Which game should I buy?

[Quintillus]

I'm planning on buying a new game, maybe 2, in December, and am having a hard time deciding which one to get. There's still plenty of time, to be sure, but I thought I'd see which one other CivFanatics recommend.

Prices are included because if money were no object I'd just go buy them all. All are within budget, but I can buy more of the less expensive ones. On the other hand, if the more expensive ones are a lot better, I'm certainly willing to get them.

Similar games I already have are Civilization III Conquests and Civilization IV, Age of Empires II Gold and Age of Empires III, Battlefield 1942 Complete, and Halo. My favorite Civ game is .

Oh, and if there's any really good racing games for PC, I'd like to hear them mentioned. Trackmania Nations is the only one I currently have, and I'd kind of like one where I can race the AI.

All these games can run well on my computer, so resource demand is not an issue.

 

[Kozmos]

Well battlefield 2 has given me over 300 hours of fun so I consider it one of my smarter purchases.

 

[Leonel]

I would say World in Conflict for it's interesting take on a RTS game. Controlling the camera is real easy and the storyline is pretty cool. Plus it takes place in Seattle so I recognize some landmarks. Although you'd need a hefty computer to run it.

 

[Maniacal]

Medieval 2 is pretty good, if you want an TBS/RTS, but if you are good at AoE/Starcraft kind of RTS than Company of Heroes would be a good idea.

 

[Quintillus]

The mixed TBS/RTS style of Medieval II has intrigued me. It's like it can combine Civilization with Age of Empires, though I don't know if it has technology. Even if not, it looks interesting. I was kind of disappointed the demo only had battles - though it'd be quite a demo if it had both. One of my friends has this game and likes it quite a bit. Company of Heroes has also received positive rep from a friend.

World in Conflict will run on my computer, I'm sure. My video card is an nVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT. The plotline interested me there - an add of CFC was the first place I heard of it, actually.

Battlefield 1942 was one of my "best deal" purchases ever, with only Civilization III coming to mind as undoubtedly better, so Battlefield 2 got a spot. It's not as futuristic as 2142, which I consider a positive.

Not surprised BTS is doing well considering this is CivFanatics, but I'm it's not 100% BTS!

I've got 6 minutes left on Company of Heroes demo download - thank goodness I found a source that's faster that 14.4 kbps for the 1.8 GB download! Yep, I had a 2 day estimate at one point.

Oh, Starcraft. I've heard of it, but never played it. I tried a Galactic Civilizations demo once that was fairly fun, and Alpha Centauri has such a good reputation here I want to try it some day for sure. Though I Starcraft is RTS and not TBS? My space-based computer game knowledge is obviously quite limited. Is Starcraft quite similar to AoE?

 

[Maniacal]

Starcraft is an RTS like Age of Empires, build buildings and spam units (too put rather simply).

Although Company of Heros, as you will see, is a bit more tactical. And you can destroy lots of stuff.

Medieval 2's "tech" is the buildings you build in your cities and castles.

I prefer M2 and will probably not be buying CoH since their gameplay varies quite a bit, and I don't do well at AoE/Starcraft/even CoH kind of RTS.

 

[Sarcasticon]

I would recommend Alpha Centauri, splendid game...

Did you try Galactic Civilizations II? It's a vast improvement over Galactic Civilizations I in every way.

Also, you might want to take a look at GameSpot.com, usually their reviews give you a good idea + screenshots of what to expect. And their review as well as the ones from many site visitors give you a balanced opinion.

 

[Quintillus]

No, I haven't tried Gal Civ II. Perhaps I'll try that. I'll check Gamespot, too.

Company of Heroes' demo is quite impressive. I'll have to check how AoE's expansion's demo's campaign is, but in the RTS genre CoH looks like the early winner. Of course, the World in Conflict demo isn't out yet, either.

 

[Kozmos]

World in Conflict demo has been out for a looong time. Also check this video out, it shows a 5v5 game online.

http://www.gamespot.com/video/93246...p?rgroup=9841&ont_override=11738&mb=wic-oct07

 

[Genocidicbunny]

You dont have Orange Box on there! Seriously, if you havent played the Half-Life series, maybe you can buy that. Its only 50$ and it has 5 games included. Awesome deal in my opinion. Otherwise, if you wanna choose from one of those, Id say World in Conflict. Havent played more than the demo, but even that was awesome. As for a racing game: Tranckmania United. An excellent update of TM:N in my opinion, but its not free. 30$ or so on Steam I think.

 

[Maniacal]

Oh, yeah, Orange Box > BF2 collection since OB has Five games (Half-Life 2 which has a tonne of mods, Episodes 1 & 2 which continue the Half-Life storyline (but are singleplayer), Portal which is a first person puzzle game (and also part of the Half-Life universe), and Team Fortress 2 (not part of Half-Life) which is VERY fun.

 

[Till]

I would recommend Alpha Centauri, splendid game...

Did you try Galactic Civilizations II? It's a vast improvement over Galactic Civilizations I in every way.

Also, you might want to take a look at GameSpot.com, usually their reviews give you a good idea + screenshots of what to expect. And their review as well as the ones from many site visitors give you a balanced opinion.

Or Master of Orion 2, or Colonization, or Imperialism, or XCOM...
There's not much initiative to shell out more than a few bucks for a new game, when so many classics are available for next to nothing.

From the choices in the poll, i would go for Medieval II. Medieval I is a lot of fun and i hear II is a worthy successor.

 

[Kan' Sharuminar]

Battlefield 2 has never come of my computer since I bought it a couple of years ago, so definitely a recommendation for that.

Company of Heroes, Call of Duty 2 and Medieval 2 are all fantastic as well.

 

[Imrahil91]

Battlefield 2 is both cheap and very fun if you like fps war games. You don't need the expansion packs to BF2 either.

 

[Sarcasticon]

Or Master of Orion 2, or Colonization, or Imperialism, or XCOM...
There's not much initiative to shell out more than a few bucks for a new game, when so many classics are available for next to nothing.

From the choices in the poll, i would go for Medieval II. Medieval I is a lot of fun and i hear II is a worthy successor.

In general I wholeheartedly agree, but there are a few exceptions (such as GalCiv II) where gameplay is much more streamlined than in older games and the AI far more challenging while it doesn't cheat. I'm willing to pay $20 - 30 for that.

 

[demokratickid]

Medieval II Total War is one of my favorite games. I think anyone who likes Civ or other grand strategy/strategy/battle strategy games should buy it. It is awesome!

 

[Gainy]

Of those i'd say BTS defo. That said you are a special case and prefer civ3 to civ4, so you're prob better off saving your money