110 hours. Best concepts from the new slew of releases. Though I started playing these games during final cycle of CKII. This has a very large set of bones and some meat to them. The game is gorgeous, runs fine, and is pretty coherent for an initial Paradox release. No doubt with some updates and DLC this will be the best game they've released.

The ability to automate with some granularity makes this entry the most accessible to date. Kinda bummed there's no custom country function (unless I'm missing it, it can be hard to find things in these games.)

I think there should be some adjustments on the AI and how they function. Also need to balance prestige or make some more frequent ways to obtain it. Nearly finished an entire run from top to bottom and still can't form an empire despite being one of the strongest nations on paper. Only one input and a sparse array of events contribute meaningfully.

The reason I couldn't finish the run is the random option to play as one of your colonial subjects, keep the colony in your kingdom, or play as your new colony. I play on ironman for achievments. This game often leads one to mindlessly click okay on the thousand event popups that appear. Sometimes you do click wrong and do something stupid. In this case, completely tank your 400 year run by being unable to switch back to your kingdom. I just want a "Are you sure?" prompt as a failsafe for some of these more playthrough altering decisions.

Still reccomend for any fan of paradox. Honestly, probably the most accessible for newcomers as well thanks to automation settings.

i often play this game to the detriment of my many other obligations

probably says enough

Vastly improved from its predecessor, theres a sense of accomplishment and loss with every mission. My biggest thing in games like this is customization, and variability. The base game has a decent amount of that, get a good mix of map types, classes, and upgrades. Extremely moddable, and this is probably my favorite part, I can now cuztomize my soldiers to my heart's content and make them all unique, and there a lot of maps, skins, and even class overhauls to cycle through. The only problem I have is with the Rulers. just so hard to kill and frusturate the ♥♥♥♥ out of me (but thats to some extent what makes you love this game) The leap the sequel made only makes me more excited if Fireaxis develops a third.

I'm a casual gamer who likes to get lost, and Xcom is certainly interesting and deep enough to capture my attention for 200 hours. Which is a lot for me.

This game was one of my favorite in the series, there is just somthing about the design that makes it feel more intuitive. The gameplay is a cut above the other Total War games, and even after so many years I'm still having hella fun slaughtering my enemies.

>start a game as the Maharatha Confederacy
>randomly trade southern India for East Prussia.
>Poland and Courtland declare war on me
>stack army and anally bombard them into submission
>take over minor provinces and control a good portion of central europe while also converting to hinduism
>approach win conditions and realize I have to take over southern India again
>literally take a stick and shove it prussia's ass
>sweden has a military alliance with prussia and also goes to war
>take sweden from the north with huge armies
>wage war on the ottoman empire and persia for kicks
>kick their asses thanks to my pact with austria
>send a fleet to the american theatre and wipe out the pirates
>try to help the Americans in the revolutionary war
>watch them get slaughtered by the british
>meanwhile send troops to portugal
>destroy sweden
>take a land invasion of portugal and subsequently spain
>france and britain declare war on me
>currently fighting WWI with Britain, France, and the remaining Spanish colonies vs India, Russia, and Austria

10/10 Would definitly start WWI with India again.