Translation, Part 2
Easier for new players
The Europa Universalis games have never been very friendly to new players, but it's clear that Paradox hopes that the new, more detailed and colourful graphics will attract many new players. To that occasion they have also worked a lot on making sure that the learning curve doesn't turn out to be a vertical and insurmountable wall for new players.
- We have worked hard on making the game easier to approach. We have learned a lot about the development of a good user interface, and lately our reputation in this area has been improving. The learning curve is something we've had our minds on from the first day of the project, and the goal of keeping it as straight as possible imbues the whole development process.
You control your nation on three levels. The first covers your entire country, and lets you make major changes that affect the whole country. The next is on the provincial level, where you get the opportunity to develop the individual provinces which make up your country. Lastly there's the unit level, which gives you control over the individual forces, and lets you move them around on the map. At the very top, by the way, there are certain "ideas", that may be comparable to the "civics" of Civilization. You can choose different ideas that will be central to your country, as each influences it in different ways.
All trade routes lead to Rome
Just like in Civilization, you need access to different types of resources to be able to build different types of forces, so it pays off expand with a strategic mindset, or be just a bit diplomatic so that you can get good trading partners. Important trade goods include salt and iron, and they all have their own benefits. Interestingly enough the trade routes will be affected by the terrain, and it will for example be more difficult to open a trade route with another nation if the border areas are characterized by mountain ranges.
In addition to a robust trading system, the game will have an extensive diplomacy element, which lets you negotiate complicated deals with other nations. But be aware that the rules for diplomacy were slightly different in the roman era from what they are today. If you send a diplomat to a nation which doesn't particularly like you, you could very well have him back in bits (and then safely assume that the proposals he brought were found wanting).
Diplomacy and politics are completely character based, and all the different characters obviously have unique characteristics. So it might be a risk sending your most talented diplomat you speak with the enemy, as you risk losing him. But your different characters also have varied opinions and agendas, and some will undoubtedly appear as dangerous rivals to your leader (who has to run elections). In that case having them disappear in the dark, German forests, never to be seen again, might not seem like such a bad thing after all?
An uncivilized world
At the time of the Romans, the so-called civilized world was so to speak smaller or bigger islands in a dark, uncivilized ocean. So barbarians also play an important role in Europa Universalis: Rome. They will be a constant threat, and will among other things be able to conquer provinces and form their own nations. It will also be possible to negotiate with them, and for example give them areas to control (in exchange for their allegiance). In any case it will be a good idea to make sure that your borders are well defended, as well as subsidizing colonization so that the border areas become increasingly civilized.
One element which might be slightly controversial with adherents of historical accuracy is the way the game implements religion. In Europa Universalis: Rome the gods are in fact real, and you can present them with offerings to receive different benefits (depending on which gods you go for). But the gods can be unpredictable, and if they aren't satisfied with the offerings, you could see some unfortunate consequences. Andersson explains it thusly:
- The gods are real in the game, in the way that your nation is affected on what you sacrifice. People were of strong faith back then, so this had to be an important part of the game.
All in all, it seems as if Paradox are well on their way of delivering yet another excellent strategy game in Europa Universalis: Rome. The basic philosophy of this well known Swedish company is simple: They make games that they themselves want to play, and luckily for us, as it turns out time and time again, they are far from alone in their taste in games. We are looking forward to seeing if Europa Universalis: Rome is just as delightful as its predecessors, when the game is released come spring.