From the IGN interview.
There was only one problem with adding all this new content to the late game: quite often the game is already over, or at least its outcome has been determined, before the modern era has arrived.
Advance starts does not solve the problem for anyone who doesn't intend on using them, most likely players are going to have to disable the Apostolic Palace & new victory type just to be able to make it throught into the modern ages.However, this problem has been solved by the new option of Advanced Starts. Advanced Starts is a pre-game setup phase players use to purchase cities, improvements, buildings, technologies, and units.