Play Your Way with Your Friends Using Steamworks-enabled Modding and Cross-platform Multiplayer

NEW YORK – August 8th, 2013 – Paradox Interactive and Paradox Development Studio today released a demo on Steam for their upcoming empire-building game, Europa Universalis IV, to allow players to take their first steps on the journey towards global domination.

EuropaUniversalisIV_1_Warfare_The_Ottoman_EmpireEuropa Universalis IV, a game that lets you rule your nation with unparalleled freedom in the age of exploration, can now be sampled for free, tasting just a bit of power before the full game is released on August 13.

Paradox also announced that the battle for conquest will take shape exactly as players desire, thanks to support for Steam Workshop for game modifications, and cross-platform multiplayer which will allow rulers to clash with the rivals of their choice across Windows, Mac, and Linux. Both Workshop support and cross-platform play will be included at launch.

Discover what conquest feels like by checking out the Europa Universalis IV demo here (Windows only, English only):
http://store.steampowered.com/app/236850/?snr=1_4_4__104_1

In the demo version of Europa Universalis IV, players can take up the flag of one of four available nations, sampling the trade system as Venice, going to war as the Ottoman Empire, founding new colonies as Portugal, or engaging in shrewd diplomacy as Austria. Demo games will last for 28 in-game years and include an extensive tutorial and hint system. The demo will not include multiplayer capabilities,  and please note that the abilities to save & load have been disabled.

Read the full Europa Universalis IV demo description here:
http://forum.paradoxplaza.com/forum/showthread.php?706528-Europa-Universalis-IV-Demo-description

Keeping a long-held tradition of community interaction and support, Europa Universalis IV intends to foster a strong ‘modding’ community through the support of Steam Workshop. For the first time in the series, players will be able to easily share their customizations to Europa Universalis IV with friends and fans through a central, easily searched repository, where fellow gamers can download and implement mods with a single click.

EuropaUniversalisIV_2_Trade_VeniceIn addition, for the first time ever in a Paradox Development Studio strategy game, multiplayer matches in Europa Universalis IV will be fully cross-platform. Games will function just as if each player were using the same platform, whether they are playing on a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer, for both competitive and cooperative play.

Strategy fans can prepare for conquest by pre-ordering the empire-building game. Anybody who pre-orders Europa Universalis IV will receive all pre-order bonuses, including the recently announced Crusader Kings II save converter and a free copy of Crusader Kings II. Pre-order details can be found here: www.europauniversalis4.com/buy

Europa Universalis IV releases on August 13. For more information, please visit europauniversalis4.com.