With Frostpunk 2 on the way, whispers of Civilization 7, and sleeper hits like Manor Lords imminently inbound, it’s tough out there in the strategy game world. Both as a publisher and a developer, Paradox has a superb reputation, thanks to Crusader Kings, Stellaris, and Cities Skylines – Cities Skylines 2 might have some troubles right now, but there still remains every hope those can be turned around. Nevertheless, the studio’s latest strategy opus is struggling to gain traction on Steam. We liked it, and it puts a smart spin on the entire genre. But with middling user reviews and a sloping player count, there’s a chance Paradox’s latest could be overlooked.
Developed by C Prompt Games and published by Paradox, Millennia is a clever, bizarro version of Age of Empires and Civilization 6, wherein historical accuracy comes second to imagination and variety. Instead of the usual strategy game trajectory – Stone Age to Bronze Age; Medieval era to Renaissance; Space Race to endgame – Millennia throws you dynamic, epochal curveballs.
If the quality of your public sanitation and medical care is through the floor, you’ll be plunged into the Age of Plague. Push too fervently along the tech tree, and you might accidentally create sentient machines and enter the Age of Robot Overlords. Our Millennia review offers a much more comprehensive analysis, but in short, this is a bold attempt to make the arguably stale strategy and 4X game feel new.
Which is why its current status on Steam is such a shame. At launch, Millennia pulled in an admirable 8,382 concurrent players on Valve’s platform. Just over a week later, that’s dropped by more than 50%, with a peak of 3,922 users logging into Millennia simultaneously in the last 24 hours, and a new low of 1,583. Only 66% of all user reviews on Steam are positive, marking Millennia with a certified ‘mixed’ rating on Valve’s platform.
Cities Skylines 2, despite its criticisms and a lower overall rating, is still enjoying an average of 7,000-plus players per day. Crusader Kings 3, from 2020, attracted 20,000 players in the last 24 hours, while Stellaris, now eight years old, pulled in 14,257. It might be struggling, but if you want a strategy game that’s genuinely trying something different, Millennia is still worth your attention. You can check it out right here.
Alternatively, get some of the best grand strategy games, or maybe the best management games available right now on PC.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or grab our PCGN deals tracker to net yourself some bargains.