Get a grip. It's "Sandbox Europe" the only thing set is the starting conditions. If that's not what you want , then it's not a game you're after no matter how much you think it might be. Example. As England I make a pact with Spain and Spain and England invade Portugal. Never happened, so it also means Portugal can't discover and lay claim to the huge landmasses it did, and Spain and England did not war or even get a bit fruity in the new world. France backed down and (sensibly) fought neither.If we were allowed further it would in these circumstances be very unlikely that Napoloen would ever have risen above the rank of Captain. So I'm not allowed to do it? I can't sign a long lasting peace with Spain becasue all the preset historical events would get ruined? Course I am - it's a game, and JUST that one act, that ONE piece of paper signed in the first 5 years of the game changes EVERYTHING.The colonization of America, the incursions to India, the French avoid colonizing North Africa - it ALL CHANGES on that one piece of paper. THAT'S WHY IT'S A GAME NOT A BOOK. If it didn't and France just ignored the consequences of going around taking huge areas of North Africa via a stable mediteranean enforced by an Anglo/Spanish pact that would make no sense in the NEW context of the game. Not to mention the fact that Phillipe and I would just wipe them out with some considerable ease with the then puppet nation of Portugal providing the cannon fodder. "I want a game, but I want nothing I do to make any difference, have any effect or alter history as it's currently understood" That's not a game then is it - it's a history book.… Expand

After installing it, as a historical strategy game, I feel a bit cheated. The game has a historical setup but once you start playing all types of random and silly things happen. For instance, in my game (already patched) by 1480, when Historically nobody had set foot in the new world, I have Spain colonizing Canada, the Teutonic Order colonizing the US and Aragon together with Genoa are colonizing Brazil/Venezuela. Also strange is the way ihneritances work. In my game, Provence inherited Portugal and Milan inherited Norway. This means Provence is now Portugal and Milan is now Norway too. This is completely silly. The graphics are very poor, as their quality is from 2000, not 2007. What makes the game a bit interesting is the engine that is not very different from previous Europa Universalis game and was not ruined in this attempt to make a fantasy game claiming it is historical plausible!… Expand

I am worried the choices taken in this version of the game. In spite of the name, the game does not take place in history, but in a alternative world where a minuscule state in Germany can end up colonizing all of North America, while England can end up being force married by another german insignificant state. It would be better if they put the pointy ears, the orks and making a fairy tale map. DISAPPOINTING.… Expand

Very, very good game. The sandbox play is not for everyone but I quite enjoyed it as I love historical "what ifs". It's nice to see middle market developers like Paradox continuing to put out quality games.

I love historical games and I really like simulation/strategic games too. Looks like everything is in place to have a great game play experience. Unfortunately, it wasn't the case, I pick up Aztec for my first game and it was horrible. I read a lot of stuff on the internet in order to have an idea what to do to get out of this stupid tribal political system. I had to westernize, which I haven't been able to do after seven attempts and 37.4 hours of play time. And what is this annoying behavior of those "riots army" who flee when I WON?!? They run everywhere and I have to play cat and mouse all over my territory to fight over and over again until they finally get all killed. Ridiculous, it's as if they had not even tried to play their own game.… Expand

I'm a big Hearts of Iron fan, but never tried this series out before. I can say I am very much enjoying it not only for its depth, but for its freedom. No problems running on my system - AMD Athlon x2 4200, 2 x Geforce 7800, etc... Not sure its fair to give this game a 0 review when you are using a Geforce4 video card that is seven years old.

Just don't buy this game. It's buggy as hell. Not the "Well, some users experience issues" buggy. The "I run into bugs every play session, the game crashes for multiple reasons, the patch introduces new issues, your save can get borked, the tutorials don't even work and aren't likely to get fixed ever" sort of buggy. And in a game where your average game session can easily last dozens of hours, running into a bug every hour or two really adds up. While it's true that the game is built for a very small fan base, and some of that fan base really loves it, I wish they'd vote with their pocketbooks and go buy something from Strategy First instead.… Expand

If you're into this sort of thing, this game is the ideal. It's a niche genre - most people aren't interested in grand strategy - but if you are, EU3 may be the only game you will ever need. Huge replayability, depth, and history. Check out some of the game's mods, also - graphics mods especially - to perfect EU3.

Considering that it's predecessor was the only video game I ever needed to play (other than Civ updates for only about a month after they came out), this is probably the only game I will need to play for the rest of 2007. And then some. History simulator supreme.

