I'm sorry if this has been mentioned already but I couldn't find anywhere that stated a recommended age for this game. I'm on my way home for mid-tour leave from Afghanistan and am anxious to play this with the family for Christmas. In any case...

Do you think my two oldest boys (10 & 9) would have a hard time grasping the gameplay mechanics? Last time I saw them they were geniuses so I'm sure that's still the case! They couldn't have changed that much in 10 months, ha! I was just curious to see what everyone else thought.

this game is... odd.

the basic mechanics aren't difficult at all, i don't think. the problem is that there is just SO MUCH going on. i'd guess the main problem with this game for anyone that that isn't used to "heavy" games is going to be the learning curve, and whether or not they have the patience to hear all the options and take things slow until they grasp it. and the patience to play a game that will probably take a very long time the first time you play (i played for the first time late friday night and it probably took about 5.5 hours)

Thanks for the feedback! I'll have to do some learning before sitting down for the first time to make it a little easier.

Thanks again!