Aspyr Media Announces Sid Meier’s Civilization® V: Gods & Kings Expansion Pack Now Available for Mac

Wait is over for massive expansion of critically acclaimed strategy game

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aspyr Media, in partnership with 2K Games and Firaxis Games announced today that Sid Meier's Civilization® V: Gods & Kings, the expansion pack for the award-winning Civilization V, is now available for the Mac in North America and will be available internationally on June 22, 2012. Sid Meier's Civilization V: Gods & Kings enhances the Civilization V experience with new gameplay content and provides even more ways for players to achieve world domination. Spanning the breadth of human civilization, the Gods & Kings expansion pack takes players from founding the first Pantheon of the Gods and spreading religion across the world, to deploying spies in enemy cities to steal information and technology, and much more.

“Gods and Kings is the ultimate Civilization V addition, and we think fans and newcomers both will enjoy the rich new content.”

“Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings coming to the Mac and the Mac App Store day-and-date with the PC release is great for Civilization fans,” said Ted Staloch, executive vice president of Aspyr Media. “Gods and Kings is the ultimate Civilization V addition, and we think fans and newcomers both will enjoy the rich new content.”

Developed by Firaxis Games and brought to the Mac by Aspyr Media, Sid Meier’s Civilization V: God & Kings takes players through time as they engage in new quests and global competitions, interact with new types of city-states, and master exciting new systems for land and naval combat. Nine new civilizations, each ruled by a new leader; nine new wonders; three original scenarios; and dozens of new units, buildings, technologies and resources have also been added, offering even more ways for players to expand their empire on their quest to rule the world.

Key features include:

• Expanded Epic Game: The core game experience has been greatly expanded with the addition of new technologies, 27 new units, 13 new buildings and nine new Wonders;
• New Civilizations and Leaders: Gods & Kings features nine new civilizations, each with unique traits, units, buildings and leaders;
• New Game Scenarios: Three new scenarios let gamers experience the medieval period, the fall of Rome, and embark on a new adventure in Empires of the Smoky Skies, a Victorian steampunk scenario;
• The Return of Religion: A first for Civilization V, players seek out Faith, choosing a Pantheon of the Gods and creating Great Prophets to found and spread their customized religion across the world;
• World Domination: The fight for world domination is more dynamic than ever. Gods & Kings features a reworked combat system and AI that places more emphasis on a balanced army composition. Additionally, the navy is now split into two different ship types, melee and ranged, making coastal cities vulnerable to a surprise naval attack;
• Enhanced Diplomacy and Espionage: Establish embassies at foreign courts for closer ties or clandestine operations. As the religions of the world start settling in and the world moves into the Renaissance, spies can be unlocked to establish surveillance of foreign cities, steal advanced technologies from your strongest competitors, or garner influence with City-States through election rigging, or even a coup;
• City-States: Two new city-state types have been added, Mercantile and Religious, adding new gameplay to a greatly expanded quest system to further the narrative of the game and making diplomatic victories more challenging.

Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Gods & Kings is rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older) by the ESRB and is available now for download on the Mac for $29.99. Gods and Kings is also available as an In-App Purchase in Civilization V: Campaign Edition from the Mac App Store. For the latest news and information on Gods & Kings for the Mac, please visit www.aspyr.com.

2K Games is a division of 2K, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO).

About Aspyr Media

Aspyr Media, Inc. is the leading publisher of Mac® games, bringing blockbuster gaming franchises including Call of Duty®, Sid Meier’s Civilization®, Star Wars®, and DOOM® to Mac computers around the world. Headquartered in Austin, TX, Aspyr develops, markets and sells games for the Mac which are delivered through physical retail and digital download services. More information about Aspyr and its games may be found at www.aspyr.com. All marks and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About 2K

Founded in 2005, 2K develops and publishes interactive entertainment for console systems, handheld gaming systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets through its three divisions: 2K Games, 2K Sports, and 2K Play that are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services. 2K publishes titles in today’s most popular gaming genres, including first-person shooters, action, role-playing, real-time strategy, sports, casual, and family entertainment. The 2K label has some of the most talented development studios in the world today, including Firaxis Games, Visual Concepts, Irrational Games, 2K Marin, 2K Australia, 2K Czech, Cat Daddy Games, and 2K China. In just a few short years, 2K launched the 2007 Game of the Year - BioShock®; published the critically acclaimed Borderlands™; continued the award-winning Sid Meier’s Civilization® series; delivered the #1 rated and #1 selling basketball franchise with NBA® 2K*; and broke new ground in the family entertainment market with its multi-million unit selling hit Carnival Games. 2K is headquartered in Novato, California and is a wholly owned label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO). For more information, please visit www.2K.com.

*According to 2008 - 2012 Gamerankings.com and The NPD Group estimates of U.S. retail video game sales through May 2012.

About Firaxis Games

Firaxis Games™ is one of the world’s premier game development studios, and home of legendary designer Sid Meier. Firaxis has developed some of the most successful and award-winning computer and video games on the market today including: Sid Meier’s Civilization® Revolution™ for console, iPhone®, iPod Touch®, iPad® and Nintendo DS™; 2005 PC Game of the Year - Sid Meier’s Civilization IV®; the expansions Civilization IV: Warlords®; Civilization IV: Beyond The Sword™ and Civilization IV: Colonization™; the blockbuster Sid Meier’s Civilization® III series; Sid Meier’s Pirates!® (Windows PC, Xbox 360^® and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system); Sid Meier’s SimGolf™ and Sid Meier’s Railroads!™. Firaxis legacy titles include the Sid Meier's Civil War Series! ™ (Gettysburg!, Antietam!, and South Mountain), and the Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri® series. In 2005, Firaxis Games was acquired by Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., joining its 2K publishing label. The company most recently released Sid Meier’s Civilization® V for Windows PC to great critical acclaim; Sid Meier’s Civilization World™ for Facebook; and is currently developing XCOM: Enemy Unknown for Windows PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 system.

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