My game of the year.

I started playing this game Febuary of this year (2017) and as of posting this review I have nearly 700 hours in the game. What enticed me to this game is the Millenium Dawn mod (As of this review my opinion on that mod has changed.) But even besides that mod the modding community is absolutely amazing. Steam Workshop support ensures that this game will have people playing it for a long long time. Besides mods the gameplay of the Vanilla game is fantastic. The mechanics and UI are challenging to learn at first but after a while will know them like the back of your hand. Even though playing as Germany or the US at first is aw great idea to get the bearings of the game, but playing as a minor such as the Peoples Republic Of China or Bulgaria, Yugoslavia (Especially with the Death Or Dishonor DLC) is great fun, Especially with mods such as The Road To 56 which gives these countries focus trees. The game is challenging, Not as challenging as say Europa Universalis 4 but it is much much more intuitive and the mechanics and al the moving parts work better than said games. That being said I have some gripes about Paradoxes DLC policy, but I will leave seperate reviews on the DLCs for that matter. This is an excellent grand strategy game and Paradox have been regularly been updating the game, With an update coming out early next year on the horizon. I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone looking for a new experience and maybe coming from Civilization or another Paradox game. Although the 40$ price tag is high for what it offers right now, Pick it up on the Christmas sale or another sale.

10/10 Would buy 100 times over.

2018 Edit: Now nearly 1500 hours into this game and my opinion about it has only improved with the Waking The Tiger DLC. Although I do not approve of Paradox's DLC policy for say, EU4 or Cities:Skylines, The DLC for this game is well thought out and truly makes improvements to systems where they need to be instead of adding purely cosmetics. Waking The Tiger and the 1.5 update is the strongest that the game has recieved to date. Adding in Decisions, and redoing base game content for the two main Axis powers was also a fantastic change. As of writing this update, the game is currently $16 dollars on steam. An absolute steal. The game still has quite a learning curve, and it definitely takes time to learn all aspects, but I think right now as of this edit (November 23rd) the game is in the best state its ever been in. With ever-expanding mod support and the base game getting more and more improvements with every update, with another update on the horizon, redoing naval combat, which is widely considered the most underdeveloped system in the game. This game is not only worth picking up for the base game, it's extensive mod support offers many mods through the Steam Workshop, with many more under development, and that only adds more and more longevity to the game.

10/10

July 2019 Edit: Definitively the BEST purchase I have ever made and will ever make. Not only has this game provided me with nearly 2000 hours of fun, it has introduced me to so, so many amazing people who I now work with on a daily basis in order to release a mod for this game. From what I've counted, there are currently over 40 total overhaul mods in development for this game, and the modding scene only continues to grow even bigger, even in the wake of Imperator. Paradox has been making updates to modding support with their two latest updates that make it so that the game will continue to stay relevant. I'd like to say that this game has given me a bunch of hopefully lifelong friends throughout the world, aswell as giving me experience in a work environment, as well as giving me hundreds of hours of fun, and experience working with the Clausewitz engine. This game has changed my daily routine, and has made my life not only more enjoyable, but given me the experience of a lifetime with the team of a lifetime. This game has honestly changed my life in indescribable ways, and the decision to buy this on a cold February day has forever changed my outlook on many, many things, and as corny and generic as that may sound, it is true, and I love this game.

10/10, has legit changed my life.

New Years 2020 Edit: Coming up on nearly 3 years of playing this game, my opinion of it only continues to get better. Through the people I meet in the modding community and the continuing longevity that mods are able to give this game, I see it going nowhere soon, the modding community is dedicated, motivated, and only continue to make better and better things as time rolls on. DLCs remain sort of lackluster, and the ones at this point I say you need are Waking the Tiger and Together for Victory for features that are used in mods. Mods make this game, and the new launcher screwed modders over for about a month or so, but it also lifted the previous 2GB limit on mods, making larger mods possible as people add more GFX and other things. As I've said above, the game has changed my life, given me the motivation and the support through the modding community that I needed to bring my ambitions of becoming a programmer further, and for that, the game will always hold a place in my heart, and I don't think I will ever find another game that can fill the same spot.

11/10 Changed my life for the better and given me contact with the people I need to follow my dreams, my game of the year, by far.