I had my Western Digital Green for more than 4 years. Still going strong :/

I agree with the other reviewers out there about GW2. It's a good MMO casual game without much grind except if you want to obtain the greatest equipment out there that's will only offer cosmetic differences compared to tier 2 equipments that is easily obtained at Max level.

No pay2win shit as well. Rich lore as well as multitude of activities like would vs world (mass fort sieging and mass clashes) that can be participated by any level (they up level you to 80) to jumping puzzles to storyline lore development, and special PvP grounds that allows CTF and other types of matches.

I quit due to MMOs not being my thing as I like strategy games more.

Not to mention crafting, build customisation (different play styles have different builds), underwater 360 degrees battle, boss raids, dungeons. Or you can just skip all these and explore on your own. You can do just that and level to 80 and can almost get the same tier of equipment just by playing the trading post.

This post has been edited by pikachu01: Sep 25 2014, 02:19 PM

GW1 is still going strong, not shutting down anytime soon (check how old it is) and GW2 is already more than 2 years old and still going strong.

You should try Grand Strategy. It's not turn based but it's real time with pause just like Knights of the Old Republic or Dragon Age (though they are RPGs rather than Strategy games).

Some of those games I'm playing is Europa Universalis IV and Victoria 2. You should go with Europa Universalis IV first to get a feel of Grand Strategy games.

Once you tried it, you'll never go back to Civ-like games or even 4X games like Sins of a Solar Empire.

True. Should've mentioned GalCiv2 as a proper 4X game. However I still find current 4X games as well as Civ-like games to be kid-ish compared to Grand Strategy games.

EU4 and Victoria 2 really spoiled me. Once you go Grand Strategy, you can't go back sadly.

Once you learn the rules, it's not any different than Civ or GalCiv. The only thing needed is a tutorial from someone experienced in the game.

The tutorial for Paradox games isn't really good and that works against strategy buffs like us.

If you want to get started in any of the games, they offer a full fledged demo for each of their games. You can add me to Steam and I'll do a blow-by-blow guide if needed.

True. The graphics look very bland. Though the same can be said with games like FTL. Once you get past the graphics the depth of the game can be 10x more than what you can get with Civ. In the end graphics is just an interface. What you enjoy the most in some games are the depth and the fun from strategies you devise.

These don't look like spreadsheets though:





This post has been edited by pikachu01: Sep 25 2014, 06:20 PM

The base is enough for enjoyment but you'll soon be playing enough hours that you'll buy the DLCs anyways to enjoy more.

Try playing the demo and see if it's the right game for you. You can add me on Steam as well and I'll provide a tutorial or to give you a feel of the game.

The first two are Europa Universalis IV and the 3rd one is Victoria 2. Granted Victoria 2 is from 2010 so the graphics are a bit dated.

Cool. Add me on Steam: pikachu01 (that's the one with 500+ games)


The problem with Civ is that you'll always pick one strategy and then go through with it. At the end you will end up with either conquering everyone, doing a UN or making a Science victory.

It's always the same strategy when dealing with AI:
- Expand and create more cities (or turtle strategy depending on what your starting nation is)
- Trade with City States. Make them happy
- Get necessary resources either from creating cities or trading
- Do the technology race
- Turtle or conquer other AIs until a few are left
- Play with the remaining AI to do conquest or cultural victory or Science victory

In EU4/Victoria 2, the AIs are actually neighbouring countries that actively play a role on whether to conquer you or to ally with you depending on how powerful you are. Playing a weaker nation like Johore/Malacca (yes you can play your own country), you are always on the lookout from Siam or Atjeh.

In EU4, you play from 1400s to 1800s. The more powerful nations are Siam or Majapahit. As Malacca, you need to expand your trade ASAP, as the Western nations haven't reached South East Asia yet. Get one of your diplomats to appease either one of those nations while slowly reigning in money and researching military technology (the tech tree is different than Civ-like in that you use Monarch points generated each month to research a tech tree or ideas that can benefit your nation. There are Military/Administration/Culture techs that can boost your nation).

In Victoria 2, you play from 1820s to 1920s. Siam is still a powerful nation, but Johore's ports in Malacca, Penang and Singapore are under the British rule. You should conquer Atjeh as well as Bali and Sarawak as soon as possible to get the right cultures (they have Malay population and work well towards assimilation). You also need to encourage clergymen (the educators of your nation) so that you advance enough miltiary tech to pose a threat to Siam. Netherlands that borders Indonesia will also try to demand concessions (your ports) to annex them, and their Military power is 5x greater than yours. Hence you should improve your relations with the British.

Jolly Roger.

You should try to play the tutorial first. You can watch this tutorial:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK9vPgNAqzY

Or after the tutorial, you can ping me on Steam and I'll guide you.

Not only that both Victoria 2 and EU4 have tonnes of mods that cater to every whims and fancy.

That's only the tip of the iceberg. If you want, you can run your game on autopilot or you can actively manage all there is to be managed in the game. And playing different nations, you have different strategies and if you want, you can grow your nation to be a powerhouse and stomp everyone.

Yeah, add me to Steam and ping me.

IMHO. Europa Universalis IV is for beginners of Grand Strategy, but soon enough, you'll feel EU4 is not enough. Victoria 2 scratches my itch and is the "de facto" Grand Strategy game.

There's actually no winning conditions. On a small nation like Malacca/Johore, you can dream to conquer the whole of South East Asia or beat back the Western nations.

EU4 has its timeline from 1400s to 1800s. On a 2 year old computer, that could range from 10-18 hours depending on how much micromanagement you do. It's an active pause game like Dragon Age. 10-18hours is similar to Civ.

Victoria 2 has a timeline from 1820-1920s. On a 2 year old computer, you can finish the game at around 12-14 hours. Same as how much micromanagement you do.

Edit: It's not turn based as all nations play at the same time. There are 600 nations, big and small and all are simulated at the same time with how they manage their army/economy/diplomacy.

This post has been edited by pikachu01: Sep 25 2014, 06:59 PM

I'm not saying Civ-like sucks. I'm saying that I can't go back to Civ-like as it's too simple with simple mechanics and simple strategy and playing it more than 50 hours makes it seem like I've seen everything.

The same with Sins and GalCiv2. You'll apply the same strategy for certain events. One strategy for offensive AI, one strategy for turtle AI etc.

The thing with history is that you learn while enjoying it. You can play as Qing empire and see it collapse and reunite China or play as Japan and establish the Meiji Restoration. Or play France and just stomp England in the Hundred Year War.

Note: I don't read the wiki on any of these events. Naturally when I played, I learn of what happened, what I could do to rewrite history.

Note2: The soundtrack as well as art style in EU4 is unique as well. You won't get bored. There are mods that offer music packs as well. Some are really really good.

Again, I'm not saying Civ-like is terrible. It's just that after playing Grand Strategy, I really can't go back to Civ and I've offered my reasons. You can disagree with it and I can agree to disagree, though you cannot really dispute my not going back to Civ right? Cause that's kind of the truth.

This post has been edited by pikachu01: Sep 25 2014, 07:11 PM

Yeah. pikachu01 from Penang with 500 games.

Is your Enhanced Steam updated? Also, wait a while before it appears.

Some mods (fan made) music for EU4:
https://soundcloud.com/kairi-sawler/crossin...euyns-music-mod

Please report them. Get this thing big.