Crusader Kings 3 Review (Understand CK3 in 14 minutes or less!)
In this sort-of Crusader Kings 3 Review I use Crusader Kings 3 gameplay to answer questions like "What is Crusader Kings 3 2021", "wtf is Crusader Kings", "how to play Crusader Kings" etc. It's Crusader Kings explained with the occasional fun & memes to make it easier to digest. Crusader Kings 3 (CK3) suffers from the same problem as all Paradox Interactive games: they simply look like a big map with tons of text, and not much else. This video helps see why this is not the entire picture and shows what CK3 was to offer.
No Crusader kings 3 review would be complete without explaining Crusader Kings' core mechanics and explaining why CK3 is fun. It's also important to mention that Crusader Kings 3 gameplay comes with challenges - so I discuss the difficulty and learning curve as well. CK3 mods are mentioned as a great way to supplement CK3 gameplay. I also include some things that happened to me while I played CK3 to make things more tangible.
Crusader Kings 3 is a medieval simulator focusing primarily on the complex aspect of succession law and noble families, with rich & interconnected game mechanics. CK3 does this by simulating thousands of characters at the same time, including keeping track of their history and relations. The player chooses a character in Crusader Kings' 3 simulation and simply does their best to survive and achieve their goals. While Crusader Kings is explained in this video, it's not intended to be a proper tutorial. I simply want you to feel "I understand what Crusader Kings 3 is" after watching the video - whether you play CK3 afterwards is up to you!
To learn how to play CK3 check out the ingame tutorial. The CK3 subreddit and discord are also a good location to ask questions. Otherwise, there's many Crusader Kings 3 guide videos on KZhead!
If you feel like the video is a good answer to "wtf is crusader kings" and has left Crusader Kings 3 explained well, then it'd mean a lot to me if you could leave a like, comment and consider subscribing!
Want to buy me a coffee? I will glady accept! ko-fi.com/carboncola
I'm also on other platforms:
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Crusader Kings 3 on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/11...
Crusader Kings 3 Wiki: ck3.paradoxwikis.com/Crusader...
Crusader Kings Subreddit: / crusaderkings
Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction
02:09 World Overview
03:09 Characters
04:53 Inheritance
05:57 Culture
07:00 Religion
08:19 Events and Stress
10:12 Setting Goals
10:55 Mods
11:55 Learning the Game
13:25 Outro
A good summary of the game. What interests me is that there’s essentially no true “win conditions “ other than your own goals, which can change whenever you want with relation to what happens around you. Do you want to conquer the world? Go for it. Do you want to play a survival challenge as Cornwall with only two counties for the whole game? Try it. Anything is possible.
It really is one of the best sandbox games out there! Glad you enjoyed the video!
CK2 is free to play, if you like it there is a £4 a month subscription service that will get you all of the expansions which iirc you can add individually to ease yourself into the changes the expansions bring, it is feature complete and a far more compelling spend then CK3 at the moment in my opinion. If Paradoxes current business model is the measuring stick we use then CK3 wont be anywhere near feature complete for a good 2-3 years.
@@gs8494 It looks complete enough for me, and far better-looking and easier to learn than CK2
@@andrewreynolds4949 It will definately be easier to learn, but you can slowly add the expansions to the game via the launcher in CK2, so you could nail vanilla then add an expansion, and so on. To be fair though there are a few expansions for CK2 as my wallet can testify.
Is CK2 better than CK3?
I'm really liking the style you are doing. Alot of info without it feeling overwhelming or unpersonal! Loved the vid! :D
Oh nice!!! Im glad you went into the mods because those are particularly interesting
I've played this game for at least 50 hours in total between xbox gamepass and buying it recently and I love the fact that your explanations would actually make me understand some game concepts within seconds that originally took me hours to get with the in-game tutorial.
Great video, once again! Already looking forward to the next one!
From what little I've gathered through social media, memes and some gameplay videos I have seen, this seems like a good summary of what makes Crusader Kings 3 great and also why it was so well received upon its release. Liked the memes and you trying to spell out those french county names. Great video!
