How similar are EU4 and Victoria 2?

[Jam94banjo]

I imagine this should actually be posted in the Victoria 2 forums but I am a massive fan of EUIV and I have always found these forums to be really helpful, so hopefully that can continue. I am really tempted to buy Victoria 2 now that it is half price on steam but I heard it is similar game mechanics wise to EU3, a game which I still struggle to play today. I really like the concept of Victoria 2 and love the fact it goes more in depth in certain aspects but if it is more like EU3 than Eu4 (a game which I feel really comfortable to play and something I think I comprehend quite well) I am worried that it may be a game I just buy in a sale and not get a lot of time out off. Thanks for any advice

 

[unmerged(184583)]

they are two entirely different games imo. I had a good time with vicky 2, as you might tell i still use a vicky avatar and wrote a nice little aar for it. On sale, I'm sure its worth it.

 

[fudd_bopo]

The big difference I guess is that in Victoria 2 the populations play a mayor role in everything. Your factories and military depend on them and they have their own needs to take into account. Resources are more important as well with stockpiles of them and a market you can affect in various ways. You could always check out the AAR subforum there should be a lot of information on how the game runs there. Or you could check if there are any videos on youtube for the game.

I guess you could call it closer to EU3 since the trade system in EU4 isn't used (it has its own system with the world market instead) and there's no points from the leader that decides what you can do and not. At the same time its probably less like EU3 than EU4 is since it plays very differently.

 

[S0ny B1ack]

I've had tons of fun with Vicky 2, but as Shiggs713 said they are completely different games... I do however think that Victoria is one of the most (if not the most) complex Paradox game.

EDIT: I think oyu are right that it might be better to ask the question on the Vicky forum You'll get a more detailed answer what Victoria 2 is and what makes it a good/fun game

 

[EUTony]

Vicky II is extremely fun, as is EU4. Very different games though, I think Vicky II offers not only wartime fun like EU4, but also has a more fun and complex peacetime system with the economy and politics.

 

[Gyrospeck]

While I love EU4 and consider it a large leap forward from EU3, V2 is still my favorite paradox game. I enjoyed the time period more as well as the peace time mechanics.

 

[Dadvester]

V2 is my fave paradox game, however as others have said its a much different game. Your population (pops) play a huge role in your play. There are also certain things do not directly control and can only influence a little which can be frustrating if your not used to it.

I would defo look into some AARs as I'm still learning tips and tricks from reading them, and I've had the game since release.

 

[Opus]

Jupp, like others points out, the game is nothing like any of the EU-series games. Nothing at all, really.

And also like others points out, it's one of the best Paradox titles ever, if not the very best. Although I do like almost all the "big" titles from Paradox, I even love the micromanaging hell thats HoI3.

 

[murlocmancer]

Vicky 2 is can be far more complex imo but I love both (Vic 2 has my most logged hours of any paradox games) I feel like Vicky 2 can be a more frustrating from the economic stand point. It might just be my favorite but they are honestly two different games but if you like one you will probably enjoy the other

 

[Susanna]

They are both great games. Vicky's game concept is the most complicated of any Paradox game, I think. Do you like the concept of population management in a 19th century setting? If so, give it a try.

 

[Viperswhip]

Ya, I own Vicky 2, but it makes playing EU3 look like child's play. It might be more complex than CK2 because you can steamroll that game if you get lucky. So, umm, I haven't really played much of Vicky 2 because I haven't had the time to dedicate to learning what the heck I am supposed to be doing there.

 

[Almarrion]

Alongside the PDM mod, Vicky 2 is an amazing beast to play. That mod shows how DHEs should be done. The game has significantly more interesting peace time mechanics, with the need to manage politics and populations. The diplomatic game is far more entertaining; the influence system allows both economic and political gains and it's also vital for some country's playstyles. The technology system is also pretty much an extended version of monarch points where you decide what lines your country develops based on a single pool of points.

Overall, it's a more complicated beast than EU, but also vastly more rewarding. The differences in countries actually makes it feel like a big reward when you succeed against the prevailing winds of the times. If you get it, I recommend you mod it with PDM. It makes it play the period as completely as you can manage with the hardcode limitations, with events that simulate the upheavals of the entire period whilst still giving you enough freedom to play around in what ifs.

