About Leviathan

[Arizal]

Thanks @Johan , you deserve it after owning to, like you say, one of the worst release in PDX history.

I hope EUIV gets the attention it deserves. I may often be a vocal critic of the game as I would like more diplomatic options (which was partly done in Leviathan, which I didn’t buy), more internal politics and generally more realism, but I still sank countless hours in this game you created, more than in any other video game, so there must be something I like in it. Which is proof that you have done well.

The treatment you received by some player was very harsh. I hope you stay focused and happy and that you know many people are thankful for your hard work.

I wish the best to you and your team!

 

[kgmi]

Pls make EU5´s map into a globe

Sorry but I m elected CEO and chairmen of the no-fun immersive gameplay society (NFIGS) and since the game starts in the late middle ages, that means the map will have to be flat. For historical accuracy sake ofc.

 

[lostact]

Thank you johan, you took the first step to fix the problem. I think almost everyone prefers bugs being fixed than having new content that breaks the game.

The Studio QA team has never been fired, that a myth. There are more people working with QA at PDS today than there has ever been.

I'm surprised to hear that because if that's the case why there are some bugs in Leviathan that could have identified with just running the game on 5 speed for 10 minutes? I mean I appreciate all the effort you guys put into making new DLCs and updtes but without a proper QA bugs will overshadow all that work.

 

[tigerthelion]

Thank you. This was the post I was waiting for. I have no doubt you will eventually fix the issues related to Leviathan and so I am content to be patient.

Accountability is what I really expected from the studio once there was an indication the release was not satisfactory. Up until this post I did not feel my expectations were met.

Apology accepted, I'm ready to move past this and look forward to future releases.

 

[Atomcreator]

First if all, thank you to Johan for his post today. I'm looking forward to playing EU4 again, once I've exhausted stellaris. I'm just hoping it isn't completely broken by minors having ridiculous high ahistorical development, which is one of the things I'm concerned about.

I happened across this article and hope Paradox do indeed start to get their act together again. It looks like they need to.

CEO says Paradox "can do better" as Q1 profits plummet

Paradox Interactive reported a 9% decrease in revenue during the first quarter of 2021, as well as a 44% drop in profit…

www.gamesindustry.biz

 

[Meglok]

Meh, the usual corporate drivel during earnings call. Last year a LOT of people were stuck at home so the demand for games was up. Now people are back to work/school for the most part, demand decreases.

 

[Atomcreator]

Whilst this may be true, it is also true that PDX are gaining a reputation for poor dlcs lately, especially for the price. So that won't have helped one bit. I wonder how many copies of leviathan were refunded for example.

 

[Northernwwater]

From the article ...

"Finally, China is becoming increasingly important for the company, Ljungerud noted, with the country becoming its second largest market after the US in terms of sales during Q1 2021."

LOL, oh boy.

 

[frolix42]

Your EU4 output has slowed, but I hope you keep making expansions for EU4. At least one more. I've spent a lot of money on PDS games, but I've also spend thousands of satisfied hours.

 

[Miganto]

First if all, thank you to Johan for his post today. I'm looking forward to playing EU4 again, once I've exhausted stellaris. I'm just hoping it isn't completely broken by minors having ridiculous high ahistorical development, which is one of the things I'm concerned about.

I happened across this article and hope Paradox do indeed start to get their act together again. It looks like they need to.

CEO says Paradox "can do better" as Q1 profits plummet

Paradox Interactive reported a 9% decrease in revenue during the first quarter of 2021, as well as a 44% drop in profit…

www.gamesindustry.biz

She states she's not happy with how much revenue the company made, one point being no major expansions being released in the quarter, nothing about the quality of game or how the players/customers feel about the company. Big expansion = big profits = good business, is far too simple of a view when you end up releasing too many bad expansions and people stop buying, will she not understand that the customer was the missing key in her formula?

Her view is what makes PDX pump out so many expansions, probably what made Leviathan come out in the state it did - EU4 hadn't released enough expansions in a financial year and that would look poor to the board and shareholders...

Grand strategies are long-term games, they aren't meant to be a 'dlc a quarter with cosmetics to boot' type of game, the people playing these prefer quality and longer term stability than changes every few months.

Feels like the person in charge understands how to please a bank account more than the customers she's selling to.

I'm actually quite glad how things have turned out and those words from Ebba really make me pull back from PDX as a company i'd want to keep 'supporting' by buying games.

