Spanning over two decades with seven core entries and numerous expansions, Sid Meier’s Civilization and the games that followed have become cornerstones of the gaming industry. With Civilization: Beyond Earth, developer Firaxis is finally taking a break from playing in the past, and instead is looking onward towards humanity’s future. There’s no better time than now to look back at this 4X strategy series’ evolution and rediscover the origins of these incredibly engrossing games. Unless, of course, you’re thinking of Civilization World. This ill-conceived Facebook game has been annexed from our list and has since been discontinued.