Welcome to the forums Merlin! My brother, a work friend and I played a game this weekend. We started at 9am and went on till 6pm! The game did manage to finish with Axis getting 16 Victory cities. Our games usually take a long time because we do not get to play often, so my brothers and cousins go at a slower pace. If you get to play more frequently, people will fall into their groove and the game should start flowing faster. Good luck with the next game!