World Congress.
Loyalty now has full support in the form of new leaders that primarily take aim at a Domination victory - without the bloodshed. We’re happy to say that Gathering Storm has a more generous helping of meat and potatoes. Ages, emergencies, loyalty, and more felt like solid additions… that just left players hungering for more. So much of what the game’s first expansion added was received well, but didn’t offer enough to satisfy longtime players.
In a way, Civilization VI: Gathering Storm feels like the necessary second piece of Rise & Fall.