The GameSpy review of Galactic Civilizations II has been put up.

The final line of the review "Master of Orion is dead. Long live Galactic Civilizations II! "

The review talks a great deal about the computer AI.  Veteran strategy gamer Allen Rausch talks about how brutal the computer AI can be in the game:

Then, just as I was about to conquer his homeworld, the Iconian leader sent me a message telling me that, while he knew he couldn't defeat me, he was going to use his last action to spit in my eye -- he was going to surrender to the humans. Suddenly all his planets and ships belonged to the human leader who had doubled the size of his empire in a single turn. My next message was from the human leader who told me to say my prayers because I wasn't long for this world. The humans! They had been everybody's buddy! They had built up a great trade network and were the most peace-loving race in the galaxy. They had also given technology to the Iconians and encouraged them to go to war with me, all to pull me out of position and swoop in for the kill. I found this out because the computer AI sent me a message taunting me for my stupidity in falling for it! The greatest thing about Galactic Civilizations II is that something like that happens every game. I may not have enjoyed being flimflammed by the computer, but that's the kind of immersive gameplay every strategy game player dreams of.  

For new players, we do want to assure you that you can set the game difficulty down and the computer players do play very easy so that you can learn the ropes without being wiped out. It's all about how challenging you make the game.  Check out the whole review, it's a very informative read.