Rating: 
Summary: Not for evenryone - but I keep going back
Review: Play one of well over one hundred countries. Give orders any day, day to day, for four-hundred years, or rip through a year in under a minute. Worry about how many religions your Empire has, how many different cultures. Decide whether to go strait at the Inca and Aztecs, or try for the far east and build a trade empire.The variety in Europa Universalis, once you've gotten used to the game (try Russia, France or the Ottoman Empire to get used to things, lots of fighting)(best to start in 1492 not 1419), then things get really interesting. I've played global conquest as Austria, pushed into historical territory as Russia, and built a trade Empire as Portugal. I still haven't exhausted more than a small fraction of the possibilities of this game. Why not play the Iroquois and unite the American tribes before the Europeans arrive? Why not defend the Aztecs (they certainly had the money)? Start in India and conquer Europe, that will show them. The game is deeply historical. When Marlborough arises you simply cannot stay at peace. If the Treaty of Tordisalis is trouble, maybe you shouldn't be Catholic anymore. Religion is central to the game: become the defender of the faith, but which faith? Catholic, Protestant or Reformed? Muslim, sure, but Shia or Sunni? EU2 forces you to think and plan ahead as well. Take on too many enemies and war exhaustion will wreak havoc with your empire. Conquer too quickly and you will be hated throughout the entire world, which is fine, if you have the army to match your ambition, and the income to support it. Most games start off interesting the player a great deal, but one's interest gradually wanes. EU2 is the opposite. It can be difficult to grasp at first (the tutorials help a good deal), and I still learn new tricks after all this time. However, once you get accustomed to the game, which takes some time, but is not that difficult, your interest will grow. This is especially true if you love History. Can you save Byzantium? What if Venice grew powerful rather than declined? Wouldn't Henry V have made a fine King of France? Now, you'll have to excuse me, Savoy, Munster and the Palatinate are challenging England's position on the continent, my American colonies grow restless, and India awaits... WARNING - In my opinion the 1.07 patch sacrifices fun at the altar of historical reality. The developers greatly increased troop support costs (playing as Poland I could not support the troops I started with!), and made other changes to prevent player conquests. Find and download version 1.05 (it's available but not from the developers). Try 1.07 if you like, but if you want a fun game, go back to 1.05. Oh, and try playing as Poland, it's lots of fun.
Rating:
Summary: Superb "strategy game"
Review: I've been playing strategy games for more than 8 years and this is one of the very best I've played so far.
I'm a huge fan of Civilization style games, and I do like Age of Kings style too, but let me tell you that EU2 is unique in its way of dealing it.
It's not a "turn based" game like Civil, nor it's a real time one like AOK. It's a turn based game in real time.
what do I mean? You can plan your actions carefully and then feel the action of "live" answers to your decisions. Another peculiarity is the possibility of winning the game without being ever in war! You can win a full 100% diplomatic way (via trade & careful alliances). It's like being and acting like a Switzerland.
It takes more than usual to understand it completely but it's the most similar to managing a country I'd ever played so far!
If you're interested in these games, this is an option you ought to consider seriously!
Rating:
Summary: The best strategy game ever
Review: Look around your living room. If you see a console system there that doesn't have an inch of dust sitting on top, this game isn't for you. If, however, you don't care about whether or not you can blow through a game in an afternoon, or whether or not your games give your $400 graphics card a hard time, this is your game. It doesn't look like much at first, but one you master the steep learning curve you are rewarded with strategic and historical depth unrivaled by anything that doesn't actually involve ruling your own country. Want to defeat the major European powers as Napoleon? You can. Want to unite the Middle East as the Timurid Empire? You can. Want to experience the tactical difficulties of fighiting a war in Sweden? You can. Want to unify Germany as the Grand Duchy of Mecklemburg? Dont you know what Mecklemburg is? You will. This game has it all, from the strategic warfare of the Hundred Years War to the Napoleonic Wars, the ability to create a mercantile empire that pours riches into your coffers, or the ability to explore, colonize, and conquer the New World. A deeper, more historical, or more fun strategy game con't be found anywhere.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible Epic Strategy Game
Review: This is the best strategy game I have played in a very long time. While at first glance the options and style of the game may seem a bit limiting, the game is actually deep and has a huge amount of replayability. I bought this game four months ago, and I'm still playing it almost daily. You can play as almost any country that existed during the time period you chose, but you start in a historically accurate position. That is, if you pick a small, weak country, you're going be small and weak in the game. You have to be a strong player to get by as one of the minor countries. Beginning players should start with one of the major countries like England, France, or Austria. There are a couple things you should be aware of before purchasing this game, however. The graphics are a bit dated. They're not bad, but they fall well short of the current industry standards. Also, if you're a traditional RTS gamer, this game is nothing like other RTS's. Although it does play out in real-time, it's more similar to turn based strategies than most real time strategies.
