Civilization V was the first truly great Sid Meier's Civilization game.Civilization V plays faster than its predecessors by paring combat to its essentials; rather than fielding vast stacks of soldiers, combat takes place on the hex-based world map that reminds me of Fallout. Funding armies is expensive both in terms of time to build and in funds to keep them active each turn. Each encounter, then, becomes an active choice -- and you are rewarded for planning it, with bonuses for flanking, terrain, technologies, policy, and yes, innate civiization bonuses.It is so freaking good.It is nearly endlessly replayable, and the built-in modding support elevates this game to Godhood. The complete edition routinely goes on sale.I return to Civilization V time and time again, despite owning its successor.