Is EU2 Worth Buying Now?

[Innocent Beard]

EU2 Worth Buying Now? or FtG?

Hey.

I just ordered EU3:Complete + HttT + DW (pre-order).
I plan to play EU3:Complete + HttT with Magna Mundia latest release.
I plan to play EU3:Complete + HttT + DW in vanilla mode.

My question to you is:

Should I buy EU2 for kicks? It's $6 for EU2 + Asian Chapters on GG right now.
Edit: Or as Olav suggests, should I buy For the Glory instead? Which would be the better route?
My main reason for thinking to buy it is for educational value.
I have heard that EU2 had alot more historical events and historical information than the more sandbox EU3 release.

Now I already have a sandbox experience lined up with EU3 vanilla, a semi-sandbox experience with MM. What I need is a forced historical experience.

So a few inquiries:
- Is EU2 full of forced historical events?
- Do these events have details? (ie lots of text, dates etc)
- Are these events concentrated to certain regions (ie Europe + New world)
- Are there some events for atleast all the nations of the world (ie Africa, Asia etc)
- If no to above, which regions of the world are lacking in historical detail

As you can see, my main reason for EU2 interest is historical value. So what do you guys think.

Thanks in advance. I know it's alot of random questions for an old cheap game.

 

[Olav2]

Yeah, sounds like EU2 is something for you. That said, you should check out For the Glory: it's basically EU2 + a lot of improvements. It's 70% off right now on GG.

Some of the events are forced yes. Sometimes they trigger completely out of context. Other times they work fine. Even with the forced events most of the games I've played turned out pretty random. AGCEEP (a mod) adds a bunch of events - many of them have "alternative history" choices which add new ways to play a country.
Many of the events are detailed, especially in AGCEEP. They are concentrated on Europe, but you'll find events for most countries all over.

Here's FtG's forum if you're interested: http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?444-For-the-Glory

 

[unmerged(28727)]

Buy For The Glory instead.

It's the new patched version of EU2.

 

[Ovg]

Please consider that there are far more eu2 mods and ftg seems dead.

It's your call. Do you want lots of variety or less bugs?


EDIT

Of course FTG is not just a bugfix, but calling it EU2.9 is somewhat too much, though it has a couple of really nice features and overall it looks cleaner and better.

 

[Olav2]

There's plenty of mods for FtG. Enough to keep you occupied for a good while I would say. And FtG's forum isn't more "dead" than this forum...

Claiming that FtG's only advantage is less bugs is ludicrous.

 

[Innocent Beard]

K I've decided to buy either EU2+AC or FtG for sure. Which one I go with will depend almost entirely on your guys responses.

1) Does FtG include the additional material found in AC?
2) Does FtG include more historical events that EU2+AC?
3) Is AGCEEP the same for FtG and EU2+AC? Or does it have more events/features for one of them?
3a) Is AGCEEP still in development for both FtG and EU2+AC? Or just FtG? Or just EU2+AC?
4) Is either FtG or EU2+AC better suited for a Windows 7 system? Do either have massive game-breaking bugs still?

5) In your opinion, is EU2+AC worth a purchase for the more extensive list of mods?
6) Or should I just buy FtG because you think AGCEEP is all I will need anyway?

I would like to hear from as atleast 5-10 people before I make the decision. Hopefully that will happen before the sale ends.

Thanks for all the help guys. Much respects.
Enjoy.

 

[Innocent Beard]

And... I just visited the FtG forum.... OvG does have a point.... the mood in there is sombre at best... from Devs & Players both.

This thread: http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum...-Why-is-there-no-real-community-for-this-game &
These posts scare me from FtG.

Orange highlight is my edit for emphasis.

All games move here after 6 months if they don't have an active community or sell that well. Sorry.

"Current game" is for those that game that is

1) recently released (within 6 months)

and/or

2) is still selling good and have a reasonably active community.

The only posts in the last week in FTG have been "why isnt there a community".

Actually, we did the similar amount of advertising for both. However, the AoD team provided far more material beyond what was required.

It seems that some people here think we deliberately killed FTG?

We spent more money on FTG than on an average Eu3 expansion, but sold about 1/50th of the volume. The fans seemed to not like it. Deal with it. Don't go around saying its our fault you didn't want to buy it.

IS AGCEEP dead?

I've been waiting for mods that never came out.

If you want to see more support for the game, now is a time to show it, at a cheaper price for yourself.

Now like I said, all of the above scares me. Especially the last post, which sorta implies that support may stop very soon.

But the vigor with which people seem to be defending FtG also excites me.
So ultimately, like I said, I will wait for your responses.

Thank you all again for the help. This is turning out harder than I imagined. EU2+AC or FtG, That is the question!

Enjoy.

 

[Hastu Neon]

I've EU2 + various mods since 2001, still playing sometimes - the most entertaining game I've ever head.
But I've played a lot the demo of FtG and seems more polished, interface is much better because there are many things which help playability like alerts, different maps for cultures, revolt risks, etc.