The vote does not so much reflect gameplay as it does my disappointment with the new user interface. It's supposed to do glorious 3D justice to the gameplay underneath. It doesn't. It's 2D with ugly edges. It looks like you're playing Tetris with country sized blocks and that Ireland might drop onto Portugal at any minute. And the price? Prohibiting anyone with a not-designed-for-gaming system to play. And that should be quite a large chunk of core Paradox fans. For shame.… Expand

Never would launch the game even with the patch... requires a 128 MB video card or won't even start.. first time I have ever experienced such an issue.... incompetent programmers... I've heard ATI cards have issues with this game... lol the company expects you to buy a card specifically tailored for their game( which I hear doesn't even have spectacular graphics)... I would buy a new card, but considering Doom 3, Half-life 2, and Black & White 2 run fine on my system why bother as this game may stink anyways..so I've given it a 0 and got my money back.. 2ghz Pentium 4 Gefore4 TI....… Expand

Graphics: Very poor. We are in 2007, not in 1997. Sound: Very good music. Game sound is normal. Gameplay: Incredible complex. The interface is poor for the user to control the game. The game is very slow and choppy. At first I thougth the game was historic but after the first king history is not relevant more. Final Word: If you like to look at spreadsheets with 3D very poor graphics and not historic at all, in spite of the title, buy this game.… Expand

Superbly complex. Not as pretty as you might expect, but the depth more then makes up for it. Take note, however, that this game is not as rooted in history as previous entries in the series. That may turn some people off, but it goes a long way in allowing you to develop your own alternate history of the world, rather then being channeled into how it "should play out."

It's a very good game, much better than the EU2. There are still some glithches with AI which play a bit too lousy sometimes. But on the highest level one can have a not too bad game after all, though only because of bonuses the AI get. Graphics is ok, music is very good... It feels a bit slow at some point when the big empire is built as then merchants & colonist are a bit boring to play and you just feel you won, but there is 150 years still to go. Anyway, great game, giving a lot of satisfaction at the beginning but may feel tedious sometimes. I would give the game ten if colonisation and trade were improved from EU II. In terms of AI the Galactic Civilisation is a better game, when late play is considered Civilisation IV has the upper hand.… Expand

A strategy game unlike any I have played before. I hadn't been introduced to Paradox-style history sim games, but I have been impressed with the attention to detail in this game. It is very hard to pull yourself away from the game. this game is not for everyone. "RTS" is a bit of a misnomer. It is a real-time deep strategy game that is more akin to Civilization (if you haven't played other games in this vein such as Hearts of Iron or Victoria) than Medieval II: Total War. Graphics are good for this type of game and the game play is addictive. The historical accuracy is amazing (and the AI's deviations from history can at times be entertaining) and the ease of modification promises many future developments.… Expand

I'm sure that over time the user community will chime in and provide the historicity that the base game lacks in this iteration of Europa Universalis. The base game, however, is not meant to be historical past the first few years of the campaign the player has chosen. If one wishes to play with a world as it was in, say, 1550, one had better start not much earlier than 1545. If one starts in 1453, by 1550, the world will be completely ahistorical, and ahistorical in a sometimes illogical fashion. The Papal States colonizing Alaska by 1500? All German mini-states eaten up by Munster? England ruled by Novgorod because of a royal marriage and death of a sovereign? Yep. It all can happen in a game. In short, the base game isn't for fans for historical "what-if?" gameplay. It will be, eventually, thanks to user mods. The base game, instead, is designed for fantasy worldbuilding and world conquest.… Expand

Outdated, nerfed, less years then EU2(1419).

Like most Paradox titles, this makes all other strategy games look sort of silly. The feeling you get when you accomplish a significant, but historically plausible goal -- like unifying Italy under your flag when you started out as a mere Savoy -- is much more satisfying than the ridiculous "conquer the entire world" goal that is the beginning and end of every other strategy game.

John A's review hits the mark (albeit unintentionally)...a historical simulation that deviates from history, often excessively so. I can't think of any greater condemnation of a historical strategy game, and IMO the ones who "don't understand" are Paradox themselves. Simply unfathomable. In any case, to each his own...for those who don't care for actual historical accuracy in their historical strategy games, this won't be a bad game to play. For the rest of us, this is astonishingly overrated garbage.… Expand

To comment on Shaun G's review, the two expansion packs mean you can now have the historical accuarcy, from the monarchs down to the events that shook the world. The game is certainly ugly, but like its predecessor, it is a game that you will always come back to. Well worth your money if you have the hours and hours to spare.

