Civilization 6: Gathering Storm came out last week, and it is the latest expansion in the Civ series. And I’ll tell you something: it’s a good one. In the simplest form possible, Gathering Storm has changed everything in the series, so let’s get into a quick take of Civilization 6: Gathering Storm.

While the last expansion in Sid Meier’s Civilization 6 represented the Rise and Fall of civilizations–and the loyalty of their people–Gathering Storm represents change. The expansion has added climate change, which is customizable. You can decide to pollute everything and melt the polar ice-caps, sinking all the land, or you can go the opposite route by putting up a bunch of windmills everywhere (which is usually what the AI does). This expansion also adds the long-awaited Global Congress, which is actually a hold-over feature from the previous Civ games. The Global Congress basically acts as today’s UN; it is the peacekeeping organization. It also keeps the environment in check. For example, its members can call an emergency if, say, the sea levels are rising too high, or the polar ice-caps are melting. This Global Congress also introduces the “diplomatic victory,” a new victory condition achieved by saving the world (the boring way). This is the way the U.S won in real life, but then again you could argue any victory condition for them.

One of my favorite parts of these new Civ 6 expansions are the introductions of new leaders to play as. Here are some of my favorites:

• Kupe’s Maori: This is my personal favorite new Civ in the expansion, solely because the concept is so interesting. The Maori’s units actually begin in the ocean, so you have to journey to land to settle down, just as the actual Maori did in real life (or at least as the legend is told). Another plus is that whenever you build a new fishing boat improvement, your land increases by 3 tiles. I see they took the advice from Australia, who does the same with pastures.

• Eleanor of Aquitaine’s England/France: This is another interesting concept civ, since Eleanor leads both England and France, which is a first in the entire Civ franchise. While both nations have their advantages, I find France to be superior than England (which is the first time I’ve ever said that) since it’s just more unique; Eleanor’s England is basically just a carbon-copy of Victoria’s England, but with a different color.

• Kristina’s Sweden: Finally, Sweden returns to Civilization, but we’re not led by Gustavus Adolphus this time. Kristina takes the reigns, and she’s basically tailored for a diplomatic victory, since they get diplomatic favors whenever a great person is earned. Their new defensive unit is interesting too, since they are more powerful the less they move (so they’re basically just lazy).

Gathering Storm makes you feel as if your choices have actions. With new climate and diplomacy scenarios,  you feel as if the balance of world peace (or destruction) is in your hands. Your actions now have consequences–consequences that could make or break the entire game. In conclusion, Gathering Storm is by far the best Civ 6 expansion yet, with new features and new leaders that really brings change to the franchise.