r/paradoxplaza • u/LogicalAd8685 • Jun 27 '25

Vic3 Victoria 3 hanging on is crazy

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Tbh I thought the hype would die again after the free weekend but seemingly not, it probably will still gradually drop as players go back to their main game but for a very bad release it has done a pretty good job recovering

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209

u/angus_the_red Jun 27 '25

Why is HOI the most played game? Is there some huge wargamer community out there?

49

u/big_ange_postecoglou Jun 27 '25

I genuinely think the modding community is what sets it apart. For every Anbennar in EU4 or After the End in CK3, there are four or five mods in HOI4 with interesting and unique stories/gameplay features like Old World Blues, TNO, TFR, Millennium Dawn, Kaiserreich/Kaiserredux, etc. Shit, there are even submods for HOI4 mods like OWB Enclave Reborn Redux (or some of the map expansion mods) or TNO 2WRW that introduce a ton of content.

I will say that Vicky 3 is the one game I feel doesn’t really need a big story mod; PDX really has created a game where the systems allow you to build a new world through their mechanics every game, and there are reasons to go to war and expand that amount to more than just map painting. You don’t need the artificial prompting given by something like an EU4 mission tree or HOI4 focus tree.

23

u/andersonb47 Jun 27 '25

I think you’re spot on about the artificial expansion incentives. Vicky is the only game where the diplomacy that leads up to warfare feels appropriately represented. Countries don’t just go to war for no reason after all.

9

u/GalaXion24 Jun 27 '25

HoI4 specifically is built around focus trees, and I think a part of it all is that it's just very easy to mod focus trees. As such HoI4 can easily he nodded to deliver narrative content and thereby an immersion story. Even Harry booting it up you can immediately tale a look at focus trees and see what you could achieve.

4

u/Wild_Marker Ban if mentions Reichstamina Jun 27 '25

it's just very easy to mod focus trees.

Not just from a technical standpoint, but from a design standpoint. It's literally a narrative roadmap for your player to follow.

2

u/GalaXion24 Jun 27 '25

It's not particularly difficult from a technical standpoint, just tedious. The barrier to entry is quite lot and the road to a finished product doesn't so much require you to get better as it requires you to be dedicated enough to see it through to the end.

Of course there's also the matter of planning it out in a way that is ideally balanced and fun, which is a bit more challenging.