Best video I’ve seen about summarising the game! I’m half way on my second play through, and find a little bored but now I’ve gotten more ideas from you. Thank you!
Thanks a lot Victor! I'm really happy to hear that you've liked the video and that it gave you a burst of motivation to keep playing!
Fantastic video! Thank you for this detailed look at a game that has been on my radar for a while now!
Thanks a lot Glycerine! I'm glad you found the video to be informative! Do you think you'll end up buying & playing it?
haha I laughed at the french pronunciation! It was great after you googled it :D
Haha, thank you!
A very clear explanation and clean video production. Helped me decide to give a go good sir, well done!
Hey Dave. Thanks for your feedback, glad to hear you liked the video and decided to give the game a go. If you end up having questions about the game, there' several CK3 veterans on my community discord who will gladly help out. you can join here if you want: discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
This explanation was everything I wanted to know about the game before getting into it. Thank you so much! Also I loved the french pronunciation joke 🤣
You're welcome, it was my pleasure to make this to allow more people to find their way to CK3 and have a good time. Glad to hear you liked my style and humor :D! Have fun playing CK3 :)
Yo! Just found your channel, and really enjoyed your stuff; keep at it! 100% agree about CK3 being one of the best games for new folks to learn Paradox games as the tutorial in this one was ACTUALLY helpful to understand the core gameplay for a change.
Thanks Panda! I'll continue to do my best :) I'm happy you liked my stuff!
Nice guide, thanks - was struggling to see how I could enjoy this game - you helped
That's fantastic to hear Jason, thank you! Did you end up buying the game? Did it meet your expectations?
Nice to see such a good video from a smaller streamer, I have now commented, liked and subscribed.
I really appreciate the support Loki! Thank you!
Thank you for the wonderfully measured and succinct review! You have a new subscriber!
Thanks a lot Halian! I'm glad that you've enjoyed it and that I managed to convey the game well :) Happy to hear that you will be coming back for more, I'm looking forward to hearing your opinion on my future videos!
@@Carbon_Cola You're welcome! I went on to watch a few gameplay vids and I finally took the plunge and bought CK3 today!
@@halian9256 Woo! Hype! Have fun & remember to trust noone, especially not your own family!
Thank you for this Review. I saw it on sale today and because of you i decided to give it a try.
Thanks a lot J1mmy! I really appreciate your feedback - I'm so happy to hear that I can help people be excited for the game and try it out! I hope you enjoy the game! If you have questions, there's several CK3 veterans on my community discord who will gladly help out if you are stuck, or share in your victories if you want to tell us about them :) discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
My Wife and I just heard about Crusader Kings 3 and I wanted a video that showcased the game quickly, efficiently, and in a way that made sense and looked fun. Holy hot damn your video was perfect! Truly excellent work. Thank you so much for this. I didn't think I wanted to play the game until I watched your video. You've got my thumbs up and subscribe!
Thank you so much Josh for taking the time to write this comment! This is exactly what I was trying to achieve with the video - help people who are curious about the game to quickly understand the gist of it and judge whether it's something they are interested in or not. Absolutely let me know how you guys like the game once you try it! And let me know (on twitter or here on YT) if there's anything you think I should cover - love to get suggestions!
@@Carbon_Cola We watched your Factorio video, too, and it was just as insightful. I really appreciate that you include a section discussing the Mod community. I'm guessing you've picked games that you know well and enjoy. Keep doing that. There's no alternative to passion. Your enthusiasm comes across and is easily half the reason I'm eager to try the game.
@@Zylock I guess it's very subjective, but a strong modding community is a huge selling point to me. It shows that the game is worthy of the dedication and effort that fans put in. Plus, it massively extends the fun (and especially individuality) you can have. I'm glad to see that you appreciated it being covered as well! As for how I pick games: indeed I think about which games I am passionate about and simply reflect on what I love (or dislike) about them...and then put it into video format in a way that someone unfamiliar with the game will get it. Thank you for mentioning that my enthusiasm comes across - I'm happy to hear that my video(s) have that effect :) Now I'm even more hyped for making the next video (tho it may be a month or so, these things take time)! I hope you and your wife have a wonderful day and tons of fun playing games!
