I have heard a lot about this game and a lot of it has been good. But it is a little pricy to buy on a whim. I have heard the single player is weak due to poor AI but that it is a fun game. I wanted to get some opinions on the game. What are its pros and cons and what it its single player experience like?

Thanks!

There is a demo here: http://www.shrapnelgames.com/Illwinter/DOM3/DOM3_page.html

Just has 5 nations but I'd iamgine the AI is the same as in the full game.

Does the demo reflect the game with all the updates or is it an earlier version?

Ok haven't thought about it. The demo is the same version as it was at realease. So about 25 patches were added after it to the main game.

Also you might want to read some stuff on the wiki:
http://dom3.servegame.com/wiki/Getting_started

It's a great game. The biggest con is the rather steep price. However, the guys that made it have their next game coming out soon (Conquest of Elysium 3) that is fairly similar coming out this month that is going to be half the price of Dominions. It's not the exact same game type, as it is more smaller game focused, but it will probably be a far better buy in price to give you an idea of if you/'ll like their games.