Very disappointing game. Economy system is buggy and broken, several AI issues, obscure (and overly complicated) POP mechanics, a lack of control and SLOW code make this game a major waste of your time. Vicci 1 was so much better in every respect, which is sadly true for so many Paradox titles. I spent 100s of hours in Vicci 1, gave up on this game after 10-20 hours.

Where to start with Victoria 2, it at its heart is just plain inferior to its predecessor, Victoria Revolutions. It's sad to say but what this game improves is utterly out shadowed by what it loses and this is the same for Hearts of Iron 3. Here's what the game does right this, fantastically improved military system making war actually entertaining, the tech tree isn't limited to a few arbitrary techs, the addition of secondary powers, and a easier to follow capitalist system. Now for what hampers this game, the new graphics make the game run slower which may not sound like a big deal but honestly you never do much but sit in Victoria so now you're just sitting longer which is tedious, The AI upon the games release don't do anything weakingling AI in Hearts of Iron do more than these guys, Nearly every historical event was flushed down the toilet which makes the game feel like its meandering and without historical wars or events NOTHING HAPPENS, Colonization is totally stupid now since only major and secondary nations can do it (Sorry Argentina) and your ability to colonize is based on national focus which is based on pop so it only allows you to colonize 3ish provinces at one time, finally the game is disturbingly buggy which is shameful for a game just released since it means they barely product tested it. All and all the original is just a better game doesn't make this game horrible it just isn't worth the money yet since the first is mega cheap.… Expand

Paradox games is one of my most disliked game companies. Victoria 2 is a pile of jetsam, the game just don`t got what it takes. I keep asking myself why did I buy this game, I will never get another Paradox game again.

Paradox games are generally only playable after their first expansion by which most of the worst bugs and imbalances are ironed out (EU 3 is an exception that took more than one expansions to be the great game it currently is). I think this is also true for Victoria II even though it was released much more finished than the horrible HOI 3. The good thing about Paradox interactive is that they actively keep updating their games even several months and years after their release. As of the current version the game still suffers from many small problems but it has an active modding community and an expansion on its way.… Expand

Paradox has a habit of releasing buggy games. They have such a habit of releasing games in such a poor state I just cannot abide by getting any of their titles until a 5-6 month cooldown period has passed. Case in point Hearts of Iron 3. What a mess this game was at launch. I wanted many many months and just got it for 8 dollars on Amazon. Now I feel that I will get my value out of the title. Europa Universalis complete is also 7 dollars on Amazon for the holidays so I will probably snatch that one up also. Victoria 2 was a notoriously bad game. My suggestion? Wait and go for the AGEOD title Pride of Nations. A tried and true engine and I am sure that they will release a fairly stable product. In fact the only one I can think of that did not work out well for them was World War One. At least at first. Since its release it has been fixed. Link here to Pride of Nations: http://www.ageod-forum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=250… Expand

I consider myself well read of history. I love to read about the period which this game takes place and have always done the 'what if' senarios in my head. What if the CSA won the Civil War? What if Germany never unified? In this game I set out to play those what ifs. I played as the House of Lippe (a german province) never unifying with the rest of germany. Instead I conquered it. conquered parts of poland and later became a great power. I ended the game colonizing africa and being a super power. This game is full of those what ifs.… Expand

I quite enjoyed it although it has it's share of issues including a persistent problem with the world market and a few other pesky bugs. The game has tremendous potential though. I think with a strong expansion pack, it'll become a classic.

Victoria II was a mess when it was originally released, but the latest patches have fixed most issues. The game is focused on the social and economic changes that occured in the 19th and 20th century, and you job is to guide your nation through them. Victoria II does not focus so much on combat as other Paradox titles, but there is enough depth in the rest of the game for it to still be really entertaining. If you are a fan of other Paradox Interactive Titles, Victoria 2 is a must have!… Expand

