CAmpaign or Single Scenario?

Captain Ken, I too have had the game for about a week now. I started with the Campaign. It is not so bad and I had a good time playing through the first few missions. I would suggest playing it at "Normal" or above because stuff actually happens then... My first few missions I played at "Beginner" and it was a snooze fest. That said, this weekend I started my first "sandbox" game and I must say I enjoyed this experience much much more. The AI really has the opportunity to shine and I found myself actually on the defensive for most of the game and was forced to come up with some creative strategies to actually get out ahead. Now I have 2 games running -- the campaign and a sandbox game. I play one depending on my mood although I find myself choosing the sandbox game more and more. Enjoy. GalCiv2 is the most addicting game I've played since Sid Meyer's Pirates and Warlords III: DLR.

Both ways are fun to play. It all depends on what you want. The campain is naturally more plot driven and so limited but, I think, it adds an element of necessity to the game I don't always get when I play in the sandbox mode. (i.e. "If I don't research X quickly enough I will get killed when Y and Z do this...")

The campaign is fine and fun in its own rights. Sandbox games are much more open ended and therefore have more to do...

I have played the campaign all the way through and 20+ sandbox games. Personally sandbox is miles better and more fun. The campaign is restrictive, a bit of a slog in some places and at the end very unrewarding. The storyline is poor and no good cut scenes. Stardock has not really got the hang of a decent campaign game yet in my opinion.

the campaign is a teaching tool