We loved Sid Meier’s Civilization IV - in fact, we gave it a ten out of ten - and the follow up expansion, Warlords wasn’t bad at all. So it seems like the obvious choice for developer, Firaxis would be to release yet another expansion with more of the same old same old. After all, if it ain’t broke, why fix it? Why not release another expansion with more leaders, more buildings, a few more units, and ride the cash cow to the bank based on the popularity of all things Sid?

But that’s exactly what Firaxis is not doing this time around with their latest expansion, Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword. Instead, BtS spices things up with a ton of unexpected scenario extras, sporting everything from dragons and spell casters to creepy mechs and zombie-like aliens. With a staggering lineup of such strange and unexpected scenarios, BtS looks ready to carve its way around what might have otherwise been a rather anticlimactic add-on to the Civ IV universe.

Fans of the popular dungeon crawler-like mod, Fall from Heaven, can look forward to a new beefed up campaign in Beyond the Sword. Firaxis designers worked directly with the creators who made the original fantasy-based RPG mod to ensure that the Fall from Heaven: Age of Ice scenario was true to the original.

You’ll control, Kylorin, an ancient hero on a quest to stop the God of Winter, Mulcarn from his nonstop shenanigans of killing everyone with endless sheets of snow. Apparently, the God of Summer was on vacation or taking a nap during the Age of Ice. But that’s OK, because there’s plenty of dungeon crawling goodness infused with traditional Civ IV city-building play to make this four hour adventure worth your while.