Europa Universalis III

I generally like this more than EUIV for a variety of reasons. Being less reliant on mana systems is one, sliders, how tax systems work, and how the game is less centralized on monarch boosts. Generally speaking, I just prefer the resource management of this game. But some aspects are still grating. For example, westernization is a dumb concept that isn't even historically accurate in how this game implements it. makes playing non-Euro needlessly painful. Obtaining cores is also painfully slow.

An oldie but goodie. You need to actively seek out the best mods for it to hit its full potential. I personally prefer it over 4, mainly due to liking certain mechanics that were altered.

I guess I can understand the appeal, but I have never had anywhere close to the patience required to play grand strategy games. Not to mention the steep learning curve is off-putting to any newcomers to the genre.

I have a thing for european history and it's awesome to try to rewrite it as a superpower, a commercial league leader or just a fly shit in a forgotten corner of the map.