Europa Universalis IV: Third Rome (PC) Review

It would be easy to mistakenly believe that this expansion is focused mostly on the Russians and making them stand out. Mainly because that this is basically the sole focus of the expansion. If the nation is not Mother Russia than they are simply not really addressed. To be frank, this makes this effectively a 'mini-expansion' as opposed to a massive and full one. That is to say, that what is inside this expansion is simply pointless for those not interested in playing as the Russians, and what is contained is… survivable… to play without.

For those interested in playing as the Russians, however, things are a bit different. For starters the Orthodox faith has been changed to allow for one of several saints to be followed; each one conferring its related bonuses. To top it off if a province is sufficiently developed it can then be consecrated to become a metropolis to allow said province to provide further power to the Orthodox faith. Using this well can result in the Orthodox faith snowballing a bit into becoming powerful; but only if used properly. However, being able to obtain a bonus such as, say, a 25% boost in diplomatic relations is exceptionally potent.

There are other changes, of course, such as a reworking of the government to allow for a more accurate Tsardom to arise and the ability to call upon special troops called 'Streltsy' which tend to be decently stronger than normal in combat but result in instability issues. However, that's not the real question. The question is, 'is it worth it?'

Sadly, the simple answer is 'not really'. In fact it hits almost squarely on why it isn't worth it just in the description. It's a mini-expansion and this practice needs to be addressed and handled properly. For those interested in playing as Russians the changes brought are certainly worth noting, but to someone who dislikes it? Money was spent for an expansion that may simply not matter. It would be one thing if, say, this drastically reworked how combat unfolded, how the entire Asian continent was handled, or any one of a multitude of other possible things, but this really only affects a tiny amount of players yet costs as much as a full expansion. This is stuff that should be handled in a patch! Not a full-priced expansion!