8.5 Best turn based game yet!

Civilization 5 is the latest and greatest in this genre.

They bring together many of the best elements of past games into one.
Adding in updated graphics with a large tech tree makes for an enjoyable game.

Graphics:
Much improved over past civilization games.

Game play:
Decide how you want to win. Win through war or by peaceful achievements.
Choose your leader accordingly as they have special abilities that will help you
achieve your goal.

There is a lot going on at one time with in your own borders.
Fortunately there are pop up advisors to help you understand what is going on.
You can choose to listen to/read a short paragraph of what they have to say, or simply close there window and go on your way.

Pros:
Better combat system is now based on strategy.
Core game play is overall great!
You can add in gamer mods through the user interface.

Cons:
You can't force your religion or culture on others. Instead you increase it within your own population.

Sometimes other nations will be aggressive along your borders, forcing you to win via military, even if you were going for a science or overall score victory.

Diplomacy is still lacking, making it difficult to trade with others, though they will offer to trade with you with there own ideals.

Other thoughts:
You won't be disappointed in purchasing this game.

System requirements:

Minimum Requirements
Operating System: Windows® XP SP3/ Windows® Vista SP2/ Windows® 7
Processor: Dual Core CPU
Memory: 2GB RAM
Hard Disk Space: 8 GB Free
DVD-ROM Drive: Required for disc-based installation
Video: 256 MB ATI HD2600 XT or better, 256 MB nVidia 7900 GS or better, or Core i3 or better integrated graphics
Sound: DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound card
DirectX®: DirectX® version 9.0c

Recommended Requirements
Operating System: Windows® Vista SP2/ Windows® 7
Processor: 1.8 GHz Quad Core CPU
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Hard Disk Space: 8 GB Free
DVD-ROM Drive: Required for disc-based installation
Video: 512 MB ATI 4800 series or better, 512 MB nVidia 9800 series or better
Sound: DirectX 9.0c-compatible sound card
DirectX®: DirectX® version 11

Civilization 5 Is a Beta Release - Wait for the PATCH !

This game has great graphics and great potential. There are a lot of things I do like about this game - only problem is I am never able to finish a game before the game freezes us and crashes.

HUGE problem is this game is very unstable no matter how powerful a computer you have. In some cases, the game won't play at all. In some cases when it does play, afte so many turns it sloowwwsss down and then comes to a standstill.

It is obvious to many people playing this game that the company launched a game still in Beta stage and eventually the game may become great when they make enough patches for it.

My strongest advice to anyone reading this is: DO NOT buy this game for at least 6 months or a year until it has been fully patched and fixed or you will have problems. If you insist on playing this game, make sure you have a computer that is at least Core 2 Duo, a very good graphics card and lots of memory. And don't play maps that are huge - stick so small maps with only a few civilizations. Then, and only then, will you perhaps actually be able to complete a game.

Good game, nicely done, but some of the gameplay options are missing.

I have played all the CIVs so far. I like this game also. Different feel with the city states interactions, etc. I like the non stacked military units, adds more subtlty to the game by eliminating the massive stacks of units. Appears to be more diplomatic options for victory but haven't played enough games to find out yet.

I play many games via PBEM so am greatly disapponited to discover that this game does not support that. Live MP is fine but I do not have the time to play it that way.

Good game, nicely done, but some of the gameplay options are missing which makes the game less appealing to me.

Sid Meier's Civilization V

First of all, I would like to warn buyers that this game is a resource hog. I have a PC with higher than the minimum requirements in all categories, however, even on the lowest graphical settings and with the resolution set very low, there is a significant amount of lag and glitching. I will likely have to upgrade my RAM to 8G and possibly my graphics card as well in order to fully enjoy Civilization V.

The game itself is a solid strategy offering, with a lot of depth and plenty of replay value. In a world where real time strategy has all but replaced the turn-based variety, it's incredible to see that there is still room for innovation in this genre.

Great game

For any strategy game fan, this title is a must have. The new added features of city-states and much improved graphics make for an enjoyable experience. I didn't think there was a whole lot of room to expand on Civ IV, but I was wrong. The new map interface uses hexagons instead of square spaces and the entire battle sequence is much better. You cannot stack units anymore, but you can used ranged units to attack from a few spaces back. Overall, a great game and a must have.