The Gamespot review of this game should simply be deleted. The reviewer either didn't play the game or doesn't get it.
Imperium Romanum, which is indeed Glory of the Roman Empire 2, is a solid to good (I gave it an 8.5 because I truly enjoy it and I need to offset the Gamespot reviews obvious lack of intelligence) but do understand the more worldwide rating of 7.5 or so.
The style is true city builder, where the military is purposefully downplayed as simply a small part of the overall concept of building your city. The economy is oblique in a good way. You HAVE to pay attention to what is going on or you will find yourself in trouble as the goods your citizens need begin to dry up and the good folks go rogue on you. The presentation is outstanding as graphically the game is very pleasing. The build is solid. I have experienced only one crash to desktop in hours of play as I'm nearly through the timeline portion of the game. I have yet to uncover any true gameplay bugs, which is pretty impressive considering the breadth of play in the timeline.
The biggest concern for the game is that the online scoring system does not work. It is spotty in uploading scores and a European exploit was discovered too late and a lot of bogus scores are online (but it is EASY to tell which ones they are!).
All in all, this is pretty much a MUST HAVE for fans of the city building genre and a good place for folks interested in the depth builder games have to offer to start. Highly recommended for fans of Roman history has well because there are wonderful historical tidbits added to the game. As my eight year old son watches me play, he is riveted by the things that are presented in a historical fashion, so as a parent, it also gets a big thumbs up!