Sure, the game still needs work AI-wise, balancing wise and bug ironing out wise. However, playing through good 60 years of a VH British Campaign I have to note that the game-play has come a long way since the original release.
In the original version (in vanilla, not mods), the game got utterly boring very soon. The player would dominate by year 1730 or so and from that point on (all the way to 1799) fighting the AI factions could be equated to kicking a dead horse in the stomach...
It's different in 1.03, even with such an easy faction as Britain. For quite some time I've been struggling (while explicitly NOT trying to rush the AI) to have sufficient income, armies and fleets (to fight off blockades and trade theater raiding) while pushing the development at the same time. By 1765, I reached the 'required province count' for long campaign victory, however, the largest AI factions were not that far behind in terms of power and development.
Spain was still mighty despite having been at war with Britain for the last 20 years. Prussia expanded all over Central Europe. Russia was still alive and kicking (and pushing Prussia back). By the way, all three were my enemies because of declaring war on my allies. On the same token, in 1765, Austria is still a major power and my faithful ally. [Something got broken in our trade mechanics though. Austria now displays two trade entries in my trade summary window. Both have been blockaded for the last 40 years or so... But that's on the bug side of the story].
I realize, many have complained about the difficulty/impossibility of obtaining trade agreements in mid-game and later. Actually, given the value the trade provides at this point in the game, I find the "difficulty" not that irrational. Example: Greece (an emerging nation) would stubbornly refuse my trade offers. However, once I gave them a couple islands they were happy to sign the deal. The income from that trade is whooping 10K/turn: way more than those two islands were producing in taxes and exports for me.
So, all in all, despite the present flaws and inconsistencies I find 1.03 to be way more fun than any of the previous versions of the game. Hey, I can go even further: 1.03 is way more fun than any of the previous TW titles (maybe discounting Shogun). Good job, CA!
But don't stop here. That AI is still dumber than dumb...
On that latter note: I have noticed some positive naval AI developments. In 1.03 sea battles, the AI is actually trying to do some manouvering...
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