Well explained. Good job, comrade!
After watching a few good videos on it, I think you just ultimately convinced me to get the game. Cheers mate!
Cheers Lazar! I hope you have a good time with the game! If you end up having questions or want to chat about CK3, I have a community discord where several CK3 veterans can provide support and otherwise help! discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc Feel free to come join us :)
great vids like always
Rare to see a low sub KZheadr with such high quality videos, well done hope to see more of you in the future
Thanks a lot for the comment, I'm really glad to hear you've enjoyed my content. I'm actually wrapping up the newest video, so expect that around Saturday :) Do let me know how you like it when it comes out!
Digging European history lately! You make me get this game. Especially with these sick pronunciation skills :D Ragnar Lothbrok, Wien, Beaumont, Sheikh - sound so smooth!
Thanks a lot, really happy to hear you enjoyed the video! Also thanks for the pronounciation feedback haha - I tried hard, looked at pronounciations of native speakers online etc. Takes time, but makes me more proud of the end product :) Hope to see you with my next video!
Great introduction to the game!
I'm currently overwhelmed by the mechanics and this really helps. thanks!
Thanks Rain! I'm really happy that my video could help you find your way into Crusader Kings! Let me know if you have any questions on the mechanics! I would be happy to help.
There you go! Great content :)
Thanks Dhiego! Let me know if there are any games you think I should cover!
Surprised to find you understand Crusader Kings after
HoI 4 would be nice!
I would love to see factorio
Dyson sphere program please :p
HOI 4!
The EU4 ;p
Saw your comment on Mandalores video. Decided I'd stop by and watch. Best thing about paradox (namely CK and HOI4) is when everything goes off the rails and you get all these varied factions and wars. Best I had was a recent match as Estonia, securing the Baltics. Meanwhile Europe is in massive was between German Empire Pact of Rome French Entente Britian empire ( called something else I think) Commintern Polish faction And some faction formed by Japan. Honestly one of the most hilarious matched I've had.
Thanks so much for stopping by! I agree that that really is where the strength with Paraodox games lie - the sheer amount of ways things can unfold. It's what always gets me to go back and play it again. I played a lot of matches as Finland in HoI IV and had tons of fun trying the various ways to survive - attack/ally Norway/Sweden/Estonia, bunker down, ally with Axis, join Comintern etc. And then just add some more focus packs from the workshop and things are fresh again. I'll definitely be making a video on HoI IV in the coming few months (one video takes ~6 weeks to make for me). Factorio is coming next in a week or so, after that we will see :) Would mean a lot to me if you'd consider subscribing if you liked my content! I wanna check out your channel too - is there any video you can recommend to start with?
Wonderful Video! Thank you ^^
Thank you for your comment Eckart! I'm glad that you liked it!
Great review. I sent this to a friend to try and convince him to get the game. Lets hope it works
Thanks DeadFlag! Glad you've enjoyed! Thanks for sharing it with your friend - I hope they agree to give it a shot!
Cool video dude👍 You sold me😊
Thanks Alex! Glad I could sell you on it :) If you have any questions on the game, feel free to ask them on my community discord! We have several CK3 experts who will gladly help! discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
@CarbonCola all good bro, well you did an awesome job with the video, I was just giving credit where it was due👍 Thanx for the reply too. Yeh I'll get it on Xbox, you make the game look cool, reminds me of Civilisation. Bet games better on PC though,see how we go, cheers man😁
Nice video!
Glad you liked it :)
Great video! I'm now thinking about getting it for myself. I'm thinking about playing it with my better half. Do you think that watching the game and playing together would be enjoyable?
Glad you enjoyed the video and are interested in the game now! As for your question, depends on the two of you for sure. If you are thinking of both playing at the same time in a multiplayer match, then I think there's definitely value in it. If you mean one person playing and the other watching, it gets a bit more "complicated". The game is very text-based, so you'd need to do a lot of reading together which in my experience can slow down the game experience. I think what you may want to do instead is to have you play the game with your partner next to you doing something else (playing on their own, writing, reading, doing artsy stuff etc.). You can then pause the game and talk about something interesting that is happening or discuss your goals. Basically you can "curate" and only share the interesting stuff while staying in complete control of the game experience and pace. And for them, they are doing something satisfying for themselves, but can still share in your experience of CK3. Hope the answer made sense and answers your question well! Wishing much fun to both of you!
