Macintosh

Sid Meier's Civilization III (Complete)

In short, C3C is "More of Civ 3," which is great, great news. Unless you've already bought Civ 3. Then you have to pony up the full price of a game again. Kind of a dumb marketing decision, especially considering that the release of Civ IV is just around the corner. If you're a Civ fanatic (and we are legion), you've already got Civ 3; is additional material worth a $50 upgrade? I'm not so sure.

Once you get through the first five hours - dealing with the lackluster learn-as-you-go tutorial and flipping through the manual to find out what the heck you just did - Civilization III: Complete is addictive.

Regardless of how hard you are laughing at me right now, maybe something useful can be gleaned from a reviewer with fresh eyes and virginal innocence for the franchise. What Aspyr has given us, after all, is a completely new port of Civilization III, with completely new content in the form of the long-awaited expansion packs Conquests and Play the World, the addition of online and hot-seat Mac-to-Mac multiplayer gaming (no cross-platform support sadly, though you can play by email with anyone), and lots more gameplay options and refinements. So in the eyes of a Civ newb (but strategy veteran), does Civilization III: Complete (C3C) live up to its name as the be-all and end-all of strategy gaming goodness?