Game profile
Europa Universalis V
The newest entry in Paradox's historical grand strategy series lets players shape five centuries of world history through war, trade and diplomacy. With enormous depth and countless possibilities, every campaign unfolds differently.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is Strategy, set in a historical period. Visually it is deliberately stylised rather than photorealistic, and the overall tone stays somewhere between light and heavy. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
It is genuinely demanding, and repeated failure is part of how it is designed. There is no story to speak of, the systems carry everything. Competitive play against other people is part of the package. It is available on one platform. It is a full price release.
What stands out
- Five centuries of history
- Deep grand strategy
- War, trade, diplomacy
This fits you if
- you enjoy being made to think
- levelling, looting and optimising a build is your kind of loop
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- cutscenes annoy you and you just want to play
- you want real resistance and are fine with dying a lot
- you enjoy competing against other players
Look elsewhere if
- you want to relax and not be punished for mistakes
- you play mainly for narrative
- you do not have 150 hours to give a single game
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
How long is Europa Universalis V?
About 150 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 25 weeks, or 75 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 84 out of 100, which puts it above 52 percent of the 1276 games here and at rank 542 overall. That is mid-table for this database. Not a standout at the top, but solidly rated.
For comparison, Strategy averages 82 points across the database, so this one sits 2 points above its own genre. The figure rests on a comparatively small number of ratings, so treat it as an indication rather than a verdict.
Released in 2025, so it is current. Expect it to run well on modern hardware and still get patches.
The facts
- Release year
- 2025
- Genres
- Strategy
- Playtime
- approx. 150 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Demanding, punishing
- Story weight
- None, pure gameplay
- Play with
- Solo, Competitive
- Setting
- Historical
- Visual style
- Stylised
- Price bracket
- Full price
- Platforms
- PC
- Critic rating
- 84 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europa Universalis V | 2025 | approx. 150 hrs. | 84 | Full price |
| Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic | 2024 | Endless game | n/a | Mid price |
| Sid Meier's Civilization V | 2010 | approx. 60 hrs. | 87 | Budget |
| Football Manager 26 | 2025 | Endless game | 74 | Full price |
If you liked this, try these
- n/a Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic Shared: Strategy, Historical, rated higher
- 87/100 Sid Meier's Civilization V Shared: Strategy, Historical, shorter, rated higher
- 74/100 Football Manager 26 Shared: Strategy
- 87/100 Sid Meier's Civilization VI Shared: Strategy, Historical, shorter, rated higher
- 87/100 Europa Universalis IV Shared: Strategy, Historical, rated higher
- 80/100 Battle Brothers Shared: Strategy, Historical, shorter