Rating:
Summary: tempus fugit
Review: Life passes you by when you escape with this masterpiece. Few games deserve the title "Epic" but Europa Universalis is heads above the rest.
The ability to play ANY nation, Republic, Kingdom (etc..) in the world (200+) alone is EPIC. The amount of mathematical variables involved in the economy (that thankfully is automated by the AI) is also on a GRAND SCALE.
Europa Universalis II builds oupon Europa I and adds more depth and decision making and plenty of random events that make the game flow like real life and gives the player a true sense of ruling, or at least attempting to rule, the WORLD.
I just hope Crusader Kings can live up to the standard that has been set by this terrific game.
Rating: 
Summary: Universalis or Revolutionalis?
Review: Having gone through the Age of Empire's series with nothing more than disappointment I have been searching hard for an Empire building game to end all games. The search goes on. Europa Universalis has all the elements: grand scale, multiple societies; military,religious and economic scope...Unfortunately the one thing it lacks is ease of use. The game promises that the player will have control over how the society evolves and there are many aspects of economic,religious and military development one can invest in (providing the resources are available which they often aren't). The problem is that despite one's best intentions investments tend to have one overwhelmingly negative effect...REVOLT! Consequently the game quickly disolves into an annoying counter-insurgency role rather than an "Empire building game". How is it possible to expand when the greatest threat comes from within your own borders. For a game which purports to be based upon an historically accurate model it lacks credibility. Revolts were rare (at least popular ones as compared to aristocratic) and infrequently led to the overthrow of the state. The game developers have spent too much effort into exploiting this aspect of the game to the detriment of all others. Despite maintaining a lasting peace, economic stability and/or religious tolerance (and even investing wisely...which I still have to learn how to do by this model)the developers have thrown in random and frequent occurrences (some historically based and others mere fantasy) which negatively effect your stability and revolt risk. Kissing and making up is not an option. No amount of money will resolve the outcome (even if you had it which you frequently don't). So the programmers have forced the player into a battle of survival against one's dominions. It would not be too harsh to characterize the game as "Europa Revolutionalis". That's not what I was looking for in the game.But for me the game comes unstuck in the garnering of resources, namely gold. It costs a small fortune to establish colonies and trading posts. Historically these were never costs absorbed by the state. Indeed the English goverments became rich granting charters whereby settlers would pay them to emigrate in exchange for free land which would eventually be quite heavily taxed. Most colonies operated on this system. "Europa" makes countries bankrupt by establishing colonies, absolutely mindboggling! The rate at which resources are garnered is tediously slow, hence the four hundred year time scale. After reading the manual I fail to detect any way of speeding this up. The most obvious way is to monopolize a trade center ( which I have never done though others -computer controlled-seem to manage it too frequently, or to conquer another state and to force tribute from them. Here is another let down. Once a nation agrees to award you tribute a lasting peace is signed which you cannot break. Too frequently the peace is signed but the tribute never materializes, mindboggling! Bankruptcy soon follows. Some of the campaigns have real promise. The Napoleonic Era is very good but alas too brief. The earlier the timeframe the harder the game gets to play as without knowing how to build the ecomony the resulting lack of funds impacts your ability to compete in the game. Hey people at Stragety First, "Give us a break already!" why fill the game with setbacks. If playing against human opponents I can foresee that the game will be more fun but the computer AI cannot be beaten (at least in the economic domain which is where the game is won or lost).This game has the potential to be the best of a weak bunch (Empire builders) which is high praise given that it lacks a proper combat simulator, Shogun Total War still rules the roost.
Rating: 
Summary: A huge game and strangely addictive.
Review: In 1691, after seventy years, five wars, countless spent ducats, three failed alliances, and the loss of tens of thousands of men, I finally managed to force Poland, the power of eastern Europe, to cede to me Danzig- its port city, its center of trade, and its most valuable province. After decades of frustration, I finally had land access between Brandenburg, my captital, and Prussia, my heartland. There is much rejoicing throughout the realm of Brandenburg. EU2 is a unique game in that there are so many different ways to play it. Play a major power like Spain and you'll gobble up the Incas and Aztecs in nothing flat- although expect to suffer from revolts. Play a small to mid sized power like Brandenburg and you'll have to pick your wars with care and learn that trying to take a heavily fortified and valuable province from a major power is not an easy thing. Every country has its own unique situation and thus its own playing style. And there are literally over a hundred different playable nations.
