Ara: History Untold v2.1 Update Adds National Crafting Policy System, Now Available

Update addresses the most-requested change since launch by letting players set their empire's crafting priorities at the nation level

PLYMOUTH, Mich., June 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Stardock Entertainment and Oxide Games, in partnership with Xbox Game Studios, released the v2.1 Update for Ara: History Untold today, introducing a new National Crafting Policy System that addresses the most-common piece of player feedback since launch: managing crafting across a large empire took too long. With v2.1, players set their empire's crafting priorities once at the nation level, and every crafter follows the policy automatically. The free update is available now on Steam for all players.

Ara: History Untold is a turn-based 4X strategy game where players guide a civilization from antiquity to the modern era. Players build cities, run detailed crafting and production chains, lead armies, and shape their nation's culture and religion as they compete with rival civilizations for power and influence. The depth of Ara's crafting and civilization-building has been a hallmark of the game since launch, but managing that depth at the scale of a large empire required significant player attention.

The new National Crafting Policy System changes that. Players can set crafting priorities and production goals at the nation level, and every crafter in the empire then follows the policy automatically, without the need to manage individual workshops. Players who want fine-grained control in specific cities can still override the policy whenever they want, through a new three-mode dropdown on the Improvement Panel. The result is a game that asks players to think like rulers, not foremen.

"The biggest piece of feedback we got from Ara players was that managing crafting across a large empire took too long," said Brad Wardell, CEO of Stardock. "The v2.1 Update fixes that without taking control away from the players who want it. You set the direction at the nation level, override the cities that need a different approach, and spend your time on the parts of the game you actually want to play."

v2.1 Update Key Features

• National Crafting Policy System. Set your empire's crafting priorities once at the nation level, and every crafter in the empire follows the policy automatically. A new three-mode dropdown on the Improvement Panel lets you override the policy for any city or any individual crafter whenever you want.
• Expanded Culture Traits. Twenty-seven new Culture Traits across all six domains (Commerce, Military, Science, Government, Religion, and Industrial), giving players more meaningful options when spending Influence and more ways to shape their civilization's identity.
• New Religious Verses. Seven new verses that pair with the expanded culture options, giving religion-focused civilizations more ways to shape their empire's character.
• Balance and Gameplay Refinements. Cities accumulate workers faster as they level up, AI civilizations now settle with more variation in distance from other civilizations, and notification controls have been expanded to reduce noise during the late game.
• Stability and Performance Improvements. Terrain rendering fixes, CPU optimization through adaptive spin-wait, multiplayer turn resolver updates, font rendering improvements, and UI fixes for dropdown menus.

Beyond the policy system, the v2.1 Update expands the cultural and religious depth of Ara with a large set of new Culture Traits and religious verses, giving players more meaningful choices about how to spend Influence and how to define what their civilization stands for. The update also includes balance refinements tuned to the late-game pace and a round of stability and performance improvements.

Ara: History Untold v2.1 is now available as a free update with purchase or existing entitlement of the base game on Steam and Xbox Game Pass for PC. For the latest information on updates, community initiatives, and future content, visit the official website at www.arahistoryuntold.com.

About Stardock Entertainment
Stardock is a pioneer in the strategy gaming genre headquartered in Plymouth, Mich. that has been developing and publishing strategy and simulation games since 1993, starting with the original release of Galactic Civilizations. Stardock's recent hits include Sins of a Solar Empire, Ashes of the Singularity, Elemental: Fallen Enchantress, and Offworld Trading Company. Learn more at www.stardock.com.

About Oxide Games
Oxide Games is a video game studio founded in January 2013 by a group of veteran strategy game developers, including Dan Baker, Brian Wade, Marc Meyer, Tim Kipp, and Brad Wardell. Leadership at Oxide Games previously worked on ground-breaking strategy titles, such as Sid Meier's Civilization V & VI. Oxide Games developed the Nitrous Engine to support the release of Ashes of the Singularity, which continues to set GPU benchmarking standards. Oxide Games released 4X grand strategy title Ara: History Untold alongside Xbox Game Studios in 2024.

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SOURCE Stardock Entertainment