As Civilization 7 devs Firaxis prepare to unleash the nukes, the strategy game's latest update whips out a fresh take on the classic Real Earth map

Update 1.5.0 is out today, September 15th

The September update for Civ 7 arrives today, September 15th. It's got a handful of new maps, including a fresh version of the real life-mimicking True Start Earth playing field, and updates to diplomacy that'll stop you being automatically dragged into your allies' wars.

The True Start Location Earth map added to the game by update 1.5.0 does the classic job of mirroring where your civ would start off in the real world, making it easy to roleplay alternate history for those keen on maintaining some accuracy. As senior game designer Taymoor Rehman explained in the video above, it's been fitted with "some new twists that are entirely unique to Civilization 7", such as areas like Japan and Hawaii being "magnified" to better fit multiple civs.

"If you’ve played previous Earth maps, you probably remember large swaths of empty Tundra on the top of the map, or open Ocean on the bottom" Rehman added in a separate post going into more depth about the map's new elements, which also include navigable rivers. "While these were accurate to the planet, they took up space on an already-busy map. We’ve truncated both the top and bottom of the map as much as possible to free up space for more interesting gameplay. There is still a very recognisable, if shorter, northern Tundra, and most of the open Ocean in the South has been cut away entirely. This allowed us to make some central sections of the map, especially near Europe, Persia, China, and North America much more open."

Outside of that map, the update updates Terra Incognita and Shuffle ones to work with the studio's Voronoi map generation algorithm, hopefully leading to more variety. The most noteworthy non-map-related tweaks are to diplomacy, with Civ 7 now letting you spend influence points if you want to avoid being roped into a war one of your allies has declared. Thankfully, it's not as simple as only having to say no once to easily get out of every non-ideal situation, as it seems allies will keep trying to get you on board and thereby force you to spend a lot of your precious points if you want to fence-sit. Meanwhile, if two of your allies decide to batter each other, you will have to pick one side or the other, rather than chewing popcorn as you watch the drama unfold. Rehman teased that mechanics like liberation, which hands a settlement back to its original owner, are planned to arrive further down the road.

Interface -wise, update 1.5.0 also adds an overlay dubbed the "radial ruler", which makes it easier to see which tiles are within certain distances from each other, which is often what determines whether they're benefitting from different boons linked to specific locations, buildings, or wonders.

Finally, Civ 7's next paid DLC, the Hall of History collection, is out alongside today's update. It includes two new leaders in the form of Tudor English Queen Elizabeth I and first US president George Washington, plus three new civs - England, Babylon, and the Gauls.

All of this is arriving as Firaxis build to adding a new age next year with the beefy Arc of Tomorrow update and put folks on the moon with the paid Earthrise expansion.