I was and still am in the camp for more interesting internal empire management, fighting enemies on the inside instead of on the outside constantly. I enjoy a specific way of railroading, something in between, not to much but not to little. The reason i got into this game was it offered what CiV never did, some historical resemblence. Like historical rivals, railroaded events and disasters just so i can experience them, roll with them, try to prevent them, fight them, read the flavour text and learn about them etc.
Last campaign as Bourgogne I finally got Marie and she died during hunting accident at 26 of age, welp that's a little bit too much historical accuracy for me (thank god the game mysteriously crashed)
Point is however, most of the changes they did to gut degenerate map painting never actually made the game deeper or more interesting. It made it in fact even more degenerate by reducing the fun ways the game can be played. The beauty was always achievements that could be done in X different ways. Being quick and cycling truces with maximum resource efficiency or just playing it slow and waiting until 1700s no coring range age bonus and knock everything out then
Corruption is the prime example of the most degenerate addition to the game just to neuter blobbing, but it doesnt neuter blobbing, it neuters everything, it makes no sense it literally adds nothing to the game, its just there to be unfun and thats it, I wish they'd just delete it, seriously whats the point of corruption?
Then all the powercreeped perma claims mission that makes me feel like I am using workshop mods. If i am supposed to pay 10 bucks for basically just mission trees I want some burgundy succession crisis level of events and not HoI invasion plans for half of europe or w/e area just got updated.
Estates are finally fun to use, now we only need culture like M.&Taxes and there is actually stuff to do during peace. Diplomacy needs a huge overhaul away from the 4 diplo slot system and to a mechanic similar to gvt. cap points (which I really liked, I managed to form GER with Prussian gvt. without going over the cap which was fun).
Rebel system needs a huge overhaul for interesting realm management (which will never come), they are like moths in the dark with the electric swatter lamp turned on, its a freaking joke they dont even pretend to act like humans and it takes my entire mental capacity to feel the slightes sense of immersion cleaning that trash out every couple years.
Republics still kinda lackluster but what can you do.
WC and Tall play should be equally viable and fun, tho i'd argue that going the more historical route should be the "intended way" and doing heavy ahistorical moves should be a real challenge but still doable instead of the only way to play besides sitting on speed 5 waiting for s*it to happen.
