Key things
- Victoria 3 offers a dedicated goal for learning the game through simpler nations.
- Crusader Kings 3 focuses on personal stories and guides players through the development of rulers.
- Europa Universalis 4 introduces new elements gradually, first with the basics of combat and technology.
Big strategy titles are often not the easiest titles to engage with. When you jump into a new, unfamiliar grand strategy title, a lot of questions tend to arise – questions like “What do all these stats mean?” and “Why is the resource tab hidden behind three other menus?” and the classic “why is my nation leading a rebellion against me after I built one (1) wheat field?”
Familiarity with the genre will definitely help with individual titles, but there are some games that, while not necessarily the easiest in the genre, have some great tutorials to help acclimate players to what's expected of them. Whether players want to get into grand strategy for a compelling story or addictive mechanics, here are some titles with fantastic tutorials to help you in the early game.
5 Victoria 3
A difficult game that slowly eases players
Victoria 3and indeed Victoria the series as a whole is one of the most complex Grand Strategy titles to come from Paradox. The variety of economic modes, the groupings of factions that define each nation's government, and the complex mechanics that go into building a stable economy can be quite intimidating for a new player, or even a Grand Strategy veteran who has simply never been involved. Victoria before.
So it's a good thing that this title offers a dedicated game goal – to simply learn the game. With a few simpler nations as starter projects, players can go through a special story that guides them through the important things to consider when developing a nation, with tips and insights specific to a starting nation. the players chose.
4 Crusader Kings 3
Simplified gameplay brings simplified instructions
More than other Grand Strategy games, Crusader Kings 3 is less about strategic nation-building and more about the personal stories the player creates along the way. The new start dates with the latest update added a few more historical rulers and as with all historical rulers in this title there are some that will give the player an easier time than others. Perhaps the best way to explain how Crusader Kings 3 has a different style to its Grand Strategy counterparts in that players control a single member of a royal bloodline, rather than the actual kingdom that member rules.
The Crusader Kings 3 the tutorial does a great job of reminding players to walk them through how they need to personally develop and manage their ruler and ruler relationships, while also constantly introducing the macro-level things a ruler needs to do to expand and maintain his empire.
3 Europa Universalis 4
This tutorial is slowly introducing more elements
Both chronologically and mechanically they sit in between Crusader Kings 3 and Victoria 3, Europa Universalis it has an incredibly broad time period, covering everything from the early Renaissance to the last moments of the Age of Discovery. In practice, this means a number of new mechanics are implemented throughout the game, and new concepts, technologies, and even schools of thought are developed.
Europa Universalis 4 he can go through the basics of combat and tech very early on as they are core parts of the game and then provide more guided tutorials over the years. Additionally, there are many beginner-friendly lands to help players gain a foothold in this world.
2 Age of Wonders 4
An entire realm dedicated to teaching players the basics
Age of Wonders 4 is a fusion of 4X principles with Grand Strategy, resulting in an incredibly modular civilization builder, limited only by the player's imagination… and game mechanics. This is quite important. This makes it all the more gratifying to see that the first scenario and realm the player is able to tackle is a very relaxed and light exploration of how the game works and what the player's goals should be.
The player is led by a more advanced civilization that essentially hands them victory if they continue to build their armies and complete several tasks between the start of the game and the placing of one of the tyrannical Godirs on the other side. map. It's a slow and subtle way to introduce players to the basic mechanics of the game Age of Wonders 4.
1 Stellaris
VIR is ready to help conquer the galaxy
Stellaris is a very compelling title about the creation of an interstellar empire and how that empire is defined by its fellow inhabitants of the galaxy. The game doesn't deal with the scale of nations or kingdoms, but rather entire belts of stars and planets, so it can seem intimidating at first glance. It's actually one of the simpler Grand Strategy titles, which is fun, especially if the early game is used properly.
However, for players who need a helping hand, there's their own nifty AI VIR, which offers two different kinds of tutorials. VIR can provide players with either a very detailed beginner's guide to all the resources and concepts, or a more relaxed tutorial where text boxes only appear when the player hits a relevant part of the game. Players also have the option to scrap VIR for minerals, which is fun!
