The award-winning Sid Meier's Civilization VI is coming to Android devices today from developer Aspyr and 2K Games. As far as PC strategy games go, the Civilization series is one of the most revered, both for its longevity and its accessibility. Starting its life in 1991 under the Microprose label, the series has grown in size and complexity with the times, much like a player's towns and city-states in an hours-long game. The developers at Aspyr have long been in charge of porting the game from the PC onto consoles and mobile devices, which continues with today's new release on Android.
First released in 2016 on PC, Civilization VI is still getting plenty of updates four years later. There have been two expansion packs - one focused on global eras called Rise and Fall and another centered around climate change called Gathering Storm. Following those releases, Firaxis unveiled the New Frontier Pass, a bi-monthly content drip that introduces updates like new civilizations, game modes, leaders, and buildings to the mix. The season pass is already in progress on console and PC platforms, and 2K says that it will arrive later this year on mobile platforms.
Now, for the first time, players on Android phones and tablets can experience the full edition of Sid Meier's Civilization VI. While stripped-down versions of the franchise like Civilization Revolution have been available on Google's phone platform in the past, today marks the first time that fans can take the genuine article with them on the go. The game sells for $20 on the Google Play store, but players can sample it for 60 turns free before making a purchase. The game already supports both of Civilization VI's expansion packs as well as existing Civilization and Scenario packs.
Elizabeth Howard, vice president of publishing at Aspyr, says she's thrilled that her company is able to bring this long-running series to a new platform.
For those who love strategy games, Sid Meier’s Civilization VI is a die-hard, must-play classic that until now, wasn’t an option for Android users. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce that this epic world is now available for Android gamers to enjoy for the first time ever.
While this is the first main series Civilization game to make the jump to Android, it's not the first Firaxis game to do so. XCOM: Enemy Within, the highly successful reboot of its tactics franchise, got a highly-praised port on both iOS and Android in 2014.
Seeing a game with the scale of Civilization VI hit Android is a sign of the times. It wasn't too long ago that games launched with multiple forms for multiple consoles, with portable versions being even more reduced in size and scale. Gaming devices have become less differentiated as games have demanded more capable hardware and gamers have demanded cross-platform parity. Civilization VI's Android release shows just how far developers like Aspyr are now able to go to bring their games to the widest audience possible.