Basically, if you have FtG you have EU2 + improvements, for the same price. So my advice: go for FtG.

 

[Olav2]

1) No. I haven't played AC, but from what I've seen here it was nothing special.
2) No, FtG and EU2 has the same # of events. With AC EU2 has more events.
3) Yes, it's the same
3a) No, no activity for both at the moment (except that FtG is being ported to a new map in FtG)
4) FtG is better suited for new platforms, but I think Eu2 will work as well. Eu2 has more bugs than FtG, but EU2's multiplayer is more stable I think.
5 & 6) I don't think AC is worth it. So it's EU2 vs FtG. So I have the same advice as Hastu Neon: go for FtG.

 

[Ovg]

I bought both, cause seriously, why not? Sure, they're not exactly steam sale cheap, but 12 euros sure are better than 30 euros (FtG without this sale thing costed waaay too much imho, just like AoD, and that's why they're not selling like hot buns but that's just my ramblings).

Also asian chapters are worth it only if you're really into asian stuff imho.

I have a friendly WARNING:
AC and Eu2 are both using same setup with same registery keys, so getting them to exist on your hdd simultaneously is a bit of a hassle.
You have to
1.Install AC, choose custom folder, name it "Europa Universalis 2" or something.
2.Rename the folder to "Europa Asian" or something
3.Run EU2 setup, choose repair
4.Now you can play them both, since they don't need registery keys to run.

 

[MichaelM]

Yeah, Asian Chapters was not really designed to coexist with EU2. There have been plenty of "How do I install Asian Chapters?" threads here over the years.

Asian Chapters does have a better vanilla map than EU2 does. But it doesn't have a version of AGCEEP and it's based on EU2 1.06 (?), which is before several major bugfixes and improvements. (I believe the only change to the source code for AC was to bump up the maximum number of provinces.)

I don't think EU2 has a much more extensive list of mods. WATKABAOI was probably the most-used outside of AGCEEP, and it has been updated extensively for FTG. It uses more of the new modding features than any other mod that I know of. There are at least 10 FTG mods that I know of; there are not that many (if any) more mods for EU2 that are compatible with patch 1.09.

And finally, just my personal opinion: once you've had a taste of FTG, there are too many irritating things about EU2 to go back.

Of course, I don't count as one of the five to ten people that you're asking for, Innocent Beard.

 

[Monkii-sama]

Don't get why they even sell Asian Chapters considering it's not compatible with later patches of EU2.

 

[Tontonseb]

There's no big interest in buying EU2 now. My feeling is that playing AC instead of EU2 won't change much educational value.
Buy FTG, and consider there are several mods included. You can test each of them. Of course, AGCEEP is going to fulfill your request. Then, there are also mods which are not included, but which use better maps, and have been improved for FTG 1.2 patch. So, have a try with Watkabaoi 2.04 + Andrei Grigoriev Fix4u and have a try with MyMap for FTG fixed by Therion. Both of them are interesting, and choosing one is a matter of taste. Then, MyMap is still now using the 1.39 version of AGCEEP as a basis, and I'm currently working on implementing 1.57 AGCEEP into it (and then, I should add what had been made in AGCEEP 1.58 beta 12). I think I can upload something in two months, I'm currently working on Africa and Middle East, but I've not enhanced Europe, America and Asia yet.
Moreover, there are people working on Summa Gentium Locorumque and The Great Invasions. They surely will be very interesting mods.
In the end, I would like to say that FTG doesn't need any special patch or support, it's already very good, but anyway, Michael M is active and offers support, and Garbon will surely do so also.

 

[BurningEGO]

EU2 still beats FTG hands down in terms of multiplayer issues.

You want to play online - buy EU2.

You want to play single player - buy FTG.

 

[Innocent Beard]

Yeah, sounds like EU2 is something for you. That said, you should check out For the Glory: it's basically EU2 + a lot of improvements...Many of the events are detailed, especially in AGCEEP. They are concentrated on Europe, but you'll find events for most countries all over. Here's FtG's forum if you're interested: http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?444-For-the-Glory

Thank you for pointing out FtG. I glanced at it, but it never struck me as being a EU2 based game. Now, thanks to the initial pointer, and ofcourse the help from the rest of the guys heres, I know more. Much appreciated.

I've EU2 + various mods since 2001, still playing sometimes - the most entertaining game I've ever head.
But I've played a lot the demo of FtG and seems more polished, interface is much better because there are many things which help playability like alerts, different maps for cultures, revolt risks, etc.

Basically, if you have FtG you have EU2 + improvements, for the same price. So my advice: go for FtG.

So I was on the fence about any EU2 based game in todays time until you said that (highlighted stuff). Considering that you have EU3+HttT icons, I figure EU2 must've had something real good going for it. O, and your mini-summary about FtG was quite useful. Thanks.

