The other big addition is the new system of Diplomatic Plays, which borrows from Victoria 2's Crisis system. Inviting these groups into your government will be the main way of changing your country internally, allowing you to make anything from a ruthless absolute monarchy to a worker-run anarchist commune. Meanwhile, the Devout will oppose any laws and policies that go against the traditional, religious morals of your society. Rich capitalists will often join the Industrialists faction, for example, which will push for reduced government spending and privatizing institutions like education and healthcare. Internal politics in Victoria 3 will be handled by Interest Groups, in which the various POPs in your country will come together to pursue shared goals. They won't be playable at launch, but Paradox wants to change that in the future when they can give them the unique mechanics and distinct playstyle they deserve. The one exception is what Victoria 3 calls 'Decentralized Countries', such as the tribal societies of the inner Sahara. But you won't face any arbitrary, added challenges to doing so. The conditions in your country, such as having a mostly rural subsistence economy and limited bureaucracy, might make it harder for you to catch up and compete with the big guys. They've done away with Victoria 2's problematic 'civilized' vs 'uncivilized' distinction, with smaller countries outside the European sphere of influence instead being 'unrecognized.' This basically means that the Great Powers of the era don't see you as an equal, and can bully you without causing so much diplomatic fuss.īut you're not inherently worse at discovering new technologies or winning wars just because of that label. You can play as any of over 100 countries, from the heavy hitters like Great Britain and the Qing Dynasty of China, to local and regional powers like Siam or Switzerland. Most grand strategy games tend to focus on warfare and conquering as much territory as possible – 'map painting,' as we call it in the biz – but Victoria 3 wants to make you pay more attention to economics, internal politics, and international diplomacy. Using a system of POPs – Parts of Population – it represents all one billion people who lived on Earth in 1836, from a subsistence farmer in rural China to a loyal soldier in Prussia to a wealthy captain of industry in Pennsylvania. And from what I've seen so far, it looks more than worth the wait.While a lot of Paradox's other strategy games have come to resemble something more like a board game (Europa Universalis IV) or an RPG ( Crusader Kings 3), Victoria 3 is billing itself as a deep, less abstracted historical simulation. The franchise sits between Europa Universalis and Hearts of Iron, simulating the technological leaps, ideological movements, and political shifts that shaped the modern world from the Industrial Revolution right up to the eve of World War II. Victoria 3 has become a meme and an urban legend in the strategy community over the last few years, as speculation has run rampant about when we'd get a proper sequel to 2011's Victoria 2.

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