Product Description

In the year 2225, mankind's thirst for domination has spread to the stars, where battle for conquest rages on. Humans struggle for supremacy over the Galactic powers, who have their own plans for the cosmos. In Galactic Civilizations II, you will use technology, diplomacy, colonisation and war as your tools to build a far-reaching interstellar empire. Galactic Civilization II: Ultimate Edition includes the best-selling and award-winning space strategy game 'Galactic Civilizations II' and the two add-ons 'Dark Avatar' and 'Twilight of Arnor' in one box.

• All the features of the original plus all the additions from the expansion packs
• State of the art 3D engine enables users to create own ships from scratch
• New maps, units and scenarios
• New playable civilisations
• Enhanced graphics and soundtrack
• New maps, scenarios, planet environments and event
• Alternative map sizes and victory task
• Comprehensive editors - Maps, Scenarios, Planetary environments and Tech Tree

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1619 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Kalypso Media
• Released on: 2008-11-21
• ESRB Rating: Rating Pending
• Platform: Windows Vista
• Format: CD-ROM

Manufacturer's Description
In the year 2225, mankind's thirst for domination has spread to the stars, where battle for conquest rages on. Humans struggle for supremacy over the Galactic powers, who have their own plans for the cosmos. In Galactic Civilizations 2, you will use technology, diplomacy, colonization and war as your tools to build a far-reaching interstellar empire.

Galactic Civilization 2: Ultimate Edition includes the best-selling and award-winning space strategy game Galactic Civilizations 2 and the two Add-ons Dark Avatar and Twilight of Arno in one box!

Customer Reviews

now runs like a dream
Further to earlier reviews, The bugs and update problems seem to have been fixed, and the process of updating the game after installation seems pretty simple now.
The game itself is really very good if this genre appeals to you; the scale of the game is epic. I just wish they'd gone to town more on the battle sequences, a la 'hegemonia' perhaps (when is anyone going to make a game as beautiful as that again?)
All in all, a great RTS space game.

Good game but buggy and hard to update
This is a very good turn based strategy game, which is sort of like Civilization in space.
However, it crashes a lot and it's impossible to get the patches to fix the crashes (at least it was at the time of writing). The reason is because to get the patches/updates you have to;

1) Register and create an account on Stardock's website.
2) Download and install an update manager program called "Impulse"
3) Register (again) via the update manager.
4) Finally, download the updates and install them.

However, step 3 can't be done because not all retail versions of the game are recognised by the download manager. e.g. it rejected my registration code because the Ultimate version was not recognised (not shown in the drop down list)

TURN-BASED STRATEGIST HEAVEN!
The GALACTIC CIVILIZATIONS series in effect has kept the classic Turn-based Strategy genre alive. When the CIVILIZATION series was going to the dogs (all flashy animations and dummied-down options instead of evolving) and the MASTER OF ORION series was committing seppuku (unable to live with the shame of its 3rd installment), GC reminded us how much fun space colonization can be!

Starting off with a planet in a customizable Universe (size, resource abundance, scarcity of habitable planets etc), one begins his journey of exploration, colonization and conquest. With the exception of roving pirates who can be destructive if encountered early on (but whose annoyance can be deselected), the factions are well balanced and interesting.
The graphics are clear (with full zoom capability), whereas the interface is easy to master and friendly to use.

However, what makes GC so much more fun than any other space colonization game is its ship design options. From freighters and colonist-ships to planet defenders and frigates, there are no limits in what one can build in your dockyard. Want something that looks like STAR TREK's Enterprise or BATTLESTAR GALACTICA's Millennium Falcons? Easily done - the sky is the limit.
Research will not only keep you solvent and your people happy but it will also make it possible to better equip your ships. Stronger engines, more effective armor, more destructive weapons.

And, on top of all that, this being a STARDOCK release, it comes FREE of any intrusive DRM scheme. These days, that alone deserves gamers' support. How much more so that GALACTIC CIVILIZATIONS II is a great game. Its new patching method is neither convenient nor reliable and I hope the STARDOCK people will see to that promptly. Besides this shortcoming,

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!