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| Will you scramble for Africa, or take care of the homefront? |
Victoria II is the sequel to the 2003 game Victoria: An Empire Under the Sun, published by Paradox interactive - and it too is homage to that most glorious of eras. As a Paradox game, you know what to expect: Strategy, hardcore-depth, and an attention to detail that would put the most finicky of bureaucrats to shame. It's niche, but the masters of the mind have been pushing more and more into a space that, whilst isn't mainstream, it's certainly not obscure. Victoria II is the latest title to use their current Clausewitz Engine - the same engine that's been running through Hearts of Iron III, and the latest Europa Universalis titles.
Each of the current generation of Clausewitz titles focuses on the themes of the era they revolve around, and as such their gameplay mechanics are developed accordingly - Where Hearts of Iron focused mainly on Warfare & Diplomacy, Victoria 2 mainly focuses on Economy and Politics. As one of over 200 nations or nation-states, not only must you steer your economy through the industrial revolution, but you must also steer your country through the social and political changes of the time. The other prevalent themes of the time, Colonialism, National Identity... are still there, but they are more abstracted and are not really the focus of the game.
It's important to know what you're getting into with Victoria 2. Population and Economy management actually seem quite complicated at first glance (and even second and third sometimes), but once you get used to it, it simply becomes another meta-game. Make no mistake though, this is one of Paradox's more in-depth titles. If you couldn't handle Hearts of Iron, you definitely won't be able to handle this.
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| Europe under went some major changes during this period |
Where Hearts of Iron III was scripted and tightly controlled for most of the early portion of the game, Victoria 2 is extremely flexible. You can do almost anything you want, depending on certain factors. If your Government type doesn't allow for economic intervention, your economy pretty much runs itself, and the same goes for political reform, but on the world stage, you can do almost anything you want. Declare war, colonise, make friends/enemies where you like... every action has a consequence, naturally, but they let you find out for yourself this time.
As mentioned above, this is an economic and political simulator more than anything, but the real meat and potatoes is in the political system. If Victoria 2 was going to be called anything, apart from a grand strategy game, it would be a political simulator. The economy management is pretty much a standard affair (if you're allowed to manage it): you expand your factories, make sure there are enough workers by subtly manipulating populations, you can subsidise failing factories, build new ones, import goods etc... but the political system is where most of the work has gone in.
Through mini-events that pop up every few days, you get to subtly shape your nation. Do you want to maintain the status quo? Do you want to force a revolution so bloody that Britain turns communist? These things aren't easily done, but they are possible - although the more a-historical the harder it is. Elections play the most important role in this, as it revolves around questions and decisions that will cause the population to swing toward certain ways of thinking, which will intern effect who runs the country, apart from you. Political parties have their set policies, and these in turn affect what you, as ruler can do. Economic management falls under this, as does political reform and how much you can spend on things like the military.
As mentioned - warfare does fit in to things. The model it follows is a blend of Hearts of Iron and EU, although it has none of HOI's depth, which is a shame. Still, it's no use wishing the game to be something it isn't - if you want war, go play Hearts of Iron. It's rather ironic though - if you get the right mix of political party and policies (like the Great Britain faction at the start of the game) then everything is automated to the point where pretty much all you can do is make war. Unlike other Paradox offerings, there is only one Grand Campaign option that starts in 1836, and lasts right the way through till the Second World War period. Personally, we feel this is a bit restrictive as you don't get to try out scenarios from different periods - especially with all the change that goes on, but this is just a minor point.
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| The tutorial is a must for franchise newcomers |
This is a classic Paradox game, and so far it's doing the company proud. Provided you don't expect from it anymore than it can actually give, then you'll be fine. Fans of the first game will definitely appreciate the changes and improvements that have been made. The preview build we tested was stable enough, although there were several bugs that got on our nerves - hopefully these will have been fixed, especially since the game has just gone gold. We don't want another Hearts of Iron III incident. Victoria II is due out on August 13th for PC.
Most Anticipated Feature: Being able to mould your country how you want to, so long as you put in the required effort.
