I wouldn't say that trade is "awful," but rather that playing a trade-focused nation is only possible by blobbing (and a blobbing nation is focused on pretty much everything anyway except maybe individual province development). The unquestionably best way to play Genoa or Venice is to conquer Italy (and then the majority of either the Constantinople or Seville node). Ways to disrupt enemy trade are mostly simple & direct (take all their provinces or force transfer power; there's no nuance with targeting critical ports or using a navy to close off an important leg).
Why I think it warrants attention is that trade and exploration / colonization are they keystones of EU. They are what differentiate EU from the other GSGs in the series. CK has feudalism, Vicky has the industrial revolution / economic development, HoI has a world war. Trade needs to be really interesting and fun. But right now it's really just a "conquer these clumps of provinces" director.
Naval combat is probably the most important thing to tweak, but I think trade is a pretty close (and related) second.
Why I think it warrants attention is that trade and exploration / colonization are they keystones of EU. They are what differentiate EU from the other GSGs in the series. CK has feudalism, Vicky has the industrial revolution / economic development, HoI has a world war. Trade needs to be really interesting and fun. But right now it's really just a "conquer these clumps of provinces" director.
Naval combat is probably the most important thing to tweak, but I think trade is a pretty close (and related) second.