Civilization 7 is bringing back a popular feature from past games in the series, which should help make exploration of the game's maps less of a chore. Update 1.2.3 for Civilization 7 is coming in roughly a week or so, and players can also expect to see improvements to transitions between the game's Ages when it launches.
After more than eight years since Civilization 6 first graced players' screens, Civilization 7 was launched on February 11, 2025, and the game has recently found new life, releasing as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5. However, while its build-up involved ample fanfare for the return of the classic 4X strategy series, the game's release was marred by numerous problems, including limited customization, a confusing user interface, and a bunch of other missing features that were present in previous Civilization games.
Civilization 7: Every Leader and Civ
Civilization 7 features dozens of leaders and Civs for fans to try out, and this guide shows how to gain access to all of them.
Many fans may be thankful for the recently announced return of one such feature in the form of auto-explore. The game's official social media channels have announced that the next update, which is planned for release during the week of July 20, will reintroduce this mechanic to the series, allowing players to set scouts and "other eligible units" to automatically wander the darkened portions of the map, stopping only when they've found Discoveries or the borders of other civilizations that won't grant them safe passage. This feature should take the grind out of exploring and speed up the early processes of plotting out spaces for new cities, identifying enemy locations, and forming alliances in Civilization 7.
Civ 7 Is Bringing Back Auto-Explore
In addition to the big improvement to scouts, Firaxis Games is planning to release smoother transitions between Ages in Civilization 7. There are only three Ages in the game — Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern — which is a smaller number than some past games have had on offer. Transitioning between these three Ages can cause some major gameplay shake-ups, and the developers are seeking to ease the burden on players a bit by locking in a 10-turn countdown timer to give them time to complete any last-minute objectives before changes kick in. Additionally, relationships between world leaders should evolve more smoothly between Ages, and while Firaxis hasn't provided too many details on how these changes will play out, more information will be revealed when the update goes live.
Along with these changes, players can expect to see a new Civilization 7 commander before the end of July. First-century Vietnamese military leader Trung Nhi will make her appearance specifically for players taking on the role of her sister, Trung Trac, and she will arrive with a unique character model and artwork on her Promotion Tree.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 77%
- Released
- February 11, 2025
- ESRB
- Everyone 10+ // Alcohol and Tobacco Reference, Mild Language, Mild Violence, Suggestive Themes
- Developer(s)
- Firaxis Games
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Grand Strategy, Turn-Based Strategy, 4X
