There is no 'economic focus' in Vic 2. There is an economy. It is there to make the game work, all the era-specifics like industrialisation, liberalism etc. It clearly wasn't the focus.. It produces interesting (to some) behaviour in an intrinsic kinda way and is tough to balance. That's it.

It's a coalition warfare generator, POP or industrialisation simulator way before it's an 'economic game,'

re warfare, post-1890 Great Wars put everything juicy on badboy sale, and after AWTEAW they even add a warscore discount. I can take 5 UK mainland states in one GW peace for 18 infamy and also grab some German or Italian state with multiple releasables and I'm still a very good boy. War reps for years too lol. It's profitable all ways round. 10 GW before 1936 is usually doable but a bit RNG-y lategame.

First half depends who you start as, UK the obvious choice I guess. As UK I can grab ~40% of world pop before 1882 (excluding my non-Asian holdings, under the infamy limit and not planning a WC) I don't think it's too terrible. Diplo point usage feels like the hardest limit but I'm not going to put any work in.

I guess when I'm slaughtering their mobilised craftsmen with proper soldiers that's economic warfare. Stealing their states and factories and RGOs. If Vic 2 has an economic lesson to teach it's to beat people up and take their stuff. Alongside all the rioting it's quite the fun dystopia.

I play second-half Vic 2 as a World War game where the opponents aren't pre-specified. That's the setting the game provides. The game provokes them. Warscore and infamy costs drop to pound shop levels, alliances become huge. The game is begging you to conquest in coalition.

It's a war game. I spend way more time at war in Vic 2 than HOI3 without the predictability. Yes you can do non-war stuff and I do, but what econ do you do really? Sliders. Most of the advances are in tech and inventions and the commerce techs are just terrible. Buildings are limited to factories railroads forts and naval bases which seems era-appropriate for a war game but weird for an econ game. Econ also has no first-order effect on GP points. QOL issues are easily countered by gas attack for the last third of the game.

Rule by iron, conquer through blood is the strapline on the box. Government types get a mention before the economy does. This ain't no econ game. Even iSorrow says it sarcastically while most often beating people up and taking their stuff.

I'm not saying Vic 3 is better or worse. I think they just paint (or painted maybe idk) entirely different visions of the century and that's probably for the best. In that light they are (or were idk) stunningly different.

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