EU II is also a complex game. In fact, it's one of the few PC games that actually requires a careful reading of the manual, as well as playing the tutorial scenarios, just to understand the basics of the game. There is alot going on "underneath the hood" in this game. EU II features some of the most complex economic and diplomatic models ever seen in a PC game. The complexity of EU II is both a strength and a weakness in that gameplay rewards careful thought, but also frustrates and intimidates newcomers. The AI does fairly well considering the open ended nature and sheer size of the game. The AI does get several advantages over human players, such as not suffering from naval attrition, which means it can keep its fleets and explorers at sea indefinetly. Some may object to allowing such an AI "cheat," but concessions must be allowed in order to have the AI to have a chance in such a massive game. Besides the AI still makes all sorts of dumb mistakes, and its lack of aggressiveness against even weak human nations means that a competent player will rarely be eliminated from the game. This is a strangely addictive game game in that occassionally the player will literally just sit watching the game clock's days and months go by, doing nothing, and yet not get bored. This is especially true of the small and mid-sized powers who have limited income and thus must wait around alot for Jan. 1st on which the player gets his revenues. Wars are fun, but a smart player will try to make them brief because if a country is at war too long his citizens will rebel due to war exhaustion. Also, you have to be careful about what provinces you conquer because if your religion and culture are at odds with those of that province then expect to be annoyed by constant revolts. EU II is highly impressive. It's sheer size and variety are pretty hard to beat for a strategy game. I cannot say it will appeal to everyone- its complexity, size, abstract handling of combat (the player has no tactical control of his troops), and slow pace of play can be offputting to many people. However, for fans of grand historical strategy games EU2 should be of some interest.
Rating:
Summary: Wunderbar
Review: If you thought there would never be a RST game that combines historical accuracy with accumen and excellent gameplay, think again. The game is challenging in its own right and allows you as the player to think about and to control foreign and domestic policies of the country you choose to be.As such you'll find yourself quickly addicted to empire building,sending diplomatic envoys to foreign governments, promoting colonization & religous conversion abroad,establishing trade agreements with foreign countries, promoting conquest, warfare and technological developments. In this regard you also should bear in mind that you as the prime minister of your country,are accountable to the monarch, and therefore you better avoid policy decisions which may lead to political instability (i.e.costly wars, challenging very powerful countries, or neglecting diplomatic relations / alliances as such), otherwise your government falls. The game is great in all respects, and I highly recommend it. I think it is absolutely great and realistic because of the control you can excert over foreign policy making (war and peace, alliances), thereby shaping the faith of your country. Further, you can change the course of 400 years of history (1420-18.20)by playing non-European countries, which may instead end up dominating the globe. All in all tres fantastique.
Rating:
Summary: ADDICTIVE
Review: EU2 is a real-time strategy game that puts you behind one of the strong european countries or weak nations of the rest of the world. It combines strategy and diplomcay that delivers a game that seems like RISK on crack. IN the game you control a country. You make many desicions that affect your country such as who is your friend and who you should declare war on. You control your nation through diplomacy (realtions with other countries), trade, religion, colonization and economy. The time period of this game spans from roughly 1450 to 1840 (VERY ROUGHLY) In EU2 real events that happened back then happen (ie. the revolutionary war in the US, treaty of todisailles, ect.) The other reviews claim this game to ba hard, but you can set the level of difficulty which is handy. It seems hard ot learn but you catch on quickly. this is a great game!!!!...
Rating:
Summary: Civilization and then some...
Review: Let me begin by saying that I have enjoyed a great many strategy games, ranging from the original Civilization, Master of Orion, Warcraft, etc., and this game is by far the best I have ever played. This is the kind of game that can find you losing touch with your friends and relatives - it is incredibly addictive. A few high notes: 1) The gameplay offers extraordinary depth, with many different approaches that can all be successful. You can conquer Europe as France, diplomatically dominate as Austria, conquer the Americas as Spain, or colonize your way to the top as England. 2) Replayability is amazing. If you get tired of playing the large countries in Europe, try to dominate the globe as Zimbabwe or the Inca Empire. All countries on earth during the time period covered by the game are available, and it is possible to do well playing any of them (much harder with countries like the Inca, but still possible). 3) This game really requires you to THINK! There are consequences for each of your actions in the game that may not surface for another 100 years, and you have to bear these things in mind constantly. 4) There is a marvelous balance between being boring and having too much detail. A few gripes: 1) Even after all the recent patches, the game still crashes too frequently. Technical support is very responsive, but there's not a whole lot they seem to be able to do about it, so save often. 2) The copy protection on the disk sometimes prevents it from running at all on some computers (no error message here either). That said, I believe this is the best computer game I have ever played. Even better than Civilization.
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