And I saw all that in the span of my hour-long demo. Age of Wonders: Planetfall certainly has capitalized on its jump to a space age setting, with a universe that draws from every corner of science fiction, pulp and cerebral alike. Add some Foundation and The Left Hand of Darkness to taste. Planetfall makes an excellent first impression--which is good, because it's still complicated as hell. Having not touched Age of Wonders III in about five years now, I'd forgotten just how intricate. At its core, this is a 4X series--the ol' explore, expand, exploit, and exterminate, a.k.a.

How do you fix something that isn't broken? It's a question that the just-announced Civilization VI needs to address in order to justify its existence. Civilization V is widely considered to be the best in Firaxis Games' series. The 2010 release and its two major add-ons perfected the series' core idea of raising up your chosen people -- through research, cultural progress, diplomacy and war -- from the stone age to modern times. SEE ALSO: 'Civilization: Beyond Earth' Is a Fresh Formula With Barebones Content Longtime Firaxis staffer and Civilization VI lead designer Ed Beach looked back on Civ V a few years ago, just as pre-production work was just starting on the newly announced follow-up. He quickly noticed a significant issue.