OT - Civ 3 anybody?

[Menschenfresser]

Heya,
Just fired up Civ 3 Last night for the first time. I love the look and feel of it so far. I can see some differences, but I can also see a lot of similarities to 2.

You can really have a crowded world now that you can add up to something like 15 computer civs (not sure of the exact number).

After 2 hours of playing I can tell, it has no chance of knocking SE4 out of most played.
My biggest gripe with the Civ series has always been tech. Before 3, the tree was too narrow, and now, I am pretty sure the tree has been choked down, so that it expands and contracts as you progress through the different eras.

It's too early to give a final reading though. Just want to know what you think.