[BigDaddy]

When I first got it, I just played SP. I thought this game was throughly awesome then. The AI is only tough for the first 20 or so turns. If you make it that far, then you probably won the game. Some nations are fool proof vs. the AI that aren't against human players. And 2 player stategies might get you killed in multiplayer... or at least heavily nerf you after you win (the MP guides never tell you to pack up all your mages and march toward your enemy, for instance, and they often have you recruiting mages that are impractical in the combat sense... for instance).

There are a lot of different ways to play this game.

The AI also is ferocious in a rich game with impossible AI (they get additional stuff so the richness magnifies even more in a rich game). I had it come at me with a 1500 unit force. I lost in the traditional sense of the word.

I hope you buy it. I think you'll like it. I've even played myself.