When strategy guru Sid Meier revealed plans to bring his legendary — and incredibly deep — Civilization series to Xbox 360, he vowed to keep the underlying game system intact while creating a more accessible interface atop it. After taking one of 16 empires through several eras, we’re quite impressed by the ease of play and slick presentation.

In the role of Alexander The Great, we founded Athens, formed elite armies, forged alliances neighboring empires, developed an alphabet, built Stonehenge (in Greece!), and fought back Mongol hordes. The pacing of the game is definitely faster than its PC predecessors, and the visual style — which truly comes to life during the battles and diplomatic exchanges — is purely charming.

We were floored by the vast variety of strategies to employ and paths to take, and can easily envision how engrossing Xbox Live play will be as four armchair emperors vie for victory.