Europa Universalis IV: Res Publica Review

Well this one came out of nowhere. I’ve lauded again and again over Paradox’s incredible post-release support for the wonderful grand strategy game Europa Universalis IV, but this is starting to get a bit silly... in a good way that is. Only a couple of months or so following the release of capable but questionable expansion Wealth of Nations, Paradox has unveiled and released a new addition for the game focused on a fairly wide array of mechanics. Res Publica doesn’t claim to make any revolutions to the gameplay as with the previous two expansions, but in many ways the additions it brings are just as good, if not better than its predecessors.

It’s worth mentioning, first and foremost, that the changes Res Publica makes to the trade mechanics of the game actually surpass those found in the trade-focused Wealth of Nations. Failing that, it does at least make it much more fun to play as a Merchant Republic. This is due to a variety of subtle and overt changes that essentially give the player more options when playing as trade focused nation. Setting up the new trade posts in far off colonies is a great way to expand trade power and gives trading nations a good reason to expand their territory outside of their local area.

Merchant Republics also now feature a faction system in which The Guilds, The Traders and The Aristocrats vye for power within your nation, bringing with them certain improvements. Various new events cause the power to shift depending on your aims and views, while you can also support a specific faction with monarch power. It’s good to see more internal systems being placed into the game and this one isn’t bad, although I struggled to ever consider anything other than The Traders faction, due to their boost on trade income. For a trade focused nation, it seemed like the consistently logical choice. The expansion also makes it possible to turn a nation into a Merchant Republic, so you won’t have to play as Venice or The Hansa all over again.

Another interesting, and more significant, addition is the new Dutch Republic mechanic that basically makes the Netherlands a rather unique nation to play as. A Statists vs Orangists internal system, which works like the Sunni piety slider, provides the player with something else to manage and control, and much like the aforementioned faction system this feeds into the new events that Res Publica brings to the Netherlands. With its late historical start point and unusual position in global diplomacy, it’s unlikely to be a nation many players have tried. A specific development to the Netherlands is therefore a great idea that’s executed well.

(Top tip: break up Burgundy at the beginning of the game to play as the Dutch for the whole timeline)

As mentioned, a lot of the changes brought with Res Publica are incredibly minor, but collectively very good. For those who have yet to try their hand with one of the more difficult minor nations, then this expansion is a perfect accompaniment to a new campaign. This is due to its focus on improved adaptability (primarily from the national focus ability that allows the player to adapt their monarch power points) and increased selection of ideas and policies, many of which favour smaller/growing nations. A couple of new government types are also fun to play around with, even if not reasons to start a whole new campaign. There’s nothing in the way of game-changing mechanics, but for the low price offered that’s not exactly unfair.

Res Publica is an unusual expansion for EUIV. Despite being smaller and cheaper, it’s certainly better than Wealth of Nations and brings more interesting changes. It must be said, however, that as with the previous DLC packs certain features will be available to players for free in the latest patch. Paradox has a habit of following this scheme, which can seem a tad odd. With this expansion, as well as the last, some of the free additions are actually better than the ones you have to pay for. It’s not a great reason to buy Res Publica, but it is a good reason to get back into EUIV. But then, can you wholeheartedly say you ever left? I certainly can’t.