I started this not expecting much since i wasn't too impressed with the 1st 2 DoWs, this one is a great improvement
A claim i hear a lot in gaming these days is 'every time you play you have a different experience'. Well, its true with this game. You have the choice of stomping your army around the world in whichever direction you like. Its good because traditionally RTSs have been quite restrictive in what you can do outside the battle.
Another thing to mention is the sheer size of the game. You have 7 different races to play, and all have their own reasons for being on the planet Kronus (it belongs to the Tau originally though). This means that there are 7 different endings and 7 very different strategies that can be employed, as the races are very different, they all have weaknesses and strengths.
I would recommend this one if you liked the first DoWs and even more if you like Risk-type war games. Its good that game makers are starting to branch out into different areas and get away from the usual story-line-based RTS. This one is lot more strategic even though when you look at it, not that much has been innovated.