This game is easy to understand and to menage, imo too much to be called a real strategic, but the heavy issue is about bugs. As many ppl told before, it does not match the historical simulation that is supposed to be as all the "factions" seem to operate quite random during time. Personally i could pass by that historical fake giving a sufficient rate or better if the game was a good one, but bugs and frustrating situations happens too often. Trying to be sintetic when you start to be used to the game you also start to understand that all the messages shown in boxes as results of various actions are completely random, sometimes very funny as you are supposed to ally with yourself or discover a new area that you never tried to reach. But that random mood happens for discovers, economic or war matters. In example a box shows that your merchant beaten one another in a specific trade area and took his place, than you see.. first your merchant is not listed there, second that the merchant of the other country who was suppoesed to be beaten is not there too. So basically that game is random for everything that count in a strategic game. Also you can add the nearly zero possibility you have to negotiate with other countries, expecially asking or recieving an offer of peace during war. Every single battle AI usually ask you to surrender paying a tribute even if you did not start the war and even if you are defo winning. Other things made me wander if they have beta testers that played in their life something on a PC.. like you cant know in game how many regiments could be stored in a fleet of transport boats before trying it one by one, or worse then this, you cant load troops on boats when the boat is docked, but ony if you move it on the sea, really WTF situations. I really cant understand some scores and reviews about that game.… Expand

This vote isn't about the game play - though, the game play is not so hot, it really didn't change all that much from EU2, it feels more like they slapped on some bad 3D graphics and shoveled it out the door with minor updates. What this vote is about is about how buggy the game is and the terrible tech support. The tech support forum -which you can only access with a registered copy - Hmmm does someone not want the general public to be able to see how many bug reports there are? I think so! - is full of reports about issues that generally point to data corruption and save file issues - yet the typical response by the unpaid, non-technical 'support' staff is "What are your graphics settings" "Update your drivers" "Check to make sure your system is over heating (WTF??? This game is not FarCry2)" Needless to say, it's completely unhelpful and useless tech support that, if you try to go along with it, has you running around spinning your wheels - most people seem to just give up. One thread I saw had a guy who took their machine to a computer lab to test the chip heat (guess what, it was fine, yup, definitely a wild goose chase). One issue that actually HAD gotten resolved had you manually editing your save file, looking for a broken entry among 1700 province records. And given the small user base + the number of bug postings, you WILL run into bugs if you play this game. End result : Get EU2 from the bargain bin if you want to play this sort of game. Don't support a company that's shoveling out bad merchandise.… Expand

Once the two expansions are installed the game is great. (the unpatched vanilla is barely enjoyable, if not playable). The only problem is that it takes 200 hours to complete a game. And I am not lying.

Great all rounded stratagy with endless posiblilities .. well done paradox

First of all, I have to say I'm a big fan of Europa Universalis series, one of the best strategy games I ever played. But not this one. They screwed the best history-strategy sim. There are few historical events and after while you cant seem anything that reminds our own history, you just dont get the felling of running a historical sim. It's a pity that a good company like Paradox dont playtest the games before releasing it.… Expand

This game is amazing. I don't really know what bugs or what problems people are experiencing, but this game is just amazing. Takes some patience to learn if you are new, but once you get it down, the fun just keeps on going..

This game is great, being in the genre of many Paradox Interactive's games the Genre of Grand Strategy. This game isn't your ordinary strategy, It requires a capable mind few seem to have. It has a lot of micromanaging and multitasking. the game can be difficult at times, but overall it's a fun game. Europa Universalis III: Complete is the only one to buy now, including it's 2 first expansions/DLC In Nomine, and Napoleons Ambition. In order to really see the true potential and greatness of this game you need to buy the DLC Heir to the Throne, and Expansion Divine Wind. With all the DLC and Expansions you have a beautiful world with many details and smooth graphics, as well as a vast History. You can find thousands of historical Monarchs, and Historical People, as well as historical nations and events. The game also has many structures to build, and a great array of Technology, Governments, and Policies. Being a flexible game you are free to choose your own history as well. you aren't locked into a historical text book, you are free to command and conquer and shape the world in your liking. You can Colonize new territory, conquer ones already claimed, and even inherit nations. The game is great with being able to be apart of the Holy Roman Empire or apart of the Papacy. overall the game is Fun, Challenging, and has 100's of hours of game play. If you are into Strategy games with Real time, and want one different from the rest, you will not be bored with this game. I give this game a 7/10 instead of a 10/10 due to that there are many bugs, and exploits in the game and that the game's DLC/expansions cost way to much. I got the game on sale. the Game and all the DLC together is worth 30 dollars as of now. but sadly the total cost at full price at the moment is about 50 dollars. at the most i'd pay 35 for the game and no more. to me the game is worthy to be bought at 50 dollars but I wouldn't pay for it at that. Anyhow if this games price gets lowered or goes on sale it would be a smart choice to buy it.… Expand

First off, this game is not for everyone. That being said I'm a HUGE fan of grand strategy games, specifically ones from Paradox, and I think this is their best, especially with all the great expansion packs. I've played this for almost a hundred hours and I'm still not bored. To any fan of grand strategy, this is a must have.

Excellent strategy game that promises to be an all time classic. The research that must have gone into this game is mind boggling. I've learnt more from this game than any other game I've played! Absorbing and unlike pretty much any other computer game. Original and brilliant.