Little Kitty, Big City
Little Kitty, Big City
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Game2011
Galactic Civilizations® II: Ultimate Edition
Developer Stardock Entertainment
Galactic Civilizations II: Dread Lords is a 4X turn-based strategy by Stardock for Microsoft Windows. It is the sequel to the 2003 game, Galactic Civilizations, and was released at retail and on Stardock's online subscription service, TotalGaming.net, on February 21, 2006. An expansion, Dark Avatar, was released in February 2007. A second expansion, Twilight of the Arnor, was released in April 2008. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
171 reactions from 3 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon) · newest Oct 1, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
82
LovedLoved
138 positive · 31 negative
95% range 75–87%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 138 | 31 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 0 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
2 newer reactions are still waiting for a label.
Steam's own rating
Mostly Positive
1,318 of 1,714 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What people are saying
Summary pending — the reactions are listed below.
Reactions
60 of 171 · most liked firstIt is 2006, I'm spending my hours playing Gal Civ 2 and Oblivion, life is good. It is 2025, I"m spending my hours playing Gal Civ 2 and Oblivion, life is good. But seriously, this is an old but gold game that recently got an update so it runs on a modern resolution. Fantastic level of customization, the right level of cheese and humor, and it's dirt cheap. If you're looking for a space 4x that isn't Endless Space or maybe Stellaris, this is a great choice.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →EDIT: Turned to YES, The game is good and fun. It is a little rough on the edges but the soul is intact. Unfortunately, the game crashes as soon as I attack a starbase. I googled and I saw many other people had it, with no solution. EDIT: With some experimentation, I figured out that the problem was the explosion effect. Turning it off in the setting worked out the issue. No more shiny explosions but at least I can continue the game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →SOME TIPS THIS OLD CLASSIC GAME: - At the start of the game, at least, it is more efficient to build happiness buildings to increase morale to make more tax money rather than building economic buildings to do the same. - Factors that go towards morale: population count(Higher forces a greater penalty, and it gets real high, real fast. 16 billion is about the best amount), morale buildings on the planet, your tax rate(Higher adds a worse penalty), planet quality(Higher is better).…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just stays on a black screen for me. I restarted multiple times, Reinstalled it and all that jazz.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was playing this before some of you were born
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Overall, I love this game, but I will give everyone a warning. Do not play with random events set to happen on maps beyond the large size. The reason that it will have the event that caps your movement to 5 Parsecs occur, with reloading from saves not stopping it from occurring. It have played over 20 times on maps that are huge and immense with the random events enabled and it will ALWAYS happen, within 50 turns of starting the game. On a map of that size, that particular event should be…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Galactic Civilizations II: Ultimate Edition is a strategy game that sinks its teeth into the core of what makes 4X games addictive: depth, customization, and the joy of outsmarting rivals across a galactic chessboard. Released well over a decade ago, this game still radiates the kind of old-school design energy that can turn a casual dive into a full-blown empire-building obsession. Pros Right off the bat, the game's crown jewel is its robust sandbox mode, where every match plays out…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the best civ-esque 4X games in a space setting that in some aspects has still not been surpassed in 2025. Pros: + All 12 races have unique tech trees, AI personalities, diplomacy text and more. + Chess-engine type dynamic AI that has not been surpassed in any other 4X game and plays by the same rules as you. + Truly impactful galactic event system that keeps each game fresh. + Lots of different strategies to excel in, from influence, economy, diplomacy to war. + Actually really nice…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Few 100s hours on GOG and then some before that. I've tried GC3, they went too far with micromanagement, I refunded GC4 due to worse UI experience, ship designer and important features being behind DLC paywall. GC2 while being an old game now gets straight to the point with its features, ship designer is amazing and there's no unnecessary micromanagement. It's showing its age a bit but it's still THE 4X space turn based game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I haven't played this in 15 years, and Stardock still sends me emails.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I enjoy playing a slower pace game. As a senior, my reaction time is slower so this single player game suits me wonderfully.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'd recommend this game to people with plenty of time on their hands to learn, adapt, and enjoy this unique and riveting game with political, economic, and military management that surprises me every day. I played this game back when it was out on disk, on an awful little laptop that killed me to squint at, yet I found myself looking for it on my new setup, and the game had (obviously) been updated since, with slightly better graphics, and plenty of what i already enjoyed. While the third game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Let me get one thing clear; I never played this back when it first came out, so I will not be going in with any rose tinted glasses. Heck, this sat in my Steam library for years, and I only just got the urge to try it out (think I got it during Covid when it was 100% off. Does that count as me getting it for "free"?). Needless to say I find this... a bit disappointing, based on how much praise other reviewers were giving this. I'm not sure if its just the age of the game or just janky game…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It may not be as modern as galciv 3 or 4, but it definitely has the one more turn factor. Its not overcomplicated like some other 4x games. Your choices can lead to events based on your good or evil choices. For its, time the AI was smart.