'Civilization VI' bulks up for winter with Poland, Viking scenario packs

By Danny Cowan Published December 21, 2016

Developer Firaxis updated its 4X strategy game Civilization VI with Poland and Viking Scenario Packs, which arrive this week alongside a wide range of bugfixes and balance tweaks.

In addition to serving as a backdrop for the Scenario Pack, Poland emerges as a playable Civilization with Firaxis’ latest update, giving veteran players a new challenge based on 14th-century historical events.

Recommended Videos

Civilization VI‘s new Poland Civilization & Scenario Pack puts players in control of Jadwiga, Poland’s first female monarch. In addition to getting a new playable civilization, players who purchase the content pack will also unlock the Jadwiga’s Legacy scenario, the Winged Hussar unit, and the Sukiennice building type.

Jadwiga players will enjoy a variety of exclusive perks on the battlefield, including a “Golden Liberty” ability that enables automatic territory expansion upon building a fort or encampment. The Golden Liberty skill additionally allows players to spread their religions to nearby territories, expanding their reign while ensuring bonus faith, culture, and gold resources.

Also available for purchase this week is the Vikings Scenario Pack, which introduces “the most detailed scenario released yet for Civilization VI,” along with three new natural wonders and six new city-states.

This week’s free Winter Update further tweaks the core Civilization VI experience with new features like an “alert” action that puts friendly units to sleep until they spot an enemy unit, giving players more options during battle. Other additions arriving alongside the Winter Update include a brand-new Earth map, a scenario setup menu, and a replay option for wonder completion movies.

The Vikings Scenario Pack and the Poland Civilization & Scenario Pack are priced at $5 apiece and are included as part of the Civilization VI Digital Deluxe Edition.

Former Contributor

Danny’s passion for video games was ignited upon his first encounter with Nintendo’s Duck Hunt, and years later, he still…

Topics

Tech News

Gaming

Forget console wars. Steam Machine may help kill lazy PC gaming ports

Valve’s expensive mini PC could become PC gaming’s new baseline

Steam Machine with Steam Controller

Valve’s Steam Machine has become easy to dunk on. The price starts well above current consoles, and the hardware sits somewhere between entry-level and mid-range gaming PCs rather than a monster rig. Early reviews have also talked about how demanding games need upscaling, trimmed settings, and realistic expectations.

With the ongoing memory crisis, it sounds like a rough time to bring a PC to the couch. Though the Steam Machine doesn't need to beat high-end gaming PCs or the big consoles. Its purpose was different from the start. And what really makes it better is how it could shift the PC gaming segment entirely.

Gaming

GTA 6 may not get the real physical release fans were hoping for

The game may come in a case, but not on a disc

GTA 6 cover art

Grand Theft Auto 6 pre-orders recently went live, but the excitement came with one frustrating catch. The so-called physical edition of the game will not include a disc. Instead, buyers will get a box with cover art and a download code inside.

That decision immediately caused backlash online, especially among collectors who still care about owning games on disc. For a while, there was some hope that this would only be temporary. Reports suggested that Rockstar could release a proper disc version of GTA 6 in December 2026, giving physical media fans something to wait for.

Gaming

The Steam Machine launch hasn’t even happened, but the resale circus has begun

Scalpers are already trying to cash in on Valve’s Steam Machine

Valve Steam Machine Featured Design Coverplate

Valve has started sending out reservation emails for the Steam Machine ahead of its June 30 launch, and scalpers have wasted no time turning the whole thing into a comedy act.

The Steam Machine is already an expensive device, as RAM and SSD prices have made hardware pricing miserable across the industry. Valve has previously said it would like to lower the price if component costs improve. That makes the resale listings even harder to take seriously, because the official price was already higher than many people expected before scalpers added their own fantasy tax.