Developer: Firaxis Games Released: 2005 For its sheer longevity and scope, Civilization IV has to be the greatest strategy game of all time. The brilliant AI, incredible level of polish, countless potential approaches, and that theme tune come together to make a 4X strategy titles that's all too easy to run up playtime into the thousands of hours. While Civilization V managed to improve unit management by removing unit stacking entirely, Civilization IV makes up for it in almost every other area possible. It's the perfect game for those looking for a lengthy, engaging strategy experience in which it feels like you're forging your own destiny. There's still room for Firaxis to improve on Civilization IV (if they can just manage some half-decent AI in the next main entry,) but for now this amazing title is the absolute pinnacle of 4X strategy gaming. What's your favourite strategy game? Are there any we missed? Let us know in the comments below!
