Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome (PC) Review

By Ian Soltes 24.12.2017

Review for Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome  on PC

Russia has long been a bit of a bear within the world. Being the world's largest nation and boasting its own unique church in the orthodox faith, the legacy of the Eastern Roman Empire, it has come to style itself as the successor to Rome. Paradox Development Studio's Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome does its best to sit down and give it that unique distinction within the game and make it stand out against the more common Catholic nations.

It would be easy to mistakenly believe that this expansion is focused mostly on the Russians and making them stand out. Mainly because that this is basically the sole focus of the expansion. If the nation is not Mother Russia than they are simply not really addressed. To be frank, this makes this effectively a 'mini-expansion' as opposed to a massive and full one. That is to say, that what is inside this expansion is simply pointless for those not interested in playing as the Russians, and what is contained is… survivable… to play without.

For those interested in playing as the Russians, however, things are a bit different. For starters the Orthodox faith has been changed to allow for one of several saints to be followed; each one conferring its related bonuses. To top it off if a province is sufficiently developed it can then be consecrated to become a metropolis to allow said province to provide further power to the Orthodox faith. Using this well can result in the Orthodox faith snowballing a bit into becoming powerful; but only if used properly. However, being able to obtain a bonus such as, say, a 25% boost in diplomatic relations is exceptionally potent.

Screenshot for Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome  on PC

There are other changes, of course, such as a reworking of the government to allow for a more accurate Tsardom to arise and the ability to call upon special troops called 'Streltsy' which tend to be decently stronger than normal in combat but result in instability issues. However, that's not the real question. The question is, 'is it worth it?'

Sadly, the simple answer is 'not really'. In fact it hits almost squarely on why it isn't worth it just in the description. It's a mini-expansion and this practice needs to be addressed and handled properly. For those interested in playing as Russians the changes brought are certainly worth noting, but to someone who dislikes it? Money was spent for an expansion that may simply not matter. It would be one thing if, say, this drastically reworked how combat unfolded, how the entire Asian continent was handled, or any one of a multitude of other possible things, but this really only affects a tiny amount of players yet costs as much as a full expansion. This is stuff that should be handled in a patch! Not a full-priced expansion!

Screenshot for Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome  on PC

Cubed3 Rating

4/10
Rated 4 out of 10

Subpar

Quite frankly, this practice is unacceptable. This particular expansion shouldn't be punished since the problem is broader and more wide-spread. How making an admittedly large patch then charging full price for it is a bad Paradox! Bad boy! There are people out there making workshop content and mods for free that affect far more and aren't some minor fringe either. Meanwhile, with a full team, Paradox manages to change one, admittedly large, nation? Why not sit down with all the other religions and give them their own little iconographies? Or work in something else? Anything else! This is a mini-expansion and the result of a sad, yet likely unstoppable, practice.

Developer

Paradox Development

Publisher

Paradox

Genre

Strategy

Players

1

C3 Score

Rated $score out of 10  8/10

Reader Score

Rated $score out of 10  0 (0 Votes)

European release date Out now   North America release date Out now   Japan release date None   Australian release date Out now   

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