You have in front of you the final update and ultimate achievement of the Europa Universalis I/II formula.

You see, when in 2007 EU3 came out, it was... bad. I mean, REALLY bad. It was broken. Featureless. A big step back from EU2, that came out in 2001. The first big expansion of EU3 came out THREE MONTHS later. And even after another one in 2008 (when the game was repackaged under the "EU3 Complete" name) it was a disappointing game, coming after the historical flavour of EU2.

So in 2009, 8 years after EU2, the team behind the AGCEEP mod for EU2 released this "sidequel" to EU2: it had widescreen resolution, it had 10,000 historical events, it had major tweaks to the rules and the AI, it had a better, more streamlined UI, it had better mod support. It was, in that particular context, the "real" EU3 (more like a EU2.5).

So, it's a great grand strategy game. But.

BUT.

But in 2010, EU3 saw the release of another TWO expansions, and the game became good at first, and excellent after the last one (now it was repackaged again under the "EU3 Chronicles" monicker). Yes, the historical flavour was still lacking compared to For The Glory, but in every other aspect, it was now a superior game.

So I still recommend For The Glory in 2014, when even Europa Universalis IV exists? Yes, even just for a trip into history of strategy gaming. If you want to try Europa UNiversalis I or II, skip those and get For The Glory instead.

(UPDATED NOTE: The last patch is actually from the 29 December 2013: link http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/index.php?threads/ftg-1-3-beta-patch-unified-thread.670289/#post-16633623

ORIGINAL NOTE: last patch is a 1.3 beta "23 February", available only in the Paradox Plaza; the last AGCEEP release it's the 1.59b4 with a hotfix. Both aren't included in the Steam release)

For The Glory A Europa Universalis Game is a very aptly named game. It is, essentially, a collection of advances made in the Europa Universalis II modding scene bundled together and sold as a full game. And while For The Glory is a great experience it is also an experience you can get from playing regular Europa Universalis II and installing a bunch of mods.

From the standpoint of an un-modded Europa Universalis II all the advances in For The Glory will look tremendous. A massive increase in the number of events you will receive, both as a historical player or as someone that thinks the Reconquista should be going in reverse. The AI is smarter, focusing it's forces much better, new map modes makes conquests much easier to plan and a ton of general balance changes makes everything feel sharper and better. Even graphically there is some improvements.

One place it goes backwards however is in the multi-player department however as without Valkyrie-Net it is horribly unstable and neigh unplayable.

As much as For The Glory advances the regular Europa Universalis II game it does very little to advance the modded gameplay. If you have the choice between buying this or Europa Universalis II then I'd recommend getting this every time. If you already own Europa Universalis II however then there is absolutely no reason you need to own this.

This is an updated version of Europa Universalis 2, and is unfortunately not in serious development any more. The most recent beta patch is from December 31st, 2013. While this is an update to the predecessor game to EU3/EU4, they are quite dissimilar. Paradox had a distinct vision when creating EU2 compared to EU3/EU4. A lot of time was spent on trying to model historic events in EU2(FTG) and this is enhanced with the included AGC-EEP mod. While EU3/EU4 are designed from the ground up to be mostly dynamic, FTG has a lot of reliability built into what will generally happen. Specific events that mirror history will pop up and a lot of times history will repeat itself. That is not to say that the game is not dynamic and that everything happens the same way, as the AI has some freedom of choice and the player is limited only by their own skill. However, if you play as Russia, be prepared to face the Time of Troubles, as a German a radical Reformation, as an indigenous American tribe a lot of technological disparity, etc. While the engine does not have anywhere near the polish of later EU games, it is fun and has a separate appeal of its own.

This game, this series, is a lot to take in. Grand strategy games can be a ton of fun, but you have to be willing to put in the time to learn how to play the game before you can truly enjoy the game. Europa Universalis basically allows you to reshape history, starting from somewhere in the 1400's up to the early 1800's (Although mods can make it so you can go on indefinately). My first game I tried to take over the world starting as England. I ended up getting conqured by France and whoever that is at the northern border of England at the time within a few years. And that's how learning in this game works. You're gonna get a basic tutorial, to give you the general gist of how to do things so you're not going in completely blind, and then you've got to go in and get your ass handed to you learning. I spent four games trying to figure out what to do when you're at war(♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ portugul, taking the land for my work...) and how to annex or gain land. The game can provide alot of fun for those who have the apptitude to learn, adapt and conquer. I'd say this is one of the good Paradox titles to try out if you're looking to get into the Grand Strategy genre, mainly cause it's the cheapest in the main series of thier games. But despite it's age, it's still a really good game. So if you're looking for a good, deep strategy game, and you've got the time and patience to learn, this is a game you should consider.