This is a game that fits into a very thin niche in the strategy games' market, and as such it either works well for you or it doesn't. What it does it does very well and what it doesn't do...well it just doesn't do it for some people. If you are a huge strategy game fan (especially of other Paradox titles) or a real history buff then you will probably enjoy this game, but if you're more of a Call of Duty fan and looking to get into a different genre while you wait for the next shooter then this game is definitely not for you. The tutorial is rather boring and all text with no hands on experimentation and this leads to a lot of frustration and searching on the forums. I think the devs wanted you to experiment in-game and play with your own style and in this forces you to do so as a lot of the game is learn as you go, but the first few hours can be very frustrating. The interface is very disheartening even for a seasoned strategy player but it soon becomes your best friend and the more information the better. Diplomacy is definitely this game's strong point over competing RTS games, indeed if you wanted you could play the entire game without going to war and still accomplish many of your nations objectives. That's not to say warfare isn't an integral part of the game, but you are presented with many options for working around a rival nation, the Prussian/Austrian Campaign is especially enjoyable in this regard. Warfare is fairly well done, however you take no part in the battle and the strategy is in getting all the right technology, luring an enemy army into unfavourable conditions, maintaining supply lines, and trying to keep your economy running enough to keep your armies moving. It is really focused on the grand strategy where winning a battle takes a back seat to winning the war. The economy is also very well done and it's management is absolutely critical to your success or failure. All in all I enjoyed Victoria 2 and if you have a lot of time and patience on your hands then you probably will too, but know that you get what you put into this game and if you put in little you will get little in return.… Expand

This is definitely one of my favourite games!! It is rather detailed, visually beautiful and it is a historic strategy - what more can a history geek want?? It does have some problems, like the insistence of Russia to conquer Oman in EVERY game, but that is (hopefully) something that will soon be addressed with the patches. I haven't played it since before the patch 1.2 so we'll see - hopefully it'll be even better. Even without the patch, I loved it! Excellent game!!… Expand

Victoria 2 was a game that I bought on a steam sale, booted up, and than after about 30 minutes of tutorials, shut down and didn't revisit for six months. That short experience left me baffled. That said, I saw that there was something to the game, and promised to devote a Saturday afternoon to it one day. About a month ago, I did just that. I spent a full day doing the tutorials and trying out a game of it in earnest. I was left baffled. Confused. Humbled like no other strategy game ever has. Strategy is my genre, and this was the most monstrous game I have ever seen. But it left me utterly compelled. Fast forward a month, and I am STILL learning how to play this game. But it is worth it. I would give this game a 10, but it is simply not accessible to the average STRATEGY gamer. If I was to rate is as a game for whoever, it would be lower, simply because of the ludicrous learning curve. That being said, for those that take the time to learn the game, kudos. You have discovered a classic. It is stable, the ai is a reasonable challenge, and there is only victory in your own eyes. For those who claim there is a problem with the underlying game mechanics, they have not scoured the forums and found out why the game works like it does. For the vast majority of things, this game was designed to work like it does, and after understanding why it was designed the way it is, you will say to yourself "Oh, now I see why they did that." I give it an 8.5 out of 10, siding on a 9. If you buy the DLC, A House Divided, it improves the game to an even further extent.… Expand

great game i loved it even though it had some bugs it was able to keep me happy due to the large about of countries and 100 years of game play long live the Punjabi empire

Though a bit buggy when first released Victoria II is still a solid strategy game. Victoria II has a lot of detail, from tech trees, to POPs, trade, diplomacy, and a lot of historical data. While in other games of paradox this level of detail is usually accompanied by a steep learning curve which would make many people hate the series, but Victoria II seems alot more balanced and straight forward. Worried about the tech tree? Well don't worry it's literally straight forward at what you need for the next tech, and not all techs are available to you at once unlike HoI 3 which you literally could research everything way before you should, especially if you like to cheat. Diplomacy in Victoria II is a bit screwy, but is still manageable and usable. Sure, vanilla Victoria II doesn't allow you to kick out **** members of your sphere of influence but that isn't reason enough to not like or play this game. The political system seems to be well balanced on reality, with my only complaint being that's really really hard to try to get 1 party from 3% to 20+ unless it's the basic liberal or conservative parties aka really hard to create a Fascist, Communist, or anything else really nation. Now the economy system is not as straight forward as it could (ease of use), but is significantly easier when compared to other paradox games, where controlling the economy is important (I highly suggest looking into an online guide for this). Administration, is really easy to manage, make the tax levels for each of the 3 classes (lower, middle, upper), set tariffs, and decide what to spend on. (Education, Administrating, Recruits, Raw materials you need, etc.) All and all Victoria II is a good game with some flaws, and a bit of a learning curve, but is still playable. Though I wouldn't pay more than $30 for it. 8/10… Expand