LET'S get this straight. The first Civilisation was one of the finest games ever created, not only being endlessly enjoyable and deeply addictive, but also being one of the better educational titles you could find.

How do you improve on perfection?

Well, Civ 2 went a little wayward, having lost original creator Sid Meier from the helm. Sid, however, has returned for the third installment and you can tell.

This is not a game you can put on for 20 minutes. This is a game you put on and lose a whole day to, having to tear yourself away even to be able to get as far as making a cup of tea. New to the game are better graphics (nothing too scintillating), extra options on how you can win the game and the ability for towns to throw off the control of their ruler if they think they can do better with someone else.

It's a towering, wonderful game and, if you haven't suffered from Civ addiction yet, then you must go and indulge.

Everyone else out there, you already know what I'm talking about.

Graphics: 2/5

Sound: 2/5

Gameplay: 5/5

Gamespan: 5/5

SPECS: Pentium 300, 4xCD-ROM, 500MB hard disk space

Overall: 5/5