Thank you for a great video, very easy to follow with plenty of info, tho im not a KZheadr i could see the amount of efforts went into this, the channel deserves way more attention, keep up the good work👍
It is my pleasure! Really happy to hear that you liked it!
Crusader Kings III, definitely gona buy this game after watching this video. Thank you so much! ^^
Thank you for your comment masbruf, I'm happy to hear that! If you end up having any questions on the game, I have a community discord with several CK3 "veterans" that can help answer questions or just generally like to chat about the game! You can join here if you'd like: discord.com/invite/MdszAPKnqc
You made me try this game. Thanks :D
Glad to hear it ZedSaint! How did you like it? If you have any questions I'd be happy to help! You can reach me on twitter or on my community discord! twitter.com/CarbonCola discord.gg/p6zb6R62
This game is coming to the ps5 and after watching your review breakdown I'm going to give it a try do you recommend the dlc part to or just base game
Hey Nelson! Glad to hear I managed to sell the game to you haha. Personally I have not played the Royal Court DLC. I don't think it's worth it for a new player though. Play the base game first and see if you like it. Once you feel like you've got a good grasp on the game's mechanics you can read up the additions the Royal Court DLC gives and judge if you need it! If you need any advice or have questions on the game, feel free to ask them on my community discord! discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
Damn, another game I have to try now!
More to come! Prepare your wallet :)
Good job summarizing it for someone, like me, who has never played this type of game.
That's what I was hoping to achieve? I'm glad you liked it! Let me know if you end up buying the game, and whether my description was accurate!
great video
Thanks a lot for the feedback, glad you enjoyed it. Consider subscribing if you like the style, more videos like this coming soon :)
Nice
Got hooked into paradox games specifically with Victoria 2, I enjoy them all but vicky 2 was certainly my longtime favorite… until I immersed myself in ck2. The whole “game of thrones” aspect to it instantly won me over and has held me captive with no hope of random ever since
Always wanted to try Victoria 2 but never had a chance to, now with Victoria 3 coming up I've decided to just wait for that! I hope that it brings a similarly readable UI and graphics as CK3. I'm no stranger to complex games, but accessibility doesn't need to be at odds with complexity as CK3 has shown.
Thank you for your video. Helped me decide to finally get and try the game. So far I am having a blast even though I'm not sure about what I am doing. Hahaha. So many details and a lot of things to process. Different kind of play style from what I always play like the rpg. In Crusader Kings 3 it makes me feel like I am wrting my story especially with all the choices and decisions I have to make. It takes sometime trying to review all the spouses available for my sons. With this game you really have to take time and study all the things presented to you hoping you make the right decisions. But if you don't it still ok because you get surprised on how things worked differently. Thanks again
Hey Reynald, thanks a lot for your comment. I'm glad I could explain the game in a way that made it seem like fun to you! The game is so complex so a good introduction is very important, sounds like you managed to get into it all right! If you ever have any questions on the game feel free to ask them on my community discord! We use it to play various games together, but it's also a great spot to ask questions on e.g. CK3 as there are several veteran players there who are happy to help! discord.gg/BcSQTSbw
Ok, you convinced me to buy it
Glad to hear it Jérémie! I hope you like it. If you have any questions on the game consider joining my community discord: discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc There's some CK3 veterans there who will.happily help you out, and a few newbies who you can talk to as well!
Cool video, good for newcomers. wish I had this when trying to introduce my ex to the franchise
Thanks a lot mr. spoopy ghost! I'm glad you think so! It's kind of why I made this video: I love the game, but it's sooo important how non-players are introduced to it. I'm glad that I managed to do a good job!
"de jure" is not pronounced "de zeur". It's "De Yure". It means "by (legal) right. Nice video, very informative.
