I have played a TON of such games...The Civs...Total Wars...I'm old, I played all of these when they came out, on CD. So far, not having a problem with it running on my air-gap, but nervous now after reading these other reviews. Anyway...If you want to conquer, negotiate some, have diplomacy...and DISCOVER various types of commodities...from raw to finished products...this game is for YOU. You can replay favorite maps, play the 'major' countries of Europe, fight for supremacy at sea, land troops on foreign soil, build fortresses, research different paths of technology for your own campaign to victory...the list goes on... Yes, the graphics are very dated by modern standards, but the GAME PLAY, something missing in so many new games, is great and deep. You decide so much (with some things you can automate, though I never do). You can mess around with the difficulty in many ways too...make the Minor Nations strong, but the New World nations weak? Sure... I cannot count how many thousands of hours I have spent on this game, so high is the replayability. I bought it years ago for whatever full price was (after enjoying the original), and I have never regretted it. (For perspective, I'm rather frugal.) If they ever decide to update this again (mostly just bigger maps, more countries, to be honest), I shall seek it out day one.