 

[Tormodius]

I imagine this should actually be posted in the Victoria 2 forums but I am a massive fan of EUIV and I have always found these forums to be really helpful, so hopefully that can continue. I am really tempted to buy Victoria 2 now that it is half price on steam but I heard it is similar game mechanics wise to EU3, a game which I still struggle to play today. I really like the concept of Victoria 2 and love the fact it goes more in depth in certain aspects but if it is more like EU3 than Eu4 (a game which I feel really comfortable to play and something I think I comprehend quite well) I am worried that it may be a game I just buy in a sale and not get a lot of time out off. Thanks for any advice

Vicky is cool but pretty different from EU4. I think EU4 is better, also i think CK2 is better. But Vicky isnt bad. Its just that i think the other two are more fun. Its just a matter of taste. In Vicky there are the population thing or "pops" that have all these different attributes and needs etc. But i find it hard to do much with those pops, apart from national decisions and taxation, etc. they seem to work all by their own under the hood and that takes some of the fun away. For example the slaves in america, they are just there producing and you cant do nothing with them apart from the decicions in historical slave liberation events. Then suddenly all slaves become workers after civil war. And you cant draft specific pop groups, all draft is done with 1 big mobilize button drawing just random pops. Its all too much macro-managing imo. I know people hate micro-managing but i like it balanced between the two.

 

[Contiguous]

Victoria 2 is essentially an economy simulator.

 

[Trickrs]

They are both great games. Vicky's game concept is the most complicated of any Paradox game, I think. Do you like the concept of population management in a 19th century setting? If so, give it a try.

I found HoI away more complex, CK2 kinda too, but I didn't get too much into it.

 

[Dustman]

Hm, interesting. I tried Vicky 1 for a game or two, but disliked internal complexity too much. Decided it wasn't worth time and money. Well, EU series become more and more complex anyway, so it might be worth giving Vicky 2 a chance....

 

[Trickrs]

Vicky 2 is WAY better than Vicky I.

It's easily the best PDS game, even dead.

 

[Tormodius]

I found HoI away more complex, CK2 kinda too, but I didn't get too much into it.

CK2 is very complex but it isnt very hard to understand how it works or to play. Vicky is much harder to understand whatever is going on under the hood. Many things arent really shown and you get stuck trying to analyze everything. HOI3 is also complex but everything is clear how stuff works. Very lightweight on economy and diplomacy, but complex military management. As in every Paradox game you build and conquer, but thats a game where you will need to plan ahead very much for WW2, and organize very much underway. You can lose if you planned badly in the start, or if you havent organized things right, or responed incorrectly to a situation with the enemy.

Vicky is more like EU in terms of warfare. Ofc, you might lose if you respond incorrectly to a dire situation, but for organizing you just make some stacks with some troop types you choose and you go and fight, thats it, but the game focuses more on the economy, development of nation and politics much more. In Vicky revolts can become revolutions where you entire army might defect and turn against you for example. It is perhaps the most realistic implentation of rebels. It wont make you lose the game tho, just lose the government and you play the new one, commies or fascists or whatever they were. Thats still fun!

In CK2 you plan for very different things and more short term, say up to the next successor in line. Its much more intriguing gameplay imo, because you have the personal feel to it. So its complex just because there is a shitload of characters doing all kinda funky stuff you can either pay attention to everyone or you can mark someone your interested in. They can surprise you sometimes. Heirs and successions are vital, its where you might lose the game, and the laws and inheritance is complex but worth understanding and paying attention to unless you wanna see a fast GAME OVER. You can actually see everything on the character sheets so thats very cool. And you do stuff thats seems like a good idea, but you might not know the consequeses of because its all so many people with different ambitions and stuff. Allthough the laws are clear, the game with all the persons simulates some kind of an unpredicable world. I think thats fun.

 

[Jorlaan]

Vic 2 may be my favorite Paradox game, have had many MANY hours of game play. It has a huge re playability factor which is nice. Modding is easy and makes for more interesting worlds later on after you've played it to death. My own personal modded world has changed quite a bit.

 

[Tob.Ristlin]

Just to add a little bit into this discussion, I also love V2, and it was my favourite Paradox game for a very long time, Ck2 lasted way less time as my new favourite, now being EUIV. I think it all depends on how do you like each period of time. The fact that it only models 100 years compared to the centuries long timespan of CK2 and EUIV means that the all mechanics work very well together, just like in HoI. A game mechanic working in 800 does not necessarily work in 1300, and French vassal tangle in the XV century has little in common with Napoleonic vassal states, there is, after all, 4 centuries of difference.

Also, for V1 and V2 vanilla players, the last expansion revamped the military, both land and naval warfare are now much more deep. I think they are very similar to how EUIV warfare works, so even if it is a game more focused on politics and social challenges, the military part is not as overlooked as some people say sometimes, it is fun, and the last part of the game (WWI timeframe more or less) kinda resembles the terrible effects of weapon evolution together with crappy tactics.

Very recommendable game all in all, give it a try, especially if you find it on sale.