EU5 Project Caesar: Pop System, UI Headache, and Why Colonization Isn’t for Scrubs Anymore

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Pok Gai Gamer here, ready to roast this new EU5 (Project Caesar) like a cha chaan teng pork chop. You want real talk? I give you real talk. Let’s break down why this game is both genius and headache, and why even your ah ma will get lost in the menus. Now a word from our sponsor:

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Black Death to Colonization: Not for Potato Players

Start game, Black Death hit you harder than your mum’s slipper. Your provinces die, economy drop, and you cry. But that’s just warm-up. Colonization now? Wah, not like old EU4 where you spam empty land. You need “pops” (人口), and if you don’t have enough, you can’t even plant flag.
Now, multiple countries can fight for the same land, and the big boys will bully you out if you’re weak. Colonial nations? Any size can, not just five-province minimum. Flexibility, but also more chaos.

ThePlaymaker’s Greenland to Newfoundland Adventure

You think colonizing America is easy? Ask ThePlaymaker. He tried pushing from Greenland all the way to Newfoundland, and the new system is brutal.

• Greenland and Iceland now start as subjects of Norway, not just random wasteland6.

• To cross from Greenland to Newfoundland, you need enough population in Greenland, and even then, colonization progress is slow and expensive.

• ThePlaymaker showed how population (“pops”) actually move from Iceland and Greenland into the new world, and you can see the Icelandic culture spreading into Vinland7.

• You can’t just click and forget—if your pops die or leave, your colony collapses.

• Multiple nations can snipe the same land, so you better fight for every inch.

• Greenland itself actually has more colonizable locations now, and you might even see events or missions to revive old Viking settlements67.

So if you want to roleplay as the OG Vikings or try to restore Vinland, be ready for pain. No more free real estate—every province is a battle.

UI/UX: Why So Messy, Paradox?

I tell you, this UI is like Mong Kok at rush hour.

• Too many menus, too many tabs, everything overlap.

• Automation system? Good idea, but half the time you don’t know what’s on auto and what’s manual.

• Every new feature got its own style, no standard. You want to find estates, pops, disasters? Good luck, la!

• Tutorial? Useless. Better go YouTube watch Ludi, Snapdragon, or ThePlaymaker, or you just alt+F4.

Optimization: Better, But Still Not Perfect

Early game is smooth, but you play until late game, especially multiplayer, then start to lag. AI smarter, but your PC will start to sweat like you eating hotpot in summer. Still, better than EU4, but don’t expect magic.

Other Juicy Bits

• Nation formation now more flexible, can make your own alternate history.

• Estates always in your face, need to balance them or they riot.

• Disasters and events more savage — if you mess up, GG.

• Slavery is in the game, not sugar-coated, just raw history.

Pok Gai Gamer’s Takeaway

Designers, please lah, next time make UI simple. Don’t just stack more and more buttons. Marketers, don’t act like this game is easy — tell people it’s hardcore. Gamers, if you want to play EU5, prepare to sweat, prepare to learn, and prepare to rage at the menus.
But if you survive, this game is deep, rewarding, and no scrub will last long.
Mods will save the day, as always.

Pok Gai Gamer — always here to roast, never here to sugarcoat.
Next time got more news, I’ll spill it for you.
Stay toxic, stay real, and don’t let Black Death wipe your dynasty!