It's all about the build up and execution of a massive war that may or may not play out like WW2. Managing the internal problems of your country is just as important, if not more so, than outside threats. Vic2 is all about industrialization and peoples wants and needs.

EU4 spans from the end of the medieval era to the beginning of the industrial era, with colonization and general imperialism being the main focus. Rather than being regarded as an example of its high productivity, though, the Paradox.

Do you want to play a medieval RPG with empire management, go for CK2. There was a 12-month period not so long ago when Paradox Interactive launched a dozen different games. What you play really depends on your interest. There's a lot of overlap, but for example in CK2 has a lot more complexity in how you inherit titles, while Vic2 has detailed population mechanics, and HoI4 has much more detailed combat and unit production mechanics. That said, even HoI4 is quite complicated for someone not familiar with grand strategy games, and the games have different types of complexity. In order or difficulty/complexity, not everyone agrees, but I would say Vic2>CK2>EU4>HoI4 from most complex to least complex.

Paradox's main historical games are Europa Universalis 4, Crusader Kings 2, Hearts of Iron 4, and Victoria 2.

Best paradox interactive games