Victoria 3: How To Switch Country [Explained]

Learn How To Switch Country or Nation & Play With Whatever Country You Want in Victoria 3

By Irfan Ansari October 28, 2022

Victoria 3 lets you play as any nation or country by just switching your current one to another using the pause menu screen. However, there is a catch, and it only allows you to play a country if it is not subject to another. That is why we have curated how to switch countries in Victoria 3 guide & entailed the complete process step by step so that you can show your authority.

Key Highlights

To determine if one country is subject to another in Victoria 3:

Hover over the map.
Select “Change Country.”
Click on the country to check.

To release a smaller country from a larger nation:

Choose the larger nation.
In “Game Rules,” set “Releasable Nation” to “All.”

To release and play as a different country:

In “Diplomacy,” go to “Release Subject.”
Toggle “Release as Independent” and “Play as X country.”
Click “Release” to start controlling the new country.

Identifying If A Country Is Subject To Another

The first key thing that you need to identify is if a certain country is subject to another superpower nation or not. The easy way to do this is to hover over any map on the game screen and pause the game. Select the Change Country option and then click the country. If you can’t immediately transition to controlling that nation or country, you must understand that it is subject to a nearby nation.

Usually, the bigger nation, which is landlocked to the smaller country that you want to play with, holds the authority over the nation. Think of it as a weak and dominant state affair that is still persistent in some parts of the world that we know.

Start With The Dominant Country

clicking All Releasable Option [Image Credit: eXputer]

The next stage is picking the bigger country and clicking the Game Rules section. Once you’re there, just verify if the Releasable Nation option is toggled to All or not. You need to ensure the options remain set at All. Otherwise, you will not be able to release smaller countries from being the subjects of a bigger nation.

This option basically allows implausible and fantasy-Esque nations to be released so that you can take control of them and successfully make a switch to that country in Victoria 3.

Releasing Subject

Diplomacy option [Image Credit: eXputer]

The next important step that you need to do is select Diplomacy by hovering over the stats bar on your left, as seen in the image above. You can also press the F6 key as this, by default, opens the Diplomacy tab.

After that, go to the Release Subject option, and there you will see a list of smaller nations or countries that are subject to the bigger country. If you see the country you want to play as in this list, just click on it, and you will see another box showing three different options, as shown in the image here below.

Release Subjects option [Image Credit: eXputer]

What you need to do is toggle “Release as Independent” and the last option of “Play as X country”. X here denotes the country you want to play as after releasing the subject from the powerful or capital nation.

Doing so will put your country on the world map, and whatever resources, economy, military might, political influence, authority, and overall ranking will be displayed in the Countries Map List section of the game. Your country will immediately begin to rank based on the current world standing, and from here, you will be free to establish relations with other countries however you see fit for the next century or so.

Liberating A Country

playing as Sweden [Image Credit: eXputer]

Let us assume you want are currently playing Sweden as the starting country, and you want to play as Iceland. A quick look hovering over the mouse while changing the country screen will reveal that Iceland is part of Denmark, and it must be released to be played further.

What you need to do is play as Denmark, go to its Diplomacy option and then click on Release Subject. Once you’ve done that, you will notice at least four countries that come under the banner of Denmark, namely: Iceland, West Indies, Greenland, and Nunavut, as seen in the image here.

Denmark’s subjects [Image Credit: eXputer]

After that, click Iceland if you want to continue playing Victoria 3 with this country and toggle Release as Independent option along with Play as Iceland. Click Release, and you will immediately start controlling Iceland & the nation will be put on the world map as well.

Iceland released as a subject from Denmark. [Image Credit: eXputer]

You’re now free to however you want to control Iceland as you see fit. Improve relations with the neighboring countries, increase economic and political ties with nearby English nations, or wage wars when the time comes in the 20th century.

That is everything we had to discuss how to switch countries in Victoria 3 and play with whatever nation your desire in the game. Was our guide helpful? Did you change your country and start increasing its influence, economy, and authority & more already? Let us know more of your thoughts in the comments box below.

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