Review TheKentuckian 4/5 · Nov 7, 2021
Brave Romans to a Man
Being a series that both let's you play as a commander of vast armies, in real time, and a series that spans the gammut of history, Total War was easily a favorite of mine. So, I'm a bit biased. This was also my first Total War game, so it set my expectations for all the other installments.
I recall Rome …
Being a series that both let's you play as a commander of vast armies, in real time, and a series that spans the gammut of history, Total War was easily a favorite of mine. So, I'm a bit biased. This was also my first Total War game, so it set my expectations for all the other installments.
I recall Rome II having a rocky reception at it's release due to the usual release bugs and such, but by the time I got the game it was all ironed out. I don't recall ever having any real issues with the game, no crashes or game breaking bugs. The graphics of the game look good for an RTS. There's a cinematic mode that zooms in to your troops, and you can make out the details in their armor and weapons well enough. Like with other Total War games, the battlegrounds are okay. You can tell you're fighting in a forest, desert, rolling grassland, or on the side of a mountain, but it's usually just because the ground texture was recolored. They look a little unsightly. There's also town maps where all the towns look like "generic antiquity era town". Still it is fun to lead your army fighting through the streets.
There are a few different scenario modes. There's the normal Grand Campaign where you just conquer all that stands in your way, but there's also several scenarios that have you play out historical wars and campaigns, such as the 2nd Punic War & Caesar's march into Gaul. Most of those are locked behind DLCs though, which is a little crummy. There's also one off missions where you fight through a famous, or infamous, battle of the ancient era.
If you've played any Total War game the gameplay here is much the same. Each entry has their eccentricities, but the base gameplay is the same. There's an over map you use to manage your towns and armies, by upgrading them and invading neighboring nations. It's like a very basic Civilization type setup. When you attack an enemy army, you load into the battlefield for some RTS goodness. Managing your troops is easy with just a couple clicks. You can set them in formations and selections groups to make it easy to section off your forces for maneuverability. My one complaint is the HUD. The unit cards for your army are huge and take up more screen space than they really need. I wish there was a mini version that was in between showing them and hiding them.
I've always had an interest in the Roman military and their tactics. There are a slew of other nations to play as too, some of the lesser nations being recolors of each other, but I usually always played as the Empire, it is their name on the cover. Being able to set up my forces in the checkerboard formation and pulling out the testudo formation when enemy archers moved in just tickles my inner ancient general. Using the landscape to your advantage is also an important factor.
All in all, this is my go-to recommendation for a Roman army simulator. No one does it better than Total War. You can put your skills to the test and see if you're more of a Scipio Africanus or a Pyrrhus. Lately, the Total War time has been on a fantasy kick with the Warhammer games, which probably has a greater market appeal, but I'll be glad when they return to history again.
