Civilization VII Is Getting a Free Atomic Age in 2027, While Its First Paid Expansion Takes Players into the Solar System

Firaxis and 2K have revealed some significant plans for Sid Meier’s Civilization VII in 2027, including an entirely new fourth Age that stretches the game into the modern era and the title’s first paid expansion.

The free Arc of Tomorrow update will introduce the Atomic Age, covering approximately the 1950s through the 2050s. It will include new period-specific civilizations and leaders, buildings, units, technology and civic trees, social policies, narrative events, and other content intended to extend a campaign well beyond the current Modern Age. Gandhi will also return as a leader.

Firaxis is using the extra Age to introduce some mechanics that would not make much sense earlier in history. Nuclear warfare is being expanded with additional offensive and defensive options centered around mutually assured destruction, while players will gain the ability to recognize a settlement’s independence and release it as a City-State. Film Crews can create Great Works of Film, and a new Manufactured Goods system will let players combine commodities into more advanced resources such as Enriched Uranium.

Then there is Civilization VII: Earthrise, the game’s first paid expansion, which is also scheduled for 2027. Earthrise will focus on humanity’s relationship with space and the environment across the campaign before eventually allowing civilizations to establish space agencies and conduct missions throughout the solar system.

There is more coming before then. Update 1.5.0 is planned for later this month and will include various quality-of-life changes along with the long-requested True Start Location: Earth map. Firaxis is also planning player testing for portions of Arc of Tomorrow through its Feature Workshop program later this year.

Adding another Age is a substantial change for Civilization VII, particularly after Firaxis built the game around transitioning between Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern civilizations. Come 2027, players will finally get to see what happens when that system is pushed from the Cold War into the near future and eventually off the planet.

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