Designer Brian Reynolds is best known for crafting two of the greatest turn-based strategy games ever on the PC: Civilization II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. But when he bolted from Firaxis to form his own company, Big Huge Games, one of the first things he announced was that he was going to design a real-time strategy game. Ever since we saw Reynolds defeat all challengers at the Age of Empires II launch party in Dallas, Texas, in 1999, we suspected that he had a real-time strategy game that was dying to be made. And with Rise of Nations, Reynolds and company have delivered a game that masterfully blends the best elements from real-time strategy games like Age of Empires with turn-based games such as Civilization. Rise of Nations is an elegant triumph of design. It's also everything a great PC game should be: simple to pick up, hard to master, and thoroughly addictive to play.

Thanks to the fact that virtually every aspect of the game is customizable, Rise of Nations is a game that can appeal to any kind of PC gamer. Those looking for a quick game can play at a ruthlessly fast pace. Meanwhile, those looking for a more traditional game can slow down the tempo and experience a surprisingly deep strategy game. The elements taken from Civilization not only add depth, but they introduce new paradigms into the RTS formula. Every part of Rise of Nations was meticulously thought out and then extensively play-tested. Each of the game's civilizations has distinct advantages and a distinct personality, yet at the same time they're carefully balanced against one other. For every strategy you adopt, there is a counterstrategy lurking out there. This is something you quickly discover in the game's insanely fun multiplayer matches.

By drawing on both turn-based and real-time strategy games, Rise of Nations bridges the two pillars of the PC's strongest genre. It is, essentially, a game that could only flourish on the PC. With multiplatform games becoming the norm in the action genre, and traditional PC genres such as simulations dying, once again it is the strategy genre that is bracing PC gaming during these lean times. Rise of Nations reinforces the concept of what a PC game can and should be.

It's hard to play Rise of Nations and not be struck by just how well made it is. Rise of Nations is clearly the work of a master craftsman supported by an extremely talented team and the deep resources of Microsoft. It is a game that celebrates its glorious heritage while at the same time pushing into new and exciting directions. Rise of Nations is a game that draws you in and makes you lose track of time. As the cause for many a sleepless night among the GameSpot staff, Rise of Nations is our unanimous pick as the Best PC Game of 2003.