Very correct - I ended up pronouncing it from a French perspective, but latin would have made more sense. Glad you've enjoyed the video!
I would say the only game I've ever tried to play that was more difficult would be Kerbal Space Program.
Did you play Crusader Kings 2, or Crusader Kings 3? I think in general the biggest problem is just no good introduction and no easily accessible resources to learn new stuff short of watching 1 hour long "tutorial" videos on YT. It's one of the reasons I made this video: to set the right expectations and give a good introduction. From there, a lot can be picked up by playing, trial and error and reading the ingame wiki text. I love KSP too, def a hard and frustrating game at times as well. I work in the aerospace field so I think it was easier for me to get into it and succeed, must be difficult if one is completely foreign. I'm really excited for KSP2 though, hoping for a good Multiplayer experience :)
@@Carbon_Cola Crusader Kings 3. Never played the earlier versions. Beyond getting into orbit KSP is impossible without an aerospace science degree.
I own all the parodox games lol, they always look so intriguing, but I’m usually too dumb to play em lol.
They can be really overwhelming for sure. Did CK3 "click" a bit more when you watched the video? I have a community discord if you want to join - I'd be happy to help answer any questions you have about it or other Paradox Games! There's some more Paradox veteran's there as well that can help too. discord.gg/tbhSAsnqJc
This Video was informative for me and I will most likely try this game but excuse moi the Hre fell in the 18th century not the 15th. Napoleon himself dismantled it.
Hey uhbaoif! I'm glad you liked the video and will try the game. If you need any help, feel free to come to my discord. There's several veterans there who will gladly answer questions! discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc Regarding the HRE falling you're of course absolutely correct. The HRE lasted longer than 1453 as you say. I meant to reference the fall of Constantinople and the transition to the age of discovery/exploration and ended up mislabeling it. Thank you for clearing things up!
I've played for a few hundred hours. But I've *modded* the game for a few *thousand* hours. CK3 modding is my favorite game.
Very relatable haha. This is totally me with any game that supports modding (looking at your Skyrim). Regularly spend 5 hours modding only to play for 30 mins and forget about it until modding inspiration hits me again.
Can u plz further simplify it? I just watched the video and I’m still confused.
I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have! Are you looking for a 2-3 sentence overview for what the game is? Or is there any mechanics in particular that you'd like me to talk about? If you want, you can join my discord and we can have a more interactive Q/A :) discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
@@Carbon_Cola I’m not even sure what to ask. Here is my situation. I have 3 killers w many add ons level 50. I have 5 other killers level 40. I have 5 survivors at level 50. I have 3 other survivors at level 40. I need small game and ace in the hole to be tier 1 perk. I need everything else tier 3 perk. I have many perks I bought from the shrine over the years. I don’t need any more perks except for the new ones that was just released. What do I do from here? When is the update? What happens to the perks I got from the shrine? What do I do w Nancy and Steve? How do they roll over? Prestige them?
@@noctis129 Did you confuse something with the game? I don't really know how to put what you wrote into the context of Crusader Kings 3.
@@Carbon_Cola oh sorry. Wrong video. I was also watching this video too along w dead by daylight. My bad. For crusader kings, I’m playing on Xbox gamepass and I barely got thru the tutorial. But once the real game started, I just looked at the screen w blank stare. I wasn’t sure what I’m suppose to do. The screen saids “paused”. Than I turned the game off. I was totally lost.
@@noctis129 Hey noctis, no worries. Crusader Kings 3 is definitely one of those "you make your own goals" type of game. If you're continuing to play the game after the tutorial then you could e.g. try to eventually bring the entirety of Great Brittain under your control and become an emperor. Usually expansion is the goal people go for. You could also try to e.g. make your own religion or just commit to roleplaying a character based on their traits, doing a lot of daydreaming for who they are and what they get into and just see where that takes you. As for what to do in terms of mechanics/decisions in the game: that one is definitely a bit harder to answer. The tutorial should have taught you enough to get by more or less and using the wiki function in the game should hopefully help you fill in the blanks over time. There's of course also a lot of great tutorials on KZhead, plus you can come back here (or to my discord) and ask if you have any specific questions and I'll do my best to give you a rundown of how a particular mechanic works or what you should do next etc. Hope this helps!