...
Also asian chapters are worth it only if you're really into asian stuff imho.

I have a friendly WARNING:
AC and Eu2 are both using same setup with same registery keys, so getting them to exist on your hdd simultaneously is a bit of a hassle.
You have to
1.Install AC, choose custom folder, name it "Europa Universalis 2" or something.
2.Rename the folder to "Europa Asian" or something
3.Run EU2 setup, choose repair
4.Now you can play them both, since they don't need registery keys to run.

Much respects for the info/warnings about AC. I probably would have bought it and discovered that later. Appreciated.

Yeah, Asian Chapters was not really designed to coexist with EU2. There have been plenty of "How do I install Asian Chapters?" threads here over the years.

Asian Chapters does have a better vanilla map than EU2 does. But it doesn't have a version of AGCEEP and it's based on EU2 1.06 (?), which is before several major bugfixes and improvements. (I believe the only change to the source code for AC was to bump up the maximum number of provinces.)

I don't think EU2 has a much more extensive list of mods. WATKABAOI was probably the most-used outside of AGCEEP, and it has been updated extensively for FTG. It uses more of the new modding features than any other mod that I know of. There are at least 10 FTG mods that I know of; there are not that many (if any) more mods for EU2 that are compatible with patch 1.09.

And finally, just my personal opinion: once you've had a taste of FTG, there are too many irritating things about EU2 to go back.

Of course, I don't count as one of the five to ten people that you're asking for, Innocent Beard.

No, I guess technically I should ignore all dev comments in a decision like this. But then again, how often do you get an opinion with someone who has actually seen the source code. But seriously though, thanks for the comments, especially on the mods, as that was one area I was still iffy.

There's no big interest in buying EU2 now. My feeling is that playing AC instead of EU2 won't change much educational value.
Buy FTG, and consider there are several mods included. You can test each of them. Of course, AGCEEP is going to fulfill your request. Then, there are also mods which are not included, but which use better maps, and have been improved for FTG 1.2 patch. So, have a try with Watkabaoi 2.04 + Andrei Grigoriev Fix4u and have a try with MyMap for FTG fixed by Therion. Both of them are interesting, and choosing one is a matter of taste. Then, MyMap is still now using the 1.39 version of AGCEEP as a basis, and I'm currently working on implementing 1.57 AGCEEP into it (and then, I should add what had been made in AGCEEP 1.58 beta 12). I think I can upload something in two months, I'm currently working on Africa and Middle East, but I've not enhanced Europe, America and Asia yet.
Moreover, there are people working on Summa Gentium Locorumque and The Great Invasions. They surely will be very interesting mods.
In the end, I would like to say that FTG doesn't need any special patch or support, it's already very good, but anyway, Michael M is active and offers support, and Garbon will surely do so also.

Those are some nice looking suggestions. Though I admit some of them flew over my head, I will definitely be reading over this post once I have a couple of months of Vanilla under my belt. Thank you.

EU2 still beats FTG hands down in terms of multiplayer issues.

You want to play online - buy EU2.

You want to play single player - buy FTG.

That works perfect. No multiplayer intentions from me. Thanks.


And.....I can't remember if I mentioned it already above somewhere, its FtG FtW. Now to go purchase this beast.

Thanks to all the responses (even those I didn't quote). And did I read somewhere up there that it comes "packaged with mods"?
If so, much respect to MM and crew. Thats a win move that I hope is how all games in the future will follow.

Now on to FtG.

 

[Garbon]

And did I read somewhere up there that it comes "packaged with mods"?
If so, much respect to MM and crew. Thats a win move that I hope is how all games in the future will follow.

Now on to FtG.

Yes we included the latest version of the AGCEEP (1.57 for ftg) and the Age of Timur. However, I would definitely encourage picking up the latest version of the Timur mod in the FTG modifications forum.

 

[Bacchus]

Yeah, sounds like EU2 is something for you. That said, you should check out For the Glory: it's basically EU2 + a lot of improvements. It's 70% off right now on GG.

Thanks for this information. I don't really visit this sub-forum anymore so only pure chance that I discovered this, but I bought EU2 when it first came out and loved it. Now that For the Glory has a decent price I couldn't resist buying it. It'll be fun to try out EU2 again

 

[Innocent Beard]

Yes we included the latest version of the AGCEEP (1.57 for ftg) and the Age of Timur. However, I would definitely encourage picking up the latest version of the Timur mod in the FTG modifications forum.

Hmm, is this the deluxe or non-deluxe?

 

[Garbon]

Hmm, is this the deluxe or non-deluxe?

With FTG, you get both versions. You simply need to select in the settings menu whether you want classic shields or the EGUSFM shields.

 

[Innocent Beard]

With FTG, you get both versions. You simply need to select in the settings menu whether you want classic shields or the EGUSFM shields.

Am I missing something or is thew new 1.58 not available on your website yet? The links seem to all be for EU2 1.57.