Civ 7 Named the Most Wanted PC Game of 2025

Civilization VII: The Most Anticipated PC Game of 2025

Civilization VII has been crowned the most anticipated PC game of 2025 by PC Gamer's "Most Wanted" event! The game's Creative Director shed light on new mechanics designed to enhance campaign engagement. Read on for details.

Civ 7: Building Momentum Before its 2025 Launch

Number One Most Wanted Game for 2025

The PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted, held on December 6th, declared Civilization VII the most anticipated title of 2025. This accolade placed Civ 7 at the top of a list of the 25 most exciting upcoming games, as voted on by "The Council," a panel of over 70 developers, creators, and PC Gamer editors. The nearly three-hour livestream also featured trailers and updates for other games, including Let’s Build a Dungeon and Drivers of the Apocalypse.

Doom: The Dark Ages and Monster Hunter Wilds secured second and third place respectively. Slay the Spire 2 rounded out the top four. Other notable games on the list included Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, The Thing: Remastered, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. Interestingly, Hollow Knight: Silksong was absent from the rankings and its trailer wasn't showcased.

Civilization VII will launch simultaneously on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch on February 11, 2025.

New "Ages" Mechanic Enhances Campaign Completion

In a December 6th PC Gamer interview, Civ 7's Creative Director, Ed Beach, unveiled a groundbreaking new campaign mechanic: "Ages." This innovative feature directly addresses Firaxis's findings from Civ VI data, which revealed a significant number of players didn't complete campaigns.

Beach explained, "Our data showed many players never finished Civilization games. We aimed to tackle this by reducing micromanagement and restructuring the game."

The "Ages" system divides each campaign into three distinct chapters: Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern. Players can transition to a new civilization at the end of each Age, mirroring the historical rise and fall of real-world empires.

This transition isn't random; the new civilization must have historical or geographical ties to its predecessor. For example, the Roman Empire might transition to the French Empire, potentially with the Norman Empire bridging the gap.

Leaders persist across Ages, maintaining player connection to their empire and rivals. The "overbuild" feature allows constructing new buildings atop existing ones, while Wonders and some structures remain throughout the playthrough.

This innovative mechanic allows players to experience multiple civilizations within a single playthrough, offering diverse cultural, military, diplomatic, and economic challenges while maintaining a strong connection to their chosen leader.