Solved, see reply #4 below
I submitted a ticket, but figured I'd post here as well. Ticket number WTK-815-22720
After 1.6 update, after launching the game from steam, the "loading" screen appears, then crashes with a windows low on memory error.
I tried validating files a few times. The first couple of times, it said there were a few files that needed to be updated, then the 3rd time it said all files were validated.
The Windows message says:
"Close programs to prevent information loss.
Your computer is low on memory. Save your files and close these programs:
Galactic Civilizations III"
According to task manager, my peak physical memory usage spiked to about 60% of my 12 gigs.
I added my debug.err, Prefs.ini, and dxAtlasDLLLog.txt to the ticket.