Europa Universalis 4 had quite an impressive 2017. Paradox Interactive released two major DLCs for the game: the East Asia-focused and well-reviewed Mandate of Heaven in March, and the Middle East-centric Cradle of Civilization in November. It also introduced Third Rome, the first of a new kind of DLC called an ‘immersion pack’ focused on a particular country, in that case Russia. Four years after its 2013 release Europa Universalis is still going strong, and likely will get new flagship DLC for at least a few more years. So what’s to come for the strategy game in 2018?
Europa Universalis 4: What’s To Come In 2018?
The model of EU4 DLC generally takes a familiar pattern: most of the DLC focuses on a particular region of the world, with big revamps for that area and some new global mechanics that affect everyone. This year, the DLCs affected East Asia, the Middle East and Russia; the fall 2016 DLC, Rights of Man, primarily included global mechanics but with a focus on Europe. A small, free update centered on Japan and the Philippines came out in mid-December. Since those regions have received updates so recently, they aren’t likely to be revisited next year.
Unlike some of its other games, Paradox hasn’t released a 2018 roadmap or future development plans for EU4 DLC. That said, after the release of Third Rome, the company intends to release other country-focused, smaller-scale immersion packs in the future. We haven’t gotten another one yet; the larger-scale Cradle of Civilization wrapped up the year. But, unless Third Rome didn’t meet expectations, we should still expect more immersion packs in the future, and many countries could be good options. India, Brazil (or elsewhere in South America) or the Barbary states of North Africa, none of which have been fleshed out recently, would all particularly benefit from further fleshing out.
In terms of broader regions for a bigger DLC, the most likely candidate for a future release is probably the New World. North and South America haven’t had a major revamp since El Dorado back in early 2015, nearly three years ago. Since then, many other new global mechanics, particularly those introduced in The Cossacks and Rights of Man, have transformed the underlying strategy of Europa Universalis, and the New World hasn’t necessarily caught up. Expect Paradox to at least seriously consider bringing the region up to speed.
Likewise, Africa hasn’t received much attention since Mare Nostrum revamped the North African coast in April 2016; sub-Saharan Africa has no DLC, although that partially reflects the historical role of the region during the game’s time period. As mentioned above, India is very worthy of an immersion pack or full-fledged DLC, and since its two major neighboring regions—China and the Middle East—both have recent revamps, it could well be next on the list.
Paradox’s strategy for Europa Universalis 4 may change slightly now that a new game director has taken the helm of EU4’s future development—but that happens pretty frequently in Paradox-land as team members shift to new projects, and the general attitude is “steady as she goes.” Regardless, there should be lots of exciting new features on the horizon for EU4 in the new year. Expect more details with the first set of developer diaries for future updates, starting early in January.