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Oh man, I sunk so many hours into this game back when everything was simple. Still, it is my favourite 4X space strategy.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Rather dated 4x game that is just alright, but considering how many better games there are in the genre I'd rather recommend against playing it unless you already played everything else similar and need some variety.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Reviewing every game I've played in my Steam Library. Game 21 Fun and an interesting 4x strategy game, I did not play much but what i did, i enjoyed. Probably suited to those interested in futuristic 4x strategy. Maybe one day i'll play some more but until then this one is good on sale, if you don't have a powerful computer and want this type of game in this setting.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →got this game on a free weekend I will give it props for actually having a tutorial compared to the first one however the tutorial isn't actually any good whatsoever its like teaching someone how operate a computer and saying this is a mouse, this is a keyboard and this is a screen and that's everything you need to know these games seem to be for people that love to manage every little aspect of tons of systems which I personally don't enjoy at all however I didn't find that I needed to do…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Every civilization in the galaxy bullies me no matter how nice I am to them. Peak realism/10.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The 17 hours I have logged were in one sitting while I was severely depressed in college. Life is funny that way.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TLDR: Get the SWvsST mod and follow the instructions below - this is the best 4X ever! ---------------- original review --------------- I've played Galactic Civilizations II (at least 100 hrs) and Galactic Civilizations III (20 hours), and I like GC2 the best, and that's because I feel like I've come up with a strategy that uses the technology tree a certain way. As an aside: I might have even played GalCiv 1 - I'm not sure though. I do remember being really disappointed when GC2 first came…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →D-D-D-D-DECULTURE!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a Civ game (what seems to now be called "4X", probably because 1 hour of gameplay eats 4 hours of real time). Good if you want to get lost in the sauce.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The entire game is incredible. Its sandbox like game customizations means anyone at any skill level may be able to have significant fun and or challenge. based off of the original galactic civilizations and has slight added content
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It was easy to learn and understand and very fun to play if you like SciFi games.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →i own this wow ok i did not even know that i did
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My favorite grand strategy game of all time. I still play a couple times a year.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I have to admit, I've never played the campaigns. I just love setting the galaxy size to huge, everything else to "random" and seeing what I get. I do turn off the time victory. I do like to actually win, not just run out of time. No two games are ever the same. I love being able to design my own ships and save them for the future but often the auto generated ships are good enough. The amount of things you can customize for your race is interesting and amazing, but you don't have to customize…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My first 4X Sci-Fi game was Endless Space. I really enjoyed that game. So when I got this game for free I was really interested in playing it seeing as most people call it one of the best if not the best 4X Sci-Fi game. I wasn't dissapointed. The game features a lot of content and it will take you a while to learn the game. The video tutorials in-game are basic and for new players are kind of a crash-course. Campaigns can be customized to your style and, especially, time you want to spend in…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Classic game. III and IV are improved versions but this one is only about 2GB and scratches the itch still.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good game play, good interface, enjoyable and something you can play over and over with no loss of enjoyment.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Galactic Civilizations® II: Ultimate Edition is an ancient game from 2008. It's a whopping 16 years old at the time of this review. The game lacks support for the typical features of modern gaming PCs, hasn't been modernised or updated to run smoothly on contemporary machines. The game looks and feels dated. Despite this lack of modernisation, it carries a pretty high price tag for such an old game. This seems to have be lingering on Steam with an inflated price to try profit from…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I can wile away the hours playing as one of the major races or try to win (and occasionally do) with a minor race of my own creation.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →When it's not glitching out it's great...
