Well this new game is interesting, some rules have changed a bit so we can't just buy out indi territories anymore, last game there was a lot of long periods of saving up and buying them out.
I've got two other neighbors so far, looking for some opportunity for a bit of piracy, I didn't get to try that last game, but I think it's a bit early for that sort of thing just yet, it might be a bit obvious who's doing it, and too easy to loose the privateers.
one interesting thing with this game is you can jump into it and create a new empire half way through, while you likely won't win on your own doing so, you can affect another player winning or not, and win as a vassal. the emphasis is more on survival than winning outright.