Game Features: Europa Universalis IV: Art of War

by Brian Belko

The Thirty Years’ War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history. The final collapse of the old Roman Empire completely redrew the political and religious map of central Europe, and paved the way for sovereign states to emerge from the fighting.

The majority of the battles occurred on German soil between the nations of Sweden, France, Spain, and Austria. The conflicts brought Europe to its knees, creating daily hardships and atrocities to the area’s inhabitants. Famine, looting, extortion, and disease were all common occurrences in the 17th Century.

Thanks to the newest DLC available from Paradox Development Studios for the award-winning strategy series Europa Universalis, players now have the chance to control a nation during the Thirty Years’ War and try their hand at achieving victory for their country.

Fight In The War That Shaped The Whole of Europe

While most strategy games focus on better-known wars such as World War II or the Roman Invasions, the Europa Universalis series, and particularly the Art of War expansion, allows gamers to experience a part of history that isn’t offered anywhere else.

One of the main features of the Art of War expansion is the inclusion of the Napoleonic Era, allowing gamers to fight for or against the French revolution. The Napoleonic Era was one of the main focuses of the development team’s research.

“The Napoleonic Era is represented through the ‘Revolutionary France’ starting date (1792), most research was focused on creating events that impacted the Republic at the time, the idea of Napoleonic States has been more fleshed out in the Art of War, which adds the potential for Revolutions in nations,” according to the development team.

Gameplay Enhancements & New Historical Focus

The Art of War expansion focuses in on this particular time in history while the base game, Europa Universalis IV, covers the entire duration of the Renaissance from 1444-1821. In addition to its new historical focus, the new expansion also brings several gameplay enhancements for gamers to enjoy, including the ability to mothball entire fleets to avoid costly maintenance fees, transferring occupation to allies and assigning them objectives, and building entire armies in one click.

The Thirty Years’ War was a long and hard-fought conflict. One out of five German citizens perished during the years of fighting. Populations, trade, and manufacturing industries all saw major declines. Small villages saw the worst of it, but larger towns and cities were not immune to destruction. It was Germany’s greatest catastrophe until the onset of World War II centuries later.

From forcing the Holy Roman Empire to convert to Protestantism to shaping hundreds of years of European history, Europa Universalis IV: Art of War is truly a game that lives up to the grand strategy monicker.