Europa Universalis III
Conquer history from the fall of Constantinople to the French Revolution in this grand strategy classic.
Europa Universalis III is a grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. The game was released for Microsoft Windows in January 2007, and was later ported to Mac OS X by Virtual Programming in November 2007. The player controls a nation and handles matters concerning war, diplomacy, trade, and economy. The game starts in 1453, right after the fall of Constantinople, and continues to 1789, just past the beginning of the French Revolution.
The expansion Napoleon's Ambition extends the end game year forward to 1821, whereas the expansion In Nomine moves the starting year back to 1399. Europa Universalis III was the first to use Paradox's new 3D engine, Clausewitz Engine, that required user systems to meet the Pixel Shader 2.0 specification. The map has 1,700 land and sea provinces encompassing most of the world, with 250 playable historical nations.
Quick Facts
- Engine
- Proprietary 3D engine (pre-Clausewitz)
Lore & Background
Players begin the game by choosing what date they would like to start their campaign and which country they would like to play as. Forms of government include various kingdoms, republics, theocracies, and tribal governments. Players can influence a nation's society and values by adjusting 'sliders' such as free trade and mercantilism, and may hire court advisors such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. As the game advances, players can pick 'national ideas' such as liberté, égalité, fraternité, which give specialized bonuses.
The game has over 300 playable countries, including giants like Ming China, regional powers like Bohemia and Kazan, and smaller nations like the Maldives. There are no formal victory conditions in the game. The world map includes some 1,700 provinces and sea zones. Many provinces in the Americas, Africa, and Oceania are not owned by any country, allowing for colonization.
Economics in the early modern era is simulated by taxes and production income from provinces, as well as trade. National merchants compete in 'centers of trade' such as Venice and Lübeck, and nations focused on trading income (e.g., Holland) enjoy significant advantages. Nations which mint too much currency, or are over-reliant on gold mining, are penalized by inflation. Relations between countries can be impacted by diplomatic actions such as royal marriages, insults, alliances, and trade embargoes.
Players are able to gain control over other countries peacefully through personal unions and vassalage. Early international institutions such as the Holy Roman Empire, the Papal Curia, and the Shogunate are simulated in some depth. Every country has its own culture and religion. Rulers have control over armies, navies, and mercenaries they recruit.
Combat is abstract, with no direct control over battles. Military tradition is necessary for recruiting good generals and admirals. Aggression (seizing provinces without a rightful claim) impacts a country's international infamy. The game is historically detailed; one can play the 'grand campaign' starting in 1453 or 1399, but any date before the French Revolution (1821 with the Napoleon's Ambition expansion) is a valid starting point as well, with historical leaders and countries appropriately updated. Major events such as the War of the League of Cambrai are playable this way.
Reader's Guide
Paradox has released four expansion packs for Europa Universalis III; each one requires all the previous expansions. One version of the game, Europa Universalis III Complete, includes the original game and the first two expansions. Another version, Europa Universalis III Chronicles, includes the original game and all four expansions. Napoleon's Ambition was released on 22 August 2007 via GamersGate.
In Nomine was released on 28 May 2008. Heir to the Throne was released for Windows on 15 December 2009. Divine Wind was released on December 14, 2010. Europa Universalis III: Chronicles was released on March 22, 2011.
Some popular mods extensively change the game, adding historical flavor, fantasy scenarios, or new game mechanics. One of the most popular mods for EU3 was Magna Mundi, which aimed to add detail to the game's map and to steer the course of the alternate history portrayed by the game more towards real-world history by means of scripted events. Because of its popularity, a standalone version of Magna Mundi was planned as a spin-off game, to be developed by the mod's authors, operating as the development studio Universo Virtual, and to be published by Paradox.
However, in 2012, MM was cancelled by Paradox, who cited lack of progress as well as a lack of trust in the developers as the reasons for this decision. Universo Virtual, claiming to have had a game ready for release, announced legal action against Paradox. Its leader, Portuguese developer Carlos Gustavo, accused Paradox of having come up with new requirements several times during development of Magna Mundi. He also claimed that Paradox did not own the source code licensed to him, and announced a release of what was to be Magna Mundi the game, now re-titled World Stage.
However, no release date was put and the project's status remained unclear, leading to many to think that the project was finally cancelled.
More in Development & Legacy
Elsewhere in Europa Universalis
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