We all know that Paradox Games need more attention from the developers, but they're still fun and that's why I'm compiling a list.
note: these games are not in any particular order.
First off, we have Crusader Kings 2
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| Whoah! Look at that shiny sword which looks rusty in some places! |
CK2 is not only a game, but also an interesting dictionary - if you want to learn very rare terms. I never knew that a word like "demesne" existed. I can also use "de jure" and "de facto" in debates now.
Anyway, it's a Grand Strategy Game. If you like board games like Risk, this will be right up your alley. You can take control of any Christian nation, except Theocracies and Muslim nations. You basically control the main character of a certain family which you have to lead to glory through gaining a lot of prestige.
When your character dies, one of his children - or a pretender - inherits everything. So be sure to put the right details in his will! You then just take control of one of the children or even a nephew or niece some times, as long as the character has kin, you'll survive.
Next up, Victoria 2 and its expansion - a House Divided.
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| Is that Otto with his silly hat? |
V2 is an interesting game. Even without bugs, it's quite a difficult game with few "life lines". V2 is also a Grand Strategy Game. It takes place in the Victoria age, and basically, you can take control of almost any independent nation(including satellites and dominions). There is good and bad in this game. It yields a lot of freedom, but kind of forces you to play with "bigger" nations in order to achieve something.
Now that problem was bridged with a House Divided, but still, you shouldn't have to wait for an expansion to be able enjoy minor nations. It's also meant to be historically accurate, so you realize why history took some paths and ignored others, there's always an external influence in a nation's path to the future.
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| That officer certainly owns something bigger than a pistol! | Look at those bloody bullets!!! |
Nevertheless, it's a good game, with innovative mindsets. Any player will explore the "what ifs" in WW2, and that idea is enough to give this game a cookie. I can't think of any other developer that has created such a game.
Finally, I'm ending this list with Europa Universalis 3
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| Careful, you'll fall off! |
EU3 is awesome. It's a great, if not the greatest Paradox Game I've played. I can recall many moments of satisfaction. It's so fun to convert the whole Europe to Protestantism, or to destroy the Holy Roman Empire, or to humble a nation through taking all its territory, or even to colonize the whole Africa - just because you can.
Now this sounds simple, but I'm afraid you'll have to work for every piece of sand you conquer. Every decision has consequences and you later learn to successfully build up, before you build out.
EU3 taught me a lot of life lessons. You don't have to conquer or acquire to be satisfied, money is valuable, stay away from Russia, don't get too liberal, make the wise decision and rest fully before moving on.
I have not had time to conquer all regions in EU3, but I believe that you don't have to in order to enjoy it. It's also not made for a wide variety of people and personalities.
Lastly, if you struggle, use cheats....totally justified ;)
Thanks for reading
