In terms of deep, engrossing gameplay, I'd rate Caster of Magic as possibly the best 4X experience ever. (For me, the only serious competitor would be the Fall from Heaven II mod for Civ 4.) That may strike you as hyperbole, but the original Master of Magic would appear near the top of many veteran strategy players' lists, and this mod/DLC is such an improvement, I don't think I would ever be able to go back. Seravy has managed to keep the spirit of the original -- the atmosphere, the myriad choices as to strategy, the mind-boggling depth, the super-powered stratagems -- but he has made subtle adjustments which allow the AI to play the game, too. Or, to be more precise, his adjustments allow the AI to give you a real run for your money. The game contains many high powered combinations, but each now has a counter, and the AI will try to use those counters. So while paladins and halfling slingers are still valuable units, owning a bunch of them no longer amounts to "I win" because AI opponents will have ideas as to how to adjust. Of course, the game will not be for everybody. Not everyone who thinks he wants fierce competition from the computer opponents will actually be happy when this is granted. More importantly, it's mostly still 1994 graphics (which I do not mind at all) and UI (which I do... good grief, the map is frustrating!) Also, if your attachment to the original is highly nostalgic, it is quite possible that specific details you loved have been altered. However, no shiny new game that I know of offers this sort of tense strategic gameplay. I've been playing this non-stop since it came out, and it's pretty much taken over my life. I suspect that crack cocaine would have proven less addictive. :)
I know this game has been around for years, just not available in English. However, with its now becoming available now through GOG, I would vote for it as best new game of 2012, hands down. In fact, for all my fellow Master of Magic fans, I dare you to go back and play that for an afternoon, and then play this game. You'll never play Master of Magic (or HOMM3) again. Truly, it has everything, to my eye it does not look particularly dated, and it is essentially bug free. The game gets an A+ on both the tactical map and the strategic map. Battles are very interesting and can be tough, especially when you rush in over your head, which you really need to do -- turtling does not pay off. Strategic map decisions are deep and consequential, with many RPG-style decisions which turn out to matter later on. (Think Dragon Pass) Resource gathering is central to the game, but brilliantly conceived such that lack of resources does not stop you cold, just raises prices gradually for units and buildings. Some will be thrown by the inability to save games. But there is a turn back time feature built in, which costs you some game score but allows a re-do. And, unless you are a very good gamer, you will want to start on one of the lowest two levels. Only the very lowest level could be called anything like easy. This year has been an awesome year for new games, but this guy, available for a few bucks, has made me forget all about those $40 and $50 games I had been enjoying.
