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Cash is king in next Europa Universalis 4 expansion
Having recently tackled the Americas with the Conquest of Paradise expansion, the next addition to grand strategy epic Europa Universalis 4 focuses on something truly important: cold, hard cash. Officially titled "Europa Universalis 4: Wealth of Nations," the expansion is focused on trade, though it would be more accurate to say that Wealth of Nations explores the drama and international backstabbing that surrounded trade during the age of discovery. Players will be able to covertly influence the economy to destroy their enemies, or bankroll pirates to swipe trade goods from the high seas. Or if crushing rivals one at a time seems too slow, you could form the East India Trade Company and subjugate the known world under a vast, morally questionable economic monopoly. Europa Universalis 4: Wealth of Nations currently lacks a solid release date, though Paradox Interactive hopes to release the expansion during the second quarter of 2014.
Visit the New World in latest Europa Universalis 4 expansion
Paradox Interactive's grand strategy game Europa Universalis 4 has grown a bit more grand with the release of the "Conquest of Paradise" expansion, a downloadable content pack focused on North America in the days before Manifest Destiny and smallpox paved the way for the modern United States. "Explorers and Emperors alike will find a completely randomized American continent added to their game, including features such as trading with the natives, establishing colonies, and new options for military conquest," reads the developer's official description of the expansion. "Players can also take control of newly formed colonial nations - or play as one of several Native American Nations, complete with unique buildings, events, and mechanics." A visit to Steam reveals a $15 price tag for the Conquest of Paradise expansion. In addition, three new, smaller DLC packs have also been released. The Conquistadors Unit Pack adds new models for Spanish and Portuguese armies, while the Native Americans Unit Pack delivers a new unit to the expansion's indigenous tribes. Finally, the Songs of the New World DLC adds new music to Europa Universalis 4 composed by Andreas Waldetoft, a musician known for his work on the Crusader Kings 2 soundtrack.
Europa Universalis 4 'Conquest of Paradise' expansion up for pre-order
In case you just can't get enough or rewriting history, Paradox has opened up pre-orders for the Europa Universalis 4 expansion, "Conquest of Paradise." The expansion takes Europa Universalis 4 to the New World (i.e. the Americas), where players can guide the development of the Native American nation or Colonial Nation. You could always do your best to relive American history as we know it, or you could find out what would have happened if Spain really went whole hog. Conquest of Paradise will arrive on the shores of PC, Mac and Linux on January 14. It's available for pre-order now on Steam for $13.49, 10 percent off the normal price.
Gone Home, Europa Universalis 4, more discounted in Humble Store Winter Sale
The Humble Store has kicked off its Winter Sale with a number of big discounts, most notably indie hit Gone Home, which will be reduced to a mere $5. Other notable sales include Europa Universalis 4 for $20, Shadow Warrior for $10 and Legend of Grimrock for $3.75. A full list of the current deals can be found on the Winter Sale website. So what's the catch? These deals are only available for a limited time. These discounts in particular are only valid for the next eight hours, after which time they'll be replaced by new, different discounts. There's no telling what might pop up next - an earlier version of the sale only reduced Gone Home's price to $10, instead of its current $5. As with all Humble Store sales, 10 percent of all proceeds go toward charity. It's up to you which charity you'd like your money to benefit, though between the American Red Cross, Child's Play, the Electronic Freedom Frontier, the World Land Trust and Charity: Water, wherever your cash goes it will be put to good use helping the less fortunate.
Europa Universalis 4 review: God, gold and glory
Of all video game genres, strategy has historically been one of the least accessible. The most popular strategy games manage a delicate balance between complex, nuanced mechanics and keeping new players interested long enough to learn about everything the game has to offer. Europa Universalis 4, unlike most of its competitors, eschews hand-holding and focuses instead on letting its audience play with a ruthlessly accurate recreation of four centuries of European history. The real beauty of EU4 comes from the variety of options for play. There are a few basic rules. The Earth is divided into a few hundred "provinces," each holding resources and continually generating more cash and people for you to use for military, exploration, diplomatic influence, religious domination, etc. The complexity is a sort of emergent property of those restrictions, and their applications create a myriad of varied scenarios. It is entirely within your power, for example, to take the reins of Louis XIV, start a war with everyone, ride into battle with your foolishly out-of-touch leader as a general, get him killed in battle, convert your France into a more democratic society and avoid the French Revolution – or you could just take over the world. The possibilities aren't endless, but when you can play as a fledgling Ottoman Empire and conquer Britain by 1500, it can certainly seem like it.
