Europa Universalis IV vs Total War Battles: Kingdom
Europa Universalis IV
Europa Universalis IV is the fourth game in the award-winning Europa Universalis franchise. Similar to its predecessors, the game has everything you'd need to build your own nation from the ground up and guide it through the ages. The freedom in which you get to customize your giverning style, your nation and even your game is simply ridiculous (in a good way) and of course, the best selling point of this series is that almost everything is based on accurate historical references, be it a historical figure or an event. This time around you'll get to grow your nation over a much wider span of history, arrange royal marriages, form coalitions, support rebels in proxy wars and more. You can even cooperate with up to 32 different players to govern a single nation. The multiplayer mode apparently now has an improved chat and a new matchmaking system.Unfortunately, the major downside about this game is that the developers, Paradox Interactive, have apparently "sold-out" by adding in features that should have been in the original game into DLCs that players actually have to pay extra for, ending up spending over $200 for just a single game. Not to mention, many players have complained that the DLCs they release are priced at the same price point despite having progressively lower amount of content.
That said, the game is still an epic masterpiece and a worthy sequel to the Europa Universalis series, but the game's hardcore player base is admittedly not happy, and honestly, we wouldn't recommend getting this game unless you can get all of the DLCs dirt cheap... maybe like in a bundle.
Total War Battles: Kingdom
Total War Battles: Kingdom is the free-to-play version of a Total War game that is available on the mobile platform. Set in the medieval times, the game perfectly captures how things were back then - an era filled with almost constant skirmishes and conflicts between lords and fledgling kingdoms. The gameplay mechanics are pretty well-done despite being somewhat restricted - you can only bring a maximum of 9 battalions into battle, for example, and it does retain most of the Total War archetypes like city-building, army training, and battles.Unfortunately, Total War Battles: Kingdom definitely pales in comparison to any of the games in the main series mainly because it fell victim to one of the worst pitfalls in the free-to-play gaming industry: microtransactions. Don’t expect to get far into the game without spending real money first, but if you still choose to persevere, it would probably take you weeks of constant playing to get your kingdom somewhere solid enough for you to hold your own.
That said, the game is still a pretty decent albeit casual installment of the Total War series. Fans of the franchise or of casual MMO strategy games on the mobile platform may want to give the game a try.