"Better a Memorable Defeat" was actually an interesting blog post from ArcenGames about their shelved "Stars Beyond Reach" game.  Basically the short version is that a game you lose, but you had so much fun playing it that the final outcome was less important than the gameplay itself, is an awesome game.  Or, as the old saying goes, "It's not the destination, it's the journey."

I actually had this experience with Endless Space over the weekend.  My United Empire faction never faced serious setbacks and gradually subsumed and conquered most of the galaxy, with the help of our Automaton allies.  The game turned into one of blitz wars, ferocious space battles, and technological advances as the Automatons and I fought against several other races and emerged victorious.  However, since no one achieved any other victory condition, the default "highest score at end of time wins" condition struck.  I admit, I had not been paying attention and was enjoying myself, and the Automatons might have rigged the score a little in their favor, but I ended up losing by 485 points on the score category.

Could I load a previous save, do things differently, and make up the difference in points?  Sure.

But I was actually happy with the outcome, because I imagined that the United Empire and Automatons were quite content to rule the galaxy peacefully for a long time, just as they had warred to unite the galaxy with their alliance in the first place.  Or in 30 or so turns, the United Empire completed research on the "Technological Victory" option, but really - it was the fun of the game.  It was like a very old game of Master of Orion 2 that I remember, where the Psilons and I were locked in a huge galaxy spanning war for decades (of game time) and my race (I think I was the Mrrshan) eventually emerged victorious, but the hard fought and well played space battles were the fun part.

Games that make you feel a sense of accomplishment when you lose are rare, and well worth the investment.