Well, I purchased the game this morning and it was 38 Euro for the download. The boxed version would have added about 16 Euro for the shipping. I don't know if there would have been an additional import tax. That's 54 Euro total. Now, if I purchase a game at my game store here in Germany, most new releases sell for an average of 40-45 Euro, plus 3 Euro for shipping. The price difference isn't all that high (unless there is an additional import tax), if you want the box.
I'd have bought the boxed version if there had been a thick, printed manual, but since that doesn't seem to be the case I'm all right with the plain download version. Although deep down I'm wondering a little if I should get the upgrade to the boxed CE version, but looking at all the CEs of more than two decades of gaming that do nothing but collect dust on my shelves, I keep trying to tell myself that it's simply not necessary and that I need to outgrow that attachment to material goods! 
But I still think it's a shame that the game doesn't get a retail release in Europe. The market for TBS PC titles seems to be much bigger here. Many of the notable TBS games in the more recent years came from European and Russian studios and publishers. With the digital publishing, availability isn't the issue, but there's a chance for publicity and exposure missed. (And while I will run Impulse just for Stardock's games, I'm really not fond of having to run additional software to play a game, which is why I still don't use Steam. You need Impulse even if you get the boxed version, so you might as well get the download edition.)
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