For those megalomaniacs who love Grand Strategy games and want to change to try out some 15th-18th century alternative history; this game just can't be beat.

PLVS VLTRA mod comes highly recommended - comes with a whole new world map, with 3x the amount of provinces, and includes the AGCEEP mod too - which gives you quite literaly - 10,000 or so historical events covering this time-period. Serious amount of replayability here.

This is an extremely old remastered game but it serves as the base of what made the Europa Universalis franchise.

Positive

• The Music
  
• The Sounds
  
• Better colonial system
  
• Nice Graphics
  
• Mod selection
  
• Theme selection
  
• Fantisia

Negative

• OP Rebels
  
• Harder to mod than its successors
  
• Lack of a large community

This is a good game if you played and enjoyed Europa Universalis I & II as it is an improved version of it.

Pros:
Lots of nations to choose from, from every corner of the world.
Historical accurate events for the major nations that will give you a feel of the nation history.
Different scenarios influenced by major periods of European history

Cons:
Outdated graphics (But I still think they are quite ok for the gamer focused on grand strategy)
Gamers not experienced on Paradox Games will have much to learn.

In conclusion, if you love history or grand strategy games this is a good game to get

I have wasted far too many childhood hours of mine on this gem of a game to leave a negative review. Some games are so good and addicting they can ruin your whole life, and this is definitely one of them.

What is For the Glory? Essentially the same as Europa Universalis II, with a Vanilla+ style mod included, packaged and sold as a separate game. For all intents and purposes, they can be considered the same game, with For the Glory only having some quality of life features and historical flavour the original game lacks.

As a Paradox game, it belongs to the category of Grand Strategy games. Your objective is to guide a nation through the history of the world by means of colonization, warfare and diplomacy. To give you an idea of the scale of the game, each day is simulated in real-time, and the world is divided into ~1600 provinces, land and sea included. You can choose any nation in the world from several scenarios, 1419, 1492, 1617, 1700, 1773 and 1795. All of them end in 1820, so the grand campaign lasts for 400 years. I have played it through several times and each one has been fun in its own way.

Different starting scenarios and different countries can provide interesting challenges and add variety to gameplay. Feel free to a choose a one-province minor in the Americas, and be thrust to the ground the moment the Spanish arrive on the continent because your technology level is still in the Stone Age, and they are in the midst of Industrial Revolution. The mere survival of your nation can be an achievement in itself. The game does not hold your hand too much. Stick with the recommended nations for the first playthroughs, otherwise you are in for a rough time.

I would recommend you play first as one of the major European powers (probably Spain or Portugal) in 1419 or 1492 at first, since just as the name Europa Universalis implies, the game is geared towards playing as one and you get a good idea of all the game mechanics. And set the difficulty to easy mode, so that you get started. There is probably a steep learning curve at first, as things are not well explained within the game, but fortunately the game is not too complex at its core. There is a brief tutorial but it only covers the basics and nothing you can't figure out yourself, you learn the best by actually playing yourself.

The original game soundtrack of EU2 was one of the best ever since they chose to use authentic period music, but due to some audio bugs I have unfortunately been unable to hear it on my computer. All the special effect voices still work, though. Whatever the case, you should do yourself a favour and listen to genuine medieval, renaissance, baroque and classical music while playing for maximum immersion. Personally, I have made playlists of my own just for this game alone, since through my life-long hobby of classical music I have a good idea of what to look for.

How well has the game passed the test of time? Certainly better than EU4, and I would maybe even argue that it is better than EU3. The more simple UI and game mechanics are far more rewarding and easier to grasp, and enable you to focus on the essentials of strategy gaming. The graphics have not outdated badly, in fact, I prefer the minimalism to the more realistic style of EU4, as it reminds of board games and helps to concentrate me on gameplay, not admiring aesthetics. In regards to performance, the game of course runs more smoothly and with less strain of the CPU than newer EU games, but random crashes can sometimes be a problem.

If you are afraid of random bugs, crashes, outdated graphics, then the game is probably not for you. Also, if you don't want to lose your night's sleep because you just want to play as Portugal for just a few year more, you won't like this game.

There few easy choices in whatever nation you play. Unlike later versions of EUniversalis there are no missions that seem to make for unrealistic outcomes or massive overpower situations. Game is virtually bug free. Playing the merchant game can be a drag at times but it's very rewarding and not straightforward at all. This would be the main overpower element of this version of EUniversalis.

Music and game itself overall very good.

The best Europa Universalis game out there having loads of starting dates and factions if you can get past the graphics your in for a blast. Along with this it comes with 2 mods preinstalled and the Age of Timur is the one i'd recommend making you go back further then you could already go (1399).