Ima newb just got this game today...

Nope. It's single player only. But you can play your games and submit your scores to the metaverse and compete with your friends that way. To sign up for the mata, click on metaverse on the top up there to the right of forum and then hit register on the left once there. And you can sign up for an empire too.

Welcome

If you don't mind spoilers, the strategy forum is great. Stop by Tortuga in the empires forum and say hello.
Above all, show those aliens who's boss. Don't let em push ya around!!! Happy Gaming.

awww that sux.. that mos def woulda made this game better (:(

but so far I am liking this game

The designers decided against multiplayer so they could make the game "story" more developed. I think they did a great job (they say GalCiv2 may have a multiplayer option).

Canibusism, if you're looking for competition, join the Diplomat Empire and compete with the other empires in the Metaverse. Check out our website http://diplomats.galciv.org

Canibusism:
Welcome! You will enjoy the game very much! The Metaverse is an addictive alternative to Classic on-line play.
Your best bet would be to take the friends you would play on-line with and form your own Empire!

It kind of does. I'd have liked to see multiplayer but the devs felt they should fully develop the single player and ai first before going through the rigormoral and expense of multiplayer. Do what you can when you can the best you can. I can't disagree with their reasoning at the moment. Finding players to committ to the time it would take for a tbs true internet multiplayer would be maddening.

Getting your friends into your own empire sounds like a good Idea. Not quite as good as becoming a G.R.O.S.S. pirate but hey, I'm a little biased.

Nah, I like the single player. Who has time to sit online and play for hours on end?

GalCiv is really not something that would work well as a multiplayer game, except possibly via some variant of PB(e)M, which is the route Stars! took.

~SDC~

Absolutely! Although I sit offline and play for hours on end! LOL LOL LOL

Check out the Galactic Guardians at this http://guardians.galciv.org/index1.html