I can't believe how well this game has turned out. Back during the betas the game seeed a little buggy and a little bit dry to me. I was a tidy bit worried. It had the makings of a great game but could they get the bugs out and make it really have a soul?

I can't speak for the other gamma testers. BUT I think Stardock could probably have gone gold last week if they had to. They could definitely have gone gold by the beginning of this week. At this stage, they're fixing bugs that are pretty minor, the kind of thing you'd normally wait until the second patch of another game.

The gamma has the campaign in it and I won't give away the ending but WOW. No campaign in a game I've played has had such a shocking ending. It took my by surprise.

The gamma also has the tutorials in it. They're in-game videos that explain how the game is played. it really adds a nice touch.

I don't remember the beta very well but I think the biggest difference is the level of fit and finish that's on the game. The animated intro, the upgrade notification on the planet screen, the cleaned up icons.

So it is perfect? No. There are a few cosmetic things I wish were different. Nothing that affects the game play. I was up very late last night playing and playing. It is definitely the best strategy game I've ever played by far. I don't say that lightly.

As much as I liked the first Galactic Civilizations, it was very definitely a game made by a small developer. When I saw something in the first game that was kind of ugly or odd, I would say "Well it's a great game given how little budget they had."

GalCiv 2 isn't like that. GalCiv 2 has what it takes to be on par with a Civ 4 or Star Wars empires at war or any other big name game. I predict that even though Civ 4 is a great game that many people will say that GalCiv 2 is a better strategy game and has better production values in many areas.

Im a strategy gamer so i'm just glad that I've got Civ4 and GalCiv 2. These are the salad days for strategy gamers.

Thank you stardock for putting in the time and energy to make something special. This game is going to make a big impression outside the strategy arena. I think its going to put Stardock on the map as a big name game developer.

FWIW