I have had a similar issue for quite awhile now. The game just reports that it crashed, can't even get to a menu to change settings. Steam Validation ALWAYS reports that one file is corrupt, reaquires that file, than reports that one file is corrupt. I do not believe that the game actually works. I'm not super keen on giving access to my files to EVERYONE on the internet, but I suppose the developer just isn't interested in supporting their product.
Until this is resolved, I certainly will not be purchasing another piece of software from Stardock.