I used to love, love, love Civ games. Civ 4 was definitely my favorite as well. However, just as a kid I finally graduated from boardgames like "Risk" to more s

I used to love, love, love Civ games. Civ 4 was definitely my favorite as well. However, just as a kid I finally graduated from boardgames like "Risk" to more sophisticated fare (SPI and AH games), with Civ I finally graduated to Paradox series (EUIV, CK3, HOI4), which each have more verisimilitude and thus feel more real and more satisfying. Oppositely, Civ literally got more cartoony and, in a way, less believable with each new version. So now I only play Civ when I want a "casual" game. I'm never really interested in playing it to completion. It feels "gamey" and mildly unsatisfying once you've mostly explored the world. I have no interest in playing at "hardest difficulties" that are really nothing more than giving more plusses to the AI and more maluses to you. I want more depth of play. To feel like Civ used to feel. Exploring a world. Making alliances that make sense. I believe Paradox has spoiled me utterly in that way.