Re: Played some VicIII. Wow.
I had completely the opposite experience. I thought it was excellent, enjoyed a lot of the new mechanics, the overall feel and recreation of the period, and general gameplay. But, development and DLC release has been slow, which has hurt it as it needs more differentiation between different nations and cultures to have real longevity and replayability. That said, while not at the pace I'd hoped for, the changes they have made have improved it - especially the major overhaul of military mechanics currently in beta.