2K and Firaxis Games have announced that Sid Meier’s Civilization VI will come to PC on Oct. 21, 2016.

In addition to the game’s announcement, the developer has also released some in-game screenshots, the official boxart of the game, and an announcement trailer.

Civilization VI Announced for PC

Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Civilization franchise, Sid Meier’s Civilization VI will provide players with new ways to interact with the in-game world and expansion options. Speaking of this, president of 2K Games Christopher Hartmann said:

“The games Sid Meier’s Civilization have a reputation that defines the genre of empire – building games over the last 25 years. We cannot imagine a better way to celebrate the silver jubilee of our franchise longer than the expected launch of Sid Meier’s Civilization VI, which provide more detailed, beautiful, comprehensive ever offered in a game experience Civilization.”

In Civilization VI, cities will play an important role than ever before! Instead of taking up one tile, cities in Civilization VI will spread across multiple tiles. In addition to this, districts – which are important sections of a city – will require a separate tile. In addition to this, locations will be of paramount importance in the game. For example, a city built near water will gain special benefits regarding water-related technologies.

“Every tech in the game has these boosts, so that the way that you play, the things that you do in the world actually help you go down certain paths in the tech tree, which to us felt a lot more interesting. When you place that first city, after you’ve played a few times, your mind really starts going and the gears start turning, when you’re looking at the area around your city and deciding what kind of city it’s going to be. You don’t have room for everything, so you’re going to have decisions to make.”

Another big change that players will experience is called Dynamic Diplomacy. This feature will basically dictate how AI characters will react to players through the course of the game. These reactions will basically be triggered by players’ actions during the game. Speaking of this, the game’s lead AI designer Andrew Garrett said:

“Each leader has a historical agenda that’s associated with them, that reflects in some way who they were in history. We want them to be understandable to the player, but also to provide a challenge and a different game each time.”

Coming to changes related to visual fidelity of the game, Civilization VI was built on a completely brand-new engine which will give it more detailed and vibrant look than its predecessors. Aside from this, AI characters will be more expressive in the game and players will be able to judge their mood by just looking at them. Moreover, the city tiles will be easier to differentiate by the players. However, Firaxis Games did not want to do a complete graphics overhaul because it was not required.

Civilization VI is now available for pre-orders on Steam for $59.99. 2K and Firaxis Games have also announced a Digital Deluxe Edition which includes the base game, the soundtrack for 25th Anniversary of the franchise, four DLC packs which will bring new leaders, scenarios, civilizations, and maps.

Civilization VI is scheduled to release on Oct. 21, 2016 for PC.