What is Freeciv.org?

Updated

Freeciv.org is the official website of Freeciv, a free and open source empire-building strategy game inspired by the history of human civilization. The site is the project's central hub: you can download the current stable release, join the community forum, browse the wiki, connect to the metaserver for online play, follow project news, view screenshots, and find out how to contribute or donate. If you are looking for the game itself, its documentation, or its community, this is the starting point.

What the game is

Freeciv is an empire-building strategy game that begins in prehistory. Your mission is to lead your tribe from the Stone Age to the Space Age. It is developed as a Free and Open Source project, and the site lists features, screenshots, supported languages, and authors as separate entry points.

What you can do on the site

The main navigation and footer links point to:

  • Download — the current stable release, plus an Old downloads page for earlier series.
  • Metaserver — the service used for online multiplayer games.
  • Wiki — project documentation.
  • Forum — community discussion.
  • Development — an invitation for new developers to contribute, with links to the bug tracker, GitHub, and mailing lists.
  • Support — a Donate link.

Current release status

As of the project news on the site, the stable version is 3.2.6, released on 04th Sep 2026. That release fixes two security vulnerabilities in savegame/scenario file handling, along with other bugs. The 3.2 series has been maintained with regular bugfix releases, and the older 3.1 series has also received bugfix releases for players still using it.

A few recent entries from the news list show the pattern:

Date Release Note
04th Sep 2026 3.2.6 Fixes two security vulnerabilities in savegame/scenario file handling, and other bugs
10th Jul 2026 3.2.5 Generic bugfix release in the stable 3.2 series
21st Mar 2026 3.2.4 Fixes security vulnerability in the networking code
17th Jul 2025 3.2.0 Major release; NEWS-3.2.0 describes changes since 3.1.x

If you are installing Freeciv for the first time, the stable 3.2.x line is the one the site presents for download. If you are on an older series, the Old downloads page is where previous stable releases remain available.

Getting involved

The site treats contribution as a first-class activity rather than an afterthought. New developers are explicitly welcomed, and the Development section links to the bug tracker, the Freeciv GitHub repository, and the mailing lists. Non-code participation is also visible through the forum, the wiki, and the Donate link under "Support the Freeciv project."

Where to go next

  • To play: start at Download, then use the Metaserver for online games.
  • To learn the rules and mechanics: the Wiki.
  • To ask questions or meet other players: the Forum.
  • To report a bug or contribute code: the bug tracker, GitHub, or mailing lists linked from Development.