Well theres been some big leaps forward with the free patches alone. You should give it a try Vanilla style (DLC's are not requried, although there are some nice concepts in them if your willing to spend). Its changes hell of a lot since I started playing back in December. Having not played since inital release you will be plesently suprised I think

Definitely waaaaay better than it was.  Ignore the DLC for now.  Between player mods and the steam workshop, there are tons of free content that will keep your galaxies diverse and interesting for a long time.

It took many years for GC2 to become the shining paragon of gaming brilliance we all remember.  But we all seem to forget it was supported and updated for 7 years.

GC3 still has issues, but the list is shrinking, and it's a radically different experience playing now than it was a year ago.

The phrase "fully functional" is a subjective term.  The game GC3 worked and was entertaining to many people upon release.  That is one definition of fully functional.  The game GC2 was initially comparatively basic and primitive and felt that way to many, but it functioned and had promise.  After 7 years of accumulated development it became the comparison benchmark you are using.  My arithmetic says that you would rather that we waited another 6 years or so for GC3 to be released as a full substitute for the fully developed GC2.  While you may be willing to wait all those years, I am not.  I like what I have already and for me it just keeps getting better.  I am also rather elderly.  It would indeed be a shame if I had to wait years for GC3 to meet your standards.  I might not even be around then and would miss it entirely.  I hope that is not what you are asking for.

As I say, it is a subjective term.

I think you would NOT be disappointed in getting Crusade addon... I too found the base game fairly dull, and tedious but I have become addicted to GalCiv 3 Crusade... it is now an absorbing game with some excellent new mechanics...Citizens allow you to customize your play style/strategy, there is a new civ builder if that interests you, espionage, trading, diplomacy and like CivVI adjacency bonuses  mean that a little bit of thought needs to go into what you build on your planets.

I am finding this version of the game has that one more turn feel which I didn't get with the early version of GalCivIII. At present it is my favourite 4x game.

I play both. ES2 has an interesting quest system, a galactic market place simulation and really good presentation, both with the visuals and audio. IMO, best looking 4x out at the moment.

GalCiv 3 has much a more interesting system around planet building, generally good AI, a really powerful custom faction creator. It is still good visually and with audio. I think GalCiv 3 scales better to larger games as well.

I'm not going to say which is better. Both have strong merits, and some drawbacks. I do really like both of them.

I was on the same situation, GalCiv III was a disappointment when it first came out. Crusade on the other hand, huuge improvemente over the base game, absolutely a must have if you want to experience that "one more turn" feeling.

Additional DLC? I got the ones needed to run Gauntlet's Race Mod, I really recommend it if you are looking to play on bigger galaxies and need extra civs.