Civ 7 Tops 2025's Most Wanted PC Games List

Civ 7 has surged to the forefront as the Most Wanted game of 2025, with its Creative Director shedding light on innovative mechanics designed to enhance campaign engagement. Dive into the details from PC Gamer's event and discover what's in store with Civ 7.

Civ 7 Gaining Momentum Ahead of its 2025 Release

Bagged the Most Wanted Game for 2025

During the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted event on December 6, hosted by PC Gamer, Civ 7 clinched the top position among the most eagerly anticipated games for 2025. This nearly three-hour livestream showcased the top 25 upcoming projects, ranked by The Council—a panel comprising over 70 celebrated developers, content creators, and PC Gamer editors.

In addition to the rankings, the event unveiled new trailers and content for other anticipated titles like Let’s Build a Dungeon and Drivers of the Apocalypse.

Doom: The Dark Ages secured the second spot, followed by Monster Hunter Wilds in third. Slay the Spire 2, an indie darling, claimed the fourth position. Other notable mentions include Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, The Thing: Remastered, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance II. Surprisingly, Hollow Knight: Silksong was absent from the list and its trailer was not featured.

Civilization VII is set to launch simultaneously on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch on February 11, 2025.

Civ 7 Game Mechanic Helps Players Finish Campaigns

In a PC Gamer interview on December 6, Civ 7’s Creative Director, Ed Beach, introduced a new campaign mechanic called Ages, aimed at helping players complete their campaign stories. Data from Civ 6 revealed that many players did not finish their campaigns, prompting Firaxis Games to address this issue in the new game.

"We had a lot of data showing that people would play Civilization games but often wouldn't reach the end. They just wouldn’t finish them. We wanted to reduce micromanagement and restructure the game to tackle this directly," Beach explained.

Civ 7 introduces the Ages feature, dividing a single playthrough into three chapters: the Antiquity Age, the Exploration Age, and the Modern Age. Players can switch to a new civilization at the end of each Age, reflecting the rise and fall of historical empires.

The transition isn't random; the next civilization must have a historical or geographical connection to the previous one. For instance, transitioning from the Roman Empire to the French Empire might involve the Norman Empire as an intermediary.

Your chosen leader remains constant across all Ages, fostering a continuous narrative thread. As stated on Civ 7's official website, "Leaders persist across all Ages, ensuring you always have a sense of who is part of your empire, and who are your rivals."

Additionally, an "overbuild" feature allows players to construct new buildings atop existing ones when transitioning Ages, though some Wonders and buildings will remain unchanged throughout the playthrough.

These new mechanics allow players to experience multiple civilizations within a single campaign, offering fresh approaches to cultural, military, diplomatic, and economic strategies while maintaining a connection to their chosen leader.