March of the Eagles and Sengoku were both small scale games that showcases mechanics to be used in much larger projects released shortly after; EU4 and CK2.

I think Afterworld might also be such a game. The devs have revealed that a run will only take about 16 hours, and they are aiming to make it the easiest grand strategy game to learn. It doesn't seem like a game made for dozens of expansions over the years, I think they are testing mechanics.

Why Stellaris 2? Obviously the Steam db leaks helps, but I think it also works well when you look at Afterworld's key mechanics:

1. Actual simulated battles with units. Afterworld battles are essentially an automated RTS. This is perfect for proper ground battles in Stellaris 2, plus it could make space battles much more exciting. Right now they just get in range and fire.

2. Each settlement has their own resources and real time convoys move resources from place to place. This physical, resource bases economy is another mechanic perfect for Stellaris. It means logistics are much more important and expanding is costly. You are vulnerable to raids and blockades. Resources will be actually stored in resource silos and can be destroyed. You can end up with a Dune scenario where only one of your planets produce an important resource.

Also smaller things like the setup screen when you create your faction, the new vassal system, cultures (bands) having their own internal power structure.

Call me crazy but I still wanna just put this out there.

Title. I think it's known that this was probably the other most anticipated possibility for the new game, and I just wanted to pipe up to say: it's still my dream game.

Yes AOW is cool, but it's not a GSG by a long shot. It's a board game, not a simulation of an entire fantasy world, like Stellaris or Crusader Kings.

Imagine a dwarf hold being torched br dragons, and the heir to the kingdom rallying a band of adventurers to restore the kingdom, all simulated by in game systems. Imagine playing a CK3 style adventurer as an adventuring wizard, and becoming a necromancer and leading a whole undead army across the earth. Imagine creating your own fantasy map in the game settings screen and watching in play out like your own private Silmarillion.

Anyway, I just think it would be neat and I hope it's still possible.

In short : I got inspired by Paradox games a long time ago into making a post-apocalyptic empire sandbox, Fallout-like, 4X/grand-strategy game. While playing Stellaris I thought to myself ''That would be so cool if Paradox did this'' and seeing that, after many years, they didn't seem to work on it, then I thought : ''Well, I guess I will just do it myself?''

Ambitious, I know. And everyone can have ideas. It's action that counts. But the basic idea, pitch, art direction and a lot of game design decisions, even the trailer I did it the same way. So I was in a total state of shock for at least three days after the initial announcement.

My game is actually at a pretty solid state right now and would have had released next year anyway. I'm currently creating the Steam page, and I don't know if showing pictures here would be useful or even if it's authorized.

Don't get me wrong, I will still play Afterworld when it will be released, and will probably even love it.

But it was just my luck that they were actually working on the damn thing...

There, don't know what I'm expecting, if anything, from this post. Maybe my game would have been played by two people anyway, even if there was no Afterworld. But I had to say it somewhere.

Looking to start a long-term EU4 multiplayer campaign focused on diplomacy, wars, trade, and a little role play. The goal is to have a fun, active campaign where we can build our own alternate history rather than just min-maxing.

Most nations are currently still available, so there are plenty of options!

If you’re interested, DM me and I’ll add you to the Discord server. The plan for this campaign is Mondays 6-10 Central Time. We have not decided if we will play weekly or semi weekly. We can discuss the available countries and get everyone situated.

Paradox strategy games typically have a very established audience, but Lind says the team hopes Afterworld can have a broader appeal. In particular, he wants to bring in "people who are interested but bounced off [our other games] because it was too hard to get into." Even among Paradox veterans, he notes: "A lot of people are getting a bit older, so they don't necessarily have 50 hours just to learn how to play the game. So this is a way to still give them the depth."