Strategy giant Paradox calls time on its struggling Civilization rival Millennia

Paradox Interactive has put the final nail in the coffin of Millennia just 18 months on from its launch. Developed by C Prompt, it was set up to be the Stellaris and Crusader Kings 3 studio's more direct answer to the established might of Civilization 6 (and pre-empt 2025's Civ 7). Yet it landed to a decidedly lukewarm response, and while updates and expansions brought Steam reviews gradually climbing up to the brink of positivity, Millennia never truly found its footing. Now, the publisher is closing up shop for good.

Alex handed Millennia a respectable 7/10 score in our review at launch, noting that it felt pleasingly reactive but that "a few key issues keep it from greatness." Unfortunately, C Prompt never found the means to make it stand out among the best 4X games on the market. Much like the base game, Millennia's two DLC expansions, Ancient Worlds and Atomic Ambitions, both linger just agonizingly shy of the 70%-positive review average needed to break out of the 'mixed' rating bracket.

"With this patch, we are sadly coming to the end of an age," Paradox writes. "This will be the final patch for Millennia, thanks to C Prompt for their work and support of this game. We at Paradox will no longer be active on community platforms for Millennia, but you can continue counting on us for support needs, and the game will remain available to play indefinitely.

"We want to thank all of you for joining us on this journey, to everyone who played and supported our game. You've been with us from the dawn of Ancient Worlds through your wildest Atomic Ambitions, and it's been an experience for the ages. We hope to see you again in a future era - and may you always prosper."

Ultimately, Millennia had some solid ideas, but it was missing the magic sauce to rise above the crowd. This news also comes at a time when the fortunes of its biggest contenders look to be turning. Initial rumblings around Civ 7 patch 1.2.5 are that it's a much-needed step in the right direction. Ara 2.0 delivers several of the biggest player requests. And the launch of Endless Legend 2 might be the brightest spark among them, even if Amplitude has got a long early-access journey ahead of it.

In response to this news, recent Steam reviews for Millennia have plummeted even further. "This was my promising Civ 4 replacement," writes one user, "but sadly abandoned by Paradox before it could mature." A second says, "This could/should have been good, but sadly it is unfinished and seemingly abandoned. I feel so ripped off." Yet another remarks, "They sold an expansion pass and pumped out the content as fast as possible to then abandon the game. This has a certain ick to it."

Millennia update 8 is out now. You can read through the patch notes via the Paradox forums for a rundown of all the fixes, localization changes, and improvements to mod support.

On the hunt for something else to fill the gap? We've rounded up the best turn-based strategy games and the best management games on PC to give you plenty of choice.

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