Galactic Civilizations III vs Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion
Galactic Civilizations III is a sandbox strategy game from Stardock Entertainment (2015) while Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion is a sandbox simulation game from Ironclad Games Corporation (2012).
What each one is
Steam files Galactic Civilizations III under Sandbox and Strategy. In contrast, it files Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion under Sandbox and Simulation.
Build a civilization that will stand the test of time in the largest space-based strategy game ever! Choose from dozens of unique races and make a name for yourself across the galaxy through diplomacy, espionage, technological advances, and more.
Command a space-faring empire in Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion, the new stand-alone expansion that combines 4X depth with real-time strategy gameplay.
At a glance
| Galactic Civilizations III | Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 7.0/10 | 7.9/10 |
| Steam rating | Mostly Positive (77%, 10,391) | Very Positive (93%, 16,339) |
| Critic aggregate | 81/100 | 82/100 |
| Price | $29.99 | $19.99 |
| Install size | 12 GB | — |
| Steam Deck | playable | unsupported |
| Released | 2015 | 2012 |
| Developer | Stardock Entertainment | Ironclad Games Corporation |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Galactic Civilizations III vs Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Galactic Civilizations IIISandbox strategy gameSins of a Solar Empire: RebellionSandbox simulation gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Galactic Civilizations IIIAliens, Sci-fi, 4XSins of a Solar Empire: RebellionManagement, Diplomacy, Online Co-OpThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Galactic Civilizations IIIScore 7.0 · 77% on Steam · 81 criticSins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion ✓Score 7.9 · 93% on Steam · 82 criticThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Galactic Civilizations III10,391 reviews · 17 add-ons · 12 GBSins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion16,339 reviews · 5 add-onsReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Galactic Civilizations III$29.99Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion ✓$19.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Galactic Civilizations III ✓PlayableSins of a Solar Empire: RebellionUnsupportedValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion takes 2 of the marked rounds to 1. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueGalactic Civilizations III and Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion (GamingPickz Score 7.9)
- The cheaper right now: Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion ($19.99)
- Better on a Steam Deck: Galactic Civilizations III (playable)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
Sci-fi4XSandbox3DGrand StrategyStrategySpaceMultiplayer
Where they differ
AliensTurn-Based StrategyModdableHex GridPvEPvP
ManagementDiplomacyOnline Co-OpSingleplayerSimulationRTS
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Galactic Civilizations III is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion is middle-of-the-road on difficulty.
System requirements, side by side
| Galactic Civilizations III | Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | — | 256 MB Video Card w/Pixel Shader 3.0 Support (Radeon X1650 / GeForce |
| Minimum CPU | — | 3 GHz Intel Pentium 4 Processor |
| Minimum RAM | — | 2 GB |
| Install size | 12 GB | — |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Galactic Civilizations III · Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 0 accessibility features for Galactic Civilizations III and 6 for Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Galactic Civilizations III and Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion in scope?
Galactic Civilizations III has drawn 10,391 Steam reviews, ships 17 add-ons and installs in 12 GB. Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion has drawn 16,339 Steam reviews and ships 5 add-ons.
Is Galactic Civilizations III or Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion rates higher (7.9 to 7.0). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Galactic Civilizations III or Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion?
Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion is cheaper right now at $19.99, against $29.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.