A good game with a lot of depth – just what one would expect from Paradox. Play it through once or twice just for fun, then grab one of the strategy guides that will be popping up to more fully appreciate the mechanics.
A worthwhile expansion for fans of the series. A couple new races and hypergates freshen up a 4X veteran.
They make the game better. Definitely worth picking up.
If you have wasted great gobs of your life playing Civ 6, or feel like you have figured it out, this is a good expansion to make you rethink a game you thought you knew.
An example of what a good expansion can be. Adds depth and breadth to the original. Worth the 20 bucks, and more.
Civilization remains the preeminent turn-based strategy game. This iteration has a lot of good ideas and a few flaws in execution. The flaws will be fixed, the good ideas will stay and deepen over time.
In summary, if you like GalCiv3, you will like this expansion. The primary problem with it is simply the lack of new material. Other than the Bazaar, this has the feeling of a well-done couple of DLCs. Not really worth the 20 bucks except for fans of the series.
Fans of CivBE will want to pick this one up. While nothing groundbreaking has been added, the new features flesh out some gameplay from the original, and add the new frontier of aquatic colonization. Perhaps a little heavy on the micromanagement, the overall pace of the game retains that "one more turn" quality.
Tried and true mechanics combine with flexible customization and an interesting asymmetric challenge to create a fun, challenging game. Worth playing for both newcomers and fantasy TBS veterans alike. A dash of humor and sense of progress make the time fly by.
A good game marred by bugs and lack of documentation. Once it is fixed it should be back on top but it does not justify a higher score.