Is CK2 better?
CK3 is a SIMS/RPG with some maps in the background
Never thought to compare CK3 to sims, actually think maybe CK2 is a tiny bit more sims like in a way haha.
I actually liked this vid so here's a comment!
Thanks Jasper! I'm glad you enjoyed it! I hope you'll stick around for other upcoming videos :) If you want, I have a community discord server that you can join. A place to discuss games, ask for suggestions or look for people to play with. Would be cool if you joined :) discord.gg/MdszAPKnqc
While I'm playing and enjoying CK 3 I'm beginning to think I should've waited, I have spent over £200 on CK2 which I have played to death and while I appreciate some of the improvements in CK3 over CK2, CK2 is feature complete and arguably, though in my opinion easily, the better game. I personally would recommend CK2 with its subscription based system now to anyone thinking about CK3, and tell them to wait until CK3 has a subscription system, it would be a far cheaper option as Paradox these days has a very aggressive and, in my opinion, expensive DLC policy, I expect to pay at least as much, if not more on CK3 over the period of its life, and though it pains me to say it, if Royal Court is the example of what to expect then I'm seriously worried for the future of the game, a lot of videos are very positive about it but I'm going to be honest, it's no where near the standard of CK2 expansions and is a hard sell at half the price, genuinely very concerned about the quality of expansions going foward, especially as it was delayed as well and it's really isn't an awful lot more than events and flavour text with a fancy GUI that is already starting to irritate me as it feels forced as oppssed to organic to use it during a game, in fact after buying CK3 for my PS5 I'm finding the game more enjoyable without the Royal Court expansion. All of the features it adds could quite easily have been added with out the Royal Court GUI and done a hell of a lot cheaper for the player.
Hey G S, thanks a lot for your comment. I agree that CK2 is objectively the better game from a perspective of how good of a military sim it is and how many gameplay opportunities/stories it provides to the player. However: I think it is significantly harder to learn to have fun with, so much that I think recommending it would drive people away from Paradox entirely. CK3 is shallow compared to CK2, but it can be picked up and understood so much easier, making it more fun for most paradox-newbies I think. That being said, I really hope that they will add many more DLCs to CK3 and one day offer the subscription model you mentioned!
@@Carbon_Cola The amount of content is larger but you can add dlc as you go in the launcher, the core game plus all dlc would be a massive headache like you say with regards difficulty but you can manage it so as not to overload the learning experience.
For me, the level of polish, ease of use, sounds, music and UI readability of CK3 make it far more enjoyable to play than CK2. Presentation and feel count for a lot in gaming. CK2 will always be there for people who crave more gameplay depth but for new players, this is the go to game.
Really?
PARADOX
Strategy games are way too complicated for me
:)
:)
just a help comment
Thanks Tomek! That's very nice of you :)
The sooner this game comes to Xbox, the better :D
That would be really funny to see haha
Get ready to laugh "soon" ;) *Quote provided by Paradox Interactive.
@@someguy861 I'm looking forward to doing so :) Btw thanks for taking the time to comment - helps a lot with the algorithm. Growing a tiny channel is a big pain, I really rely on people like you who support me with engagement. Have a great day my dude!
I have two friends who have agreed too do a three man game and learn by being my vassals when it comes to xbox. Ill honestly be a little disappointed if one of them doesn't try to become liege at some point.
I argue still to this day vanilla ck2 is still better than vanilla ck3. Still 4 or 5 more years before the big mods get completed.
Do NOT give Paradox any money, for this game or any other game they make, until they stop their predatory financial practices. If you do not know, Paradox is notorious for shipping games out that are incomplete. They do this so they can then use the Sunk Cost Fallacy on their own customers to keep paying for "expansions" that are actually integral parts of the original game that players paid for, or a blatant cash grab from an expansion filled with pointless fluff.
great video
Thanks a lot Brad! Glad you liked it!