Europa Universalis V Hands-On Preview: Map painter paradise

Even with my time spent with Europa Universalis V consisting of one of my longest Gamescom appointments, I still don't think I really scratched the surface in terms of this game or this franchise. I'm familiar with Civilization, Total War, but Europa Universalis really is a different beast. I can see why some say it can take dozens of hours just to learn the basics of the game.

Paradox is aware of this, though, and they've built a massive amount of onboarding help for new players and those who might just want to switch off their brains a little bit. Automated systems that take over your economy to your social policies and everything in between can be switched on or off like a light, which allows you to focus on what you want to do in Europa Universalis V, which is likely going to be painting the map in the colour of your starting faction.

That sounds incredibly simple, but in reality nothing is simple in Europa Universalis V, much to the joy of fans. Paradox boasts that this is the most complex grand strategy game, and after checking out the game it's hard to argue with them. There is some deeply impressive research in this game, covering hundreds of years of history, plotting out how they'll affect each faction depending on who you play. Speaking of, you can play a near-countless amount of kingdoms, earldoms, provinces, and more in Europa Universalis V, again showing just how much work has gone into ensuring this game is as accurate as it is strategical. Small towns I'd never seen represented from England were featured, alongside nations and tribes of the New World, allowing you to really play by history or alter it in your way.

When I asked the developer how historical events play into the game, it became clear how much history defines your gameplay as if you were simulating the control of a real nation. Unique challenges and benefits come from a country's real life history and role that it played. Taking on Portugal, for example, we were expected to go exploring in the 15th and 16th centuries, and we also gained a lot of benefits to trade thanks to our coastal positioning. Despite these naturally placed boons, you can still play however you wish, and can even alter history if you please.

It might take more than one player to do that, though. Take the Portugal example again. We might decide not to invade the New World and instead focus on taking over Europe, but that means that another major power is likely to still sail across to colonise unexplored lands. There is endless replayability here, something that's immediately clear from just an hour with the game. Pick a strong power, a weak one. Play a country historically, or completely redefine the timeline. It's up to you and those willing to dedicate the hours to completing these campaigns will be more than pleased at this level of complexity.

I could talk about the return of sliders from EU III, or the way in which you can bolster your armies by sending them out as mercenary forces to then return home to you, or how I could feel myself slipping into the endless hours of a campaign by spending 10 minutes deciding where was best to build a scriptorium, or even the way the control system means that smaller countries simply won't just be devoured by larger ones but then this preview would likely by thousands of words long.

Instead, I'll depart with the gist of EU V, if such a thing is possible. The sheer scale of the world and the complexity of the systems on offer here are truly impressive. I cannot comment in-depth on changes to the economy system, political powers, the balance versus peasants and nobles, as I've not got that level of familiarity with the franchise, but if you're going to spend hours pouring over sliders, statistics, and a map that you want painted your colour, it seems like Europa Universalis V is going in all the right places.