Creative Assembly made the trip down under to PAX AUS to showcase their latest release about to launch, Total War: Rome 2. Their booth was a seclusive mystery encased by floor to ceiling red velvet as onlookers were required to queue for a session time. Demonstrations of the game lasted thirty minutes and while there was no hands on demo the presentation still impressed.
Cinematics and trailers were nothing short of epic. The campaign looks vast as the map itself is four times the size of its predecessor Shogun 2. How different it is to previous versions is the main question though.
Excluding the landscape and historical era as being the obvious differentiation, there are slight tweaks that probably only the seasoned Total War fanatics will pick up on. One main addition to the combat is the cohesion of sea and land units during battle. This adds an additional layer of strategy that makes a lot of sense.
The way in which generals are used within the game has also been given more depth. While there was always the ability to add individual skills and traits these now carry on to the general’s son to create a hereditary line.
Both the diplomacy and political systems have been revamped giving the player more options in which they can claim victory. AI is smarter as a consequence and we can say goodbye to their baffling suicidal actions that was evident in Total Wars predecessors.
Already Total War: Rome 2 has received the most pre-orders in the history of the franchise. Anyone that pre-orders the game will receive the first DLC (The Greek States Culture Pack) free on release day! Half of the collectors editions have sold out as well.
The sheer enormity of the campaign map is incredibly impressive. The map boasts 173 regions that are grouped up into 57 provinces. Enough to have hardcore fans salivating at the thought of all the epic battles to be had.
Put simply this is a big game that will no doubt sap days and weeks from your life. Total War: Rome 2 is released September 3rd, stay tuned for more coverage.
Let us know in the comments what you think of Total War Rome 2 so far. What features would you like to see?
