Comparing to: Civ VI: 1,286 hrs | Civ V: 1,251 hrs | Beyond Earth 520 hrs | HUMANKIND 371 hrs

Pros: This game is awesome. Buy it. They truly love the historical 4X genre and play tested their game.

Characters\RPG: The character and event mechanics add so much flavor and uniqueness to each run I can't imagine not having them now. Your choices directly shape your empire over time as those character's abilities really affect global stats. Going for domination? Then send every generation to tactics training and choose bold options in events. You can add generals to your veteran units that you've molded for decades which really invests you in each battle. Or, you can be King David and send the lover of your wife Bathsheba to the front to die ;)

Diplomacy: It's next level compared to the other games. You can marry the daughters of other nations to secure peace or send your boosted characters on missions. Your relationships with other nations mature or degrade sensibly. It feels real.

War: There's no arbitrary BS hindering total war or conquering. The unit costs and upkeep make sense. No war weariness, happiness, or UN referees stopping you from conquering your foes - just the reality of infrastructure and your skill (I'm looking at you Humankind!). They even have a "chess mode" for PvP play that removes random events.
NOTE: Coming from Civ you're gonna get humbled the first couple of battles due to the order system (below). Since troops can move 4x and even be force-marched expect some serious flank maneuvers so keep your units together, dress those lines, and field more men than you would have in Civ.

Orders System: They're basically action points that can be increased a number of ways and it fixes a reality-breaking issue in other turn based games like Civ. If each turn is a year\semester and a unit only move 2 hexes a turn = moving a unit to the front can take multiple decades in Civ. This system allows you to burn all your points and get that army across your lands in a single turn or two. The downside is that if you're deep in battle with lots of actions you wont have the orders to micro your workers or characters at home. It all balances out and the benefits outweigh the setbacks. It also speeds up turns between players.

Victory Conquest is default (Roma Victa!) unless you toggle the various victory point options. I'd like to see an auto-adjustment of points based on map size but it works and covers peaceful culture\science strategies if you're looking for that.

Cons: No much. Just nit-picky things.

Naval Troop Movement: It's a little wonky. I see what they're going for with the anchor system but miss a standard "troops auto-embark" or "ships that carry troops" system. With this system you end up with a line of stationary ships forming a bridge across long distances. And your boys just cant cross lakes. I miss being able to pick off vulnerable troop carriers as they reach shore. It works though.

Marsh: I'm down with HP drain in swamps as it's realistic and creates interesting battlefields. But we should be able to clear them with a late tech + worker. I had one that really jammed up my trade and roads.

Music: It's very realistic to the period and cultures. However, I'd pay for a DLC with some more epic pieces.

Comparing to: Civ VI: 1,286 hrs | Civ V: 1,251 hrs | Beyond Earth 520 hrs | HUMANKIND 371 hrs [b]Pros:[/b] This game is awesome. Buy it. They truly love the historical 4X genre and play tested their game. [b]Characters\RPG:[/b] The character and event mechanics add so much flavor and uniqueness to each run I can't imagine not having them now. Your choices directly shape your empire over time as those character's abilities really affect global stats. Going for domination? Then send every generation to tactics training and choose bold options in events. You can add generals to your veteran units that you've molded for decades which really invests you in each battle. Or, you can be King David and send the lover of your wife Bathsheba to the front to die ;) [b]Diplomacy:[/b] It's next level compared to the other games. You can marry the daughters of other nations to secure peace or send your boosted characters on missions. Your relationships with other nations mature or degrade sensibly. It feels real. [b]War:[/b] There's no arbitrary BS hindering total war or conquering. The unit costs and upkeep make sense. No war weariness, happiness, or UN referees stopping you from conquering your foes - just the reality of infrastructure and your skill (I'm looking at you Humankind!). They even have a "chess mode" for PvP play that removes random events. NOTE: Coming from Civ you're gonna get humbled the first couple of battles due to the order system (below). Since troops can move 4x and even be force-marched expect some serious flank maneuvers so keep your units together, dress those lines, and field more men than you would have in Civ. [b]Orders System:[/b] They're basically action points that can be increased a number of ways and it fixes a reality-breaking issue in other turn based games like Civ. If each turn is a year\semester and a unit only move 2 hexes a turn = moving a unit to the front can take multiple decades in Civ. This system allows you to burn all your points and get that army across your lands in a single turn or two. The downside is that if you're deep in battle with lots of actions you wont have the orders to micro your workers or characters at home. It all balances out and the benefits outweigh the setbacks. It also speeds up turns between players. [b]Victory[/b] Conquest is default (Roma Victa!) unless you toggle the various victory point options. I'd like to see an auto-adjustment of points based on map size but it works and covers peaceful culture\science strategies if you're looking for that. [b]Cons:[/b] No much. Just nit-picky things. [b]Naval Troop Movement:[/b] It's a little wonky. I see what they're going for with the anchor system but miss a standard "troops auto-embark" or "ships that carry troops" system. With this system you end up with a line of stationary ships forming a bridge across long distances. And your boys just cant cross lakes. I miss being able to pick off vulnerable troop carriers as they reach shore. It works though. [b]Marsh:[/b] I'm down with HP drain in swamps as it's realistic and creates interesting battlefields. But we should be able to clear them with a late tech + worker. I had one that really jammed up my trade and roads. [b]Music:[/b] It's very realistic to the period and cultures. However, I'd pay for a DLC with some more epic pieces.