Aliens, space marines and giant mechs aren't the kind of thing you'd normally associate with Sid Meier's Civilization franchise. But after the massive success of Firaxis Games' X-Com reboot XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and a couple of expansions for Civilization 5, the American developer is finally ready to move forward. Well, sort of.

Civilization: Beyond Earth was already announced back during E3, with a few trailers and gameplay snippets teased, but now we have a more in-depth look at some of the mechanics. What you'll notice first and foremost, is the departure from the historical theme, to a fully fledged futuristic theme, with a focus on colonization and exploration.

It's still Civilization at its core, but a lot of new things have been added. For example, those of you with a complete lack of imagination will enjoy the implementation of Quests, which basically help you direct your efforts in various ways, without having to be creative about it. You'll now cling to affinities that are more or less similar in nature to the older Civ games. Purists are the more religious kinds of people, who want to turn the planet into a "New Earth", the supermacists want never-ending expansion, and the naturalists are... well, they're naturalists. Harmony seems to be their motto.

Civilization: Beyond Earth is set to release on October 24.