Ara: History Untold

“Ara: History Untold brings city-building to Civilization with strategic success.”

Empire-building re-envisaged as managing elaborate production chains, then re-re-envisaged as another 4X with repetitive micromanagement and weak, bland AI.

While Ara: History Untold asks a lot of players, it rewards those willing to put in the hours with a deeply rich gameplay experience that makes them feel like every choice they made shaped their nation and helped their people achieve greatness. From large-scale design innovations to the smallest details, the game delivers an almost flawless experience.

Ara: History Untold is a fantastic 4X strategy title that offers fresh ideas to help it stand aside from its influences.

I know it’s a virtue and all that, but I’m not a patient person. Standing in line, getting stuck in traffic, or waiting for downloads to finish, they all suck. I admire those folks for whom these are opportunities to practice zen-like calm, but I just get annoyed. The same is true of my favorite games, where I like action, movement, and progress. However, I’m willing to slow down and enjoy the chi...

Despite a few issues, I still think Ara: History Untold is some of the most fun I’ve had with a 4X historical nations game that wasn’t Civilization. Oxide Studios clearly knew the assignment and they aced on a number of fronts. It’s a little disappointing that for their experience, they weren’t able to avoid common issues like mid-to-late grind, but if you want a game that will offer plenty of var...

We feel like we’ve only scratched the surface with Ara: History Untold even after thousands of turns and multiple games, but this is a fun take on this type of experience and a great choice if you’re looking for an engaging PC game to pull you in. If you don’t mind history with a bit of a twist and want a game where you can sink hours into each session as you overcome all sorts of challenges and t...

There’s a lot to like about Ara: History Untold, even with the rough edges that appear every so often. Barring some performance issues, I’d say anyone even a little curious about the genre should give the game a shot and try it for themselves (especially if you have Xbox Game Pass). As for those of you with hundreds of hours in 4X games? Well, Civilization VII is still months away and Ara is a wor...

I’m glad there’s another historical 4X on the block - and for those of you who want something a bit meatier than Civ, I think this can fit the bill. ARA: History Untold is bold, innovative and exciting - but thoroughly held back by frustrating problems and an infuriating user experience.

Microsoft attempts to grab some territory from Sid Meier's empire.

No, Ara: History Untold - contrary to marketing slogans - will not be another alternative to the Civilization series. However, this is not a disadvantage, because the game has its own idea and implements it efficiently, although not always consistently.

Build a nation and lead your people throughout history to the pinnacles of human achievement as you explore new lands, develop arts and culture, conduct diplomacy, and go head-to-head with your rivals to prove you are the greatest ruler ever known. It's Your World Now.