‘Civilizations VI’ Brings Australia To The Franchise In Upcoming DLC

Civilizations VI is bringing yet another nation into the fold with an upcoming DLC, which will bring Australia as a playable nation in the award-winning franchise for the first time ever.

Australia will be led by the World War II era prime minister, John Curtis. His special ability is Citadel of Civilization, which buffs up Australia’s production levels massively any time the country is fighting a defensive war or has liberated a city. To be specific, he doubles Australia’s production, and the buff is triggered if someone has declared war on Australia within the last 10 turns, or if a city has been liberated in the last 20.

Whether or not that ability can be abused remains to be seen, though hopefully, 2K has ensured there is some sort of timer or the like preventing exploits of a war/peace state switcheroo.

Australia itself, apart from Curtis, has some pretty interesting abilities in Civilizations 6 (the ability is The Land Down Under). Any city built next to a water tile will receive a major bonus to housing, reducing the need for early game expansion into that aspect. Various buildings also receive a boost based on the appeal of the area. According to Gamespot, Australia’s “Campuses, Commercial Hubs, Holy Sites, and Theater Squares all receive extra bonuses when they’re constructed on tiles with Charming or Breathtaking-level appeal.”

The abilities Civ 6 gives to Australia are remarkably appropriate considering the development of the continent and its high focus on tourism. And Civ 6 even gives Australia an accurate unique building, the Outback Station, which gives food and production bonuses but also allows the player to steal tiles from bordering civilizations.

And to top it off, Australia has a very powerful unique unit which replaces the infantry. The “Diggers” as they are commonly known as historically, get a pair of buffs when compared to standard infantry. They get a boost when fighting next to water, and also get buffed when fighting in territory not controlled by Australia. These buffs will make them some of the best D-Day invasion troops available in the game, no doubt leading to a more aggressive play-style from people who enjoy invading other continents.

Considering Civilization 6 pushes Australia towards the coasts, the water buff makes playing Australia as more of a pirate nation (in custom maps) a rather potent option. Imagine a world with a bunch of archipelagos. The Australian nation would have a field day in such a situation, and even in a map with a large amount of land, the Outback Station will help Australia maintain relevance even when coasts are not as readily available.

Neither a price nor a release date has been released for this upcoming Civilizations VI DLC, though if you look at recent nation DLC’s, like Poland, it seems likely that Australia (if released on its own) will be around $5 or so.

2K will be releasing more than just Australia when it comes out. The company expects to release major tools for modders and content creators as well. According to the official Civ 6 post, “Multiplayer teams and mod tools have been two of the community’s most-requested features, and we’re happy to bring them to Civilization VI. Steam Workshop will allow you to browse, add, and subscribe to mods more easily, and the other tools will make it easier for artists and modders to express their creativity within the game. With the update to multiplayer you will be able to team up with your friends to conquer the world together against AI or human opponents.”

So what are your thoughts on the upcoming release of Australia for Civilizations 6? Tell us what you think in the comments section below!

[Featured Image by Civilizations VI/Firaxis]