Research Centers
Concurrent projects, one slot per center
Unlike a national focus, you can run several research projects at once — one for every research center you've built. Every center beyond your free one in the capital is a real, ongoing line in your budget.
How it works
One is free, the rest cost you
Every country gets one research center in its capital at no cost, running one project at a time. Every additional center — built in your most populated provinces — runs another project in parallel, but comes with a real, recurring bill on top of your other spending.
How it works
More centers, more at once
Because research runs in parallel rather than one project at a time, how many centers you're willing to fund becomes a real strategic choice — more populous, industrial provinces let you build more of them, which means faster progress across more fronts, at a rising cost to the treasury.
How it works
Who starts ahead
At the 1949 start, the major industrial powers open with several research centers already built — the United States with 7, the Soviet Union with 6, Japan and West Germany with 5, Sweden with 4, China with 2 — while less-developed countries start with just their single free capital center and have to build up scientific infrastructure before they can compete on more than one front at a time.