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →For the longest time each new space 4x game I've played would always leave me wanting to go back to playing Master of Orion 2 (released 1996, nothing had competed with it since). This game might be better than MoO2 for me after I finally gave it a proper go this week, holy hell does it scratch that itch and more.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Excellent strategy game. Replay value is very high as there are tons of things you can tweak and alter to change up the difficulty or length of the game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a fine game but is very outdated from 2008. It is well superceded by GalCiv 3 much updated when it came out in 2015.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game way more fun than I thought it would be. I recommend it to any one that is into sci-fi and stradegy games - 4x
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a GREAT GAME, especially for people that have older machines or don't want to invest in a beefier PC to run games. This one for me was my intro into this franchise, and it has left an impression on me well over two decades later. I mostly play 3 now, but I have to appreciate this old classic, which is why I bought it for a second time on Steam. Sidenotes: After leaving reviews for 3 and 4. Figured it would be good to leave a review for this one. Please disregard my 2 hours…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I know that GC III and IV are out now - but I owned the original for years and never made the time to play it. I've now tried the original twice and the same thing happened - I was busy building my civilization, then another one came along and quickly crushed me. Plus - the graphics were so tiny, and the interface unintuitive so it was very hard for me to track my ships or feel very engaged with the game. It was both underwhelming and frustrating. I've now played GC II through for one full…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →extreme in depth managment with very customizable playstyle. no 2 playthroughs will be thew same
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →still my favourite of the series
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just a good basic colonization game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a great 4x game, but you should probably play the GOG version which runs better on modern systems.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Its fun for a bit, yet its mundane nature turn this into a chore to play.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Galactic Civilizations® II: Ultimate Edition ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ === ( 🎯 Difficulty ) === ☐ No Difficulty ☐ Easy ☑ Standard ☐ Big Learning Curve ☐ Hard ☐ Impossible === ( 👪 Audience ) === ☑ Everyone ☐ Kids ☐ Teens ☐ Adults ☐ Mature === ( 👀 Graphics ) === ☐ What Is This? ☐ Bad ☑ Acceptable ☐ Good ☐ Great ☐ Stylistic ☐ Beautiful ☐ Masterpiece === ( Sound/Music ) === ☐ Bad ☑ Nothing Special ☐ Good ☐ Great ☐ Beautiful ☐ I´m Gonna Cry === ( 🌏 Story ) === ☐ This Game Has No Story ☐ Nothing Special ☑…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The peak of the series so far. All yours for 20 dollars. If you can get thru the dated graphics then start here. Otherwise try 3. Not bad, just the fact that there is so much dlc and was more a modernization then step forward.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Best AI in any 4x game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I can't recommend buying any games from Stardock anymore since they have decided to release all of their games as timed exclusives on the Epic Game store. A betrayal to all of us who have been supporting them on steam for the last 10+ years.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →great game, take some time to learn..
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good game, gives you a nastalgia for starfleet command 3 if it were turn based
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →played hundreds of hours of this game on my old system before i bought the steam copy same with the first game. one of the best space strategy games since master of orion!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Remove the launcher from all your products!
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Despite it's age, and dated graphics, this game feels less "videogamey" and more immersive than its successors. The atmosphere makes space feel spooky and dangerous. The writing in the dialogue makes it feel like everyone is evil or focused on their own empires and you are in their way. I had this game when I was a kid, it's good to jump back to it. There's a certain level of jank in this game that is charming.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lots of ways to win, but the only way to win at the hardest levels is through a multi tiered approach of economics, research, alliances, sabotage, and constant tweaking of battleship fleets.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →very entertaining and addictive fu play style.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Galactic Civilizations II: Ultimate Edition, developed and published by Stardock Entertainment, remains one of the most accomplished and enduring examples of the 4X strategy genre, offering a deeply layered experience that prioritizes thoughtful decision-making over spectacle. By combining the original Dread Lords with its major expansions Dark Avatar and Twilight of the Arnor, this edition represents the game in its most complete form, refining its mechanics into a cohesive and highly…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I bought this on Disk when it first came out, spent weeks doing campaign after campaign. This is second only to Masters of Orion (1 & 4)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love this game, i cant play it anymore with the new computer without crashing but would buy this game all over again just to play it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →all 3d renderings are covered with black boxes. making the game unplayable.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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