Europa Universalis 4 expansion dev diary teaches new Colonial States gameplay

Paradox Interactive today announced that you can pre-purchase the expansion for Europa Universalis 4 , Conquest of Paradise, for $15. The expansion, available on January 15, will allow players to explore and conquer a randomly generated New World continent modeled after the Americas, and greatly enhance the way you play as Native American and Colonial States. Paradox Development Studio Manager Johan Andersson delves into the latter in the latest development diary video.

Whereas in previous EU games you would simply establish colonies that were yours until an enemy took them from your cold, dead hands, in the Conquest of Paradise expansion you'll have to balance your greed for taxes with the Colonial States desire for liberty. Should the colonies desire for liberty increase too much, they'll behave like real Americans, dump your tea in the ocean, and eventually strike out on their own, starting a revolutionary war. However, you could also rewrite history, placate the uppity colonies, and keep the crown in control of the new continent indefinitely.

In the previous development diary video Andersson talked in detail about a new advancement track unique to Native American nations, which adds new bonuses, the ability to demand diplomatic relations, and other ways to spend your resources. These, along with other features unique to the Native American nations, let you to play as a small, powerful nation that constantly moves from province to province, instead of staying in the same province and improving it slowly over time.

As our review of EU4 discovered, Paradox knows what it's doing with these 4X games, and everything we've seen from Conquest of Paradise so far seems like no exception. If you pre-purchase the game on Steam now you'll also get a 10 percent discount.