Of course the original editions of the Steam Charts focused on those maps used by the early pioneers of steam-based exploration, so this week we take a historical look back at the origins of your favourite game series. For just one week, put aside your modern electricity-based computing, and come on a journey through time.

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The game you like isn’t as good as the game I like. When you like the game you like, you are made to look a fool!

Find out why in this week’s Steam Charts.

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Ghengis Khan keeps sending me charity donations. The Aztecs are increasingly angrily demanding that I give them an Edgar Allen Poe novel. A volcano just erupted over Dutch Disneyland. The World Congress is trying to stop climate change by running a gameshow.

I used to fret that Civilization VI wasn’t memorable. With the Gathering Storm expansion, for better or worse, it’s unforgettable.

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Conquer em up turn-based strategy game Civilization VI adds a flood of new content today with the Gathering Storm expansion including literal floods. Climate change is here, it’s bringing natural disasters, and it s probably your fault for getting too greedy with the factories while trying to outpace Pericles.

Luckily, new diplomatic solutions are also arriving, so everyone will agree to work together and save the planet. Right?

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I took it for granted. I knew I shouldn’t, I think I even knew I was doing it at the time. But last week, when the charts were filled with new and interesting games, pushing out the tired and bloated titles, I didn’t take the time to recognise what we had. And now, as can only be the direct responsibility of my careless credulity, everything has fallen apart.

This week’s charts are the worst I’ve ever seen. And I’m sorry. I’m… look, I’m just sorry.

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Wow 2019 is a thing, huh? How are we all doing? Relieved? Bowling a hangover and a nagging sense of trepidation? Maybe you work in retail and, surprise! You were supposed to be at work half an hour ago. Time loses all meaning post-New Year break, doesn’t it? You’re just sort of adrift in a sea of empty Quality Street wrappers. That’s okay. We’re all there too.

Pretty soon the grim news cycle is going to grind to life again. Only three months until — no! Don’t think about it. We still have a moment here, on the crinkly, brightly coloured waves. Listen to their quiet rustling and think, not about reality, but about games! Yes, lovely, shiny games. We can bury our face right in them. And from that point of view the next 12 months are looking pretty good. Here’s our selection of the games we’re most looking forward to next year.

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It’s easy to forget that human civilisation has only been around for a tiny fraction of Earth’s history, and that mother nature is a stone cold killer. Our planet and how we affect it is the focus of Gathering Storm, the second major expansion for Sid Meier’s Civilization 6. There are natural disasters capable of levelling entire kingdoms, and the constant, looming threat of man-made destruction if the environment gets too damaged through humanity’s reckless ascent. The new expansion launches on February 14th. Check out the announcement trailer below.

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A patch for Civilization VI last night removed Red Shell, a controversial piece of software that track ads for the game which players might have viewed. Considering that a common event in any game of Civ is once-friendly faces turning sour after they discover you’ve been spying on them, you’d think publishers 2K might have just… not. But they did. Red Shell has risen to prominence in recent months for all the wrong reasons, discovered in games from Vermintide 2 to Conan Exiles by players who were none too happy to find it. Many developers have removed Red Shell from their games or pledged to, and here’s Civ doing its part. (more…)

A good spring clean is cathartic after the long and dark winter, and Firaxis will surely feel better after releasing the Spring 2018 Update for Civilization VI later today. Along with improving joint wars, tweaking balance, fixing bug, and making the AI slightly less of a big silly, it adds some new Historic Moments for a fresh breath of springtime air in the Rise And Fall expansion. These include such world-changing moments as the building of the first seaside resort, the founding of the first national park, and the completion of the first totally rad tricked-out water park with a pool, aquarium, Ferris wheel, and all that. Ah, to be stuck indoors on a beautiful day like this… (more…)

Sid [Meier] didn t know he was inventing a genre back in 91 – if he had he might have been a lot more careful. He was just making it up as he went along.

That s how genres begin. By mistake. Somebody creates a set of rules and systems for the needs of a particular game, and then either people adopt and adapt those rules. Soren Johnson, creator of Offworld Trading Company and lead designer of Civilization IV, is working on a new game called Ten Crowns and after spending almost an hour talking with him at GDC, I get the impression he s going to be very careful indeed. Not cautious, because I expect some bold reinvention of 4X strategy fundamentals, but careful in his treatment of a genre that we both agree needs to escape its own past.

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