While strategy fans eagerly await concrete news of Civilization 7 regarding future updates, another discreet but ambitious 4X game is returning to the forefront: Ara: History Untold. Its new DLC called Untold Scenarios, expected on June 18, aims to appeal to strategists looking for flexibility... without sacrificing history. An original proposition, which could fill some of the gaps felt in its famous rival, Firaxis.
Civilization 7's competitor has a great announcement to make
In most traditional 4X games, the road to victory imposes an early and often irreversible choice: military domination, cultural supremacy, scientific breakthrough... This is the case in Civilization 7. Ara breaks this straitjacket. Here, all your actions—war, trade, industry, diplomacy—feed into an overall prestige score, the only condition for victory. This mechanic encourages experimentation, without locking the player into a single strategy from the first turns. This less restrictive system allows for a more fluid evolution of empires, while maintaining a tactical requirement. You can thus change course during the game without being penalized, a rarity in the genre.
While Ara aims to be more flexible in its objectives than Civilization 7, it remains meticulous in its management. Production and construction are based on a craft system where each resource is manually selected. Rather than opting for excessive automation, the game focuses on fine customization of the economy and urban planning. An interesting balance between accessibility and depth, reminiscent of the best moments of the Anno series.
A DLC to play with History... or reinvent it
With Untold Scenarios, Ara takes a new step by enriching its post-launch content. The DLC offers two types of scenarios, quite different from Civilization 7.
- Historical scenarios, faithful to significant events like the collapse of the Bronze Age, for those looking for documented immersion.
- Hypothetical scenarios, freer and more offbeat, exploring alternative realities. Ideal for those who like to shake up timelines and test bold "what ifs."
This dual game mode reflects the philosophy of the title: offering tools to relive history... or rewrite it in your own way. For some time now, Stardock studio (to whom we owe Sins of a Solar Empire) has taken over the development of the additional content. This partnership already seems to be bearing fruit with this first well-thought-out DLC, which could put a spotlight back on a game that is still too little known.
Source: Ara
0 Comments