@Johan , your last posts were refreshing and I really believe you've been pushed in to releasing Leviathan against your best wishes and all the out-cry it's caused has helped you finally get some breathing room to fix the game you love, rather than be the milking cow of years gone by.

Best of luck to you, the other developers and the game a lot of us love, I hope this year turns out to be a great one for Europa Universalis.

 

[bly08]

An explanation would be nice.

 

[Lucododosor]

Reading this after the hot mess this couple of weeks have been is kinda refreshing. I'm content with this momentary direction for the game, taking things more slowly and planning better, focusing on bug-fixing and improving communication with the players. Thank you very much, Johan and the rest of the team!

 

[mcmanusaur]

Leviathan was one of the worst releases we have had, and follows a long trail of low quality releases starting back with Golden Century for EU4.

As the Studio Manager and Game Director, at the end of the day, this is my responsibility, so I have to apologize for this. This is entirely my fault.

Personally I think you can trace it significantly further back than that, but I appreciate the sentiment. EU4 is way too bloated at this point, and core mechanics need to be fundamentally reworked for EU5. That said, all is forgiven if you invite me for a weekend in Barcelona...

 

[Pukebeard]

My sincerest heart emoji!

 

[sparta105]

Leviathan was one of the worst releases we have had, and follows a long trail of low quality releases starting back with Golden Century for EU4.

As the Studio Manager and Game Director, at the end of the day, this is my responsibility, so I have to apologize for this. This is entirely my fault.

I should have delayed the start of the development of Leviathan until we had all the resources that were needed, and they had time to properly onboard on the project. We should have announced a break in the development of EU4 after the Emperor release, until we had a team ready to start designing and working early in 2021.

We are partially changing our plans for the rest of the year. We had originally planned to fix all legacy bugs before we stop developing further expansions for EU4. Now we are accelerating these plans, and also making sure that the community will be getting them frequently.

The 1.31.3 patch is planned to be out this week, and the next patch after that we aim to release either at the end of may or early june, and then we aim to release several more patches for the rest of the year.

This is of course a rough first expansion for the team and the studio, but it's far from the end. We have recruited a set of great individuals, with a huge passion for the game, to form Paradox Tinto, giving us a bright future for Europa Universalis.

A man who owns up to his mistakes is an honourable man. I appreciate that you acknowledge that the game is in less than stellar state right now and your pledge to improve it.
That being said, don't beat yourself up too hard. We all make mistakes; the best we can do is trying to correct them. We have also been harsh on you and your team (maybe even too harsh) so I hope the flames of passion didn't burn out in you. Keep your chins up!

 

[Zaddy]

Got my game + all DLC for like £50 via sales and third party key sellers. So I would be comparing the game on level price wise and it will have drastically less content, which PDX will price at £40 or something ridiculous. That's why I don't want EU5, in fact I made a thread on steam a while back about the subject and most people agree with me that we don't need a reskinned gutted EU4.

By the way, key sellers often acquire their steam keys using stolen credit card info to buy the game. This is eventually charged back during fraud claims by the theft victim, which eventually leaves PDS actually LOSING money for you buying the key. The developer would literally rather you pirate it outright.

 

[Rhazzaz0r]

Releasing a finished and smooth product is the pinnacle of utmost respect for me - I don't understand how you can stay so willfully ignorant and blind when it comes to things that really matters. This is not a soy-soaked Netflix support forum; as a long-standing Paradox customer, I am entirely within my rights to express my abject dismay and discontentment with Paradox's failing product quality. It's a shame!

I am too and I never said anything else. If you want to say that an apology isn't enough for you then go ahead. Discriminating half the worlds population by doing so is a no-no

 

[scriptkiddy]

Are you serious? Saying a core part of respectful human communication is useless shit for females is not sexist?

It’s not sexist though, it’s typically western. If Japanese people in charge screw up they even cry in public as an apology to restore their face and honour.

 

[Foltin]

Thank you.
I buy the Eu4 subscription today to support constant work with the game.
I believe this is the best attitude to help paradox not force to make 2 DLC / year to have the budget they need.
I hope this is best way to help the game improve.

 

[agonistes]

Its going to be tough, Johan. Bug fixing is never as fun as creating new content, and can lead to burn out. Don't overdo it. Let the lads be creative when the creativity juices are flowing.

Just have a long open beta and don't sweat delaying a release.

Thanks for the update.