Happy with the decision made?

[Kraggenmor]

I'm looking forward to it. I think the choice of the "Wooden ships & Iron Men" era is spot on in light of the decision to finally add actual naval combat.

I look forward to fighting the Amercian revolutionary war.

[Akeichi Mitsuhide]

im gonna love this game alright. Just hope its the MIITW engine and not a new one(i need a new pc if its a new engine).

[Jack Lusted]

Empire will be using a brand new engine.

[iblewafuse14]

I like the Idea though that you can "capture" buildings on the battlemap and use them to fire on the enemy.. should be neat to see how that works... Hopefully they fix the idea of amubushes.. I think you should be able to move troops in woods.. unless it's obvious there are there.. but say on the other side of some woods.

[Cornwallis]

Absolutely psyched for this one. This is the one I've been waiting for since they started making total war

[Akka]

By the accent you wouldn't be French would you?

Yep. Probably one of the main reason I do like Napoléonic era, to be honest, together with the continent-spanning scale of the conflicts, and the personnality of the little megalomaniac :p

[Kraggenmor]

I like the Idea though that you can "capture" buildings on the battlemap and use them to fire on the enemy.. should be neat to see how that works...

Thinking about it just now; this feature could lead to some interesting 'capture the flag' type multi player maps.

[BoyarPunk]

Acutally, the more I think about it, I am glad they chose this time period over what could have been (a grand disaster): 1939-1945: Total War

[Mount Suribachi]

Empire has the opportunity to play much like Europa Universalis in the sense that it can bring back the Glorius Achievements to build up points, and allow you to win by merely colonising certain area's and bringing your country forward in tech and so forth, thus stopping the boring "conquer everything" syndrome that has dogged Total War. I will admit I am looking forward greatly to Kindoms due to the area being reduced, making the conquering seem more, possible, really.

Unless you're playing as Napoleonic France

[Freedom Onanist]

Unless you're playing as Napoleonic France

In which case you just go for everything

[Graphic]

Some of you are right though, this is better than WW2 Total War. Company of Heroes reached the pinnacle of WW2 rts, everyone else should just give up.

[Matt_Lane]

Yeah, I'd say I'm fairly happy with the direction CA are taking this. I think it would have been interesting to re explore Rome or head East to Medieval Indo-China but if they get the gunpowder and navel battles right and if the AI re write is more successful than MTW2's version then game could be a corker. However I am surprised CA's website only mentions Europe, America and India. I would have thought Africa and East Asia would have been needed in order to properly explore European Empire building.

[Graphic]

Yeah, I'd say I'm fairly happy with the direction CA are taking this. I think it would have been interesting to re explore Rome or head East to Medieval Indo-China but if they get the gunpowder and navel battles right and if the AI re write is more successful than MTW2's version then game could be a corker. However I am surprised CA's website only mentions Europe, America and India. I would have thought Africa and East Asia would have been needed in order to properly explore European Empire building.

My guess is they decided that having an aspect to the game featuring African slaves would be too controversial. They have slaves in RTW and MTW but the slaves that this game would have be a little to fresh on the memory.

My guess is there will be mentions of it in Historical Events and the like, but no slave resource.

[Hooahguy]

im happy, but i wont be if the game is rated "M" or has really high system reqiurements.

[Mailman653]

This is best news I've seen all day, its so awesome, not only can you board ships in naval combat, but you have musicians and drumers on the field of battle just like how it was, this game will be amazing no doubt about it.

I've been dying to play with the Continental army in a game for the longest time.

[Orda Khan]

After all the fuss that was made about M2TW and what we actually got, why would anyone be expecting much from this idea? M2TW is still not fixed.

.......Orda

[AggonyDuck]

Yeah, I'd say I'm fairly happy with the direction CA are taking this. I think it would have been interesting to re explore Rome or head East to Medieval Indo-China but if they get the gunpowder and navel battles right and if the AI re write is more successful than MTW2's version then game could be a corker. However I am surprised CA's website only mentions Europe, America and India. I would have thought Africa and East Asia would have been needed in order to properly explore European Empire building.

That said the colonisation of Africa and East Asia truly started after the 18th Century, so in a way it does make sense not to include them.

[Matt_Lane]

This is best news I've seen all day, its so awesome, not only can you board ships in naval combat, but you have musicians and drumers on the field of battle just like how it was, this game will be amazing no doubt about it.

I've been dying to play with the Continental army in a game for the longest time.

If players have been complaining about irritating commentary how long before there rioting because of non stop bag pipes.

On a more serious note Sharpe and the likes shows us what led the British army into battle, does any one know it if was anything different from pipe and drums for other nations armies?

[pevergreen]

This has the potential to be great. Very great. Lets see how Naval Combat comes, as well as a demo, or videos.

[NagatsukaShumi]

Unless you're playing as Napoleonic France

Bloody French, when we all stop expanding in Europe they decide to start

[Pode]

I'm cautiously optimistic, given that they hired Lusted, that CA may be humble enough to build on the fine work done by the Lordz on NTW I and II. I'm deeply leery of the naval combat, though. Ancient, oared combat would have been a much simpler hurdle to jump for both players and AI. It's not trivial to teach humans to sail, never mind properly fight a sailing ship, and CA's AI track record makes me skeptical that they'll be able to get a tactical naval AI that can handle winds and crossing the T. If they don't, why bother with the Age of Sail? Even if they do, it'll pwn almost every player for months until they come up the learning curve on frigate tactics. Why set yourselves up for failure like this?

[Zenicetus]

It's not trivial to teach humans to sail, never mind properly fight a sailing ship, and CA's AI track record makes me skeptical that they'll be able to get a tactical naval AI that can handle winds and crossing the T. If they don't, why bother with the Age of Sail? Even if they do, it'll pwn almost every player for months until they come up the learning curve on frigate tactics. Why set yourselves up for failure like this?

Yep, this is the aspect that's the most intriguing to me. We've all been (well, most of us have been) asking for real tactical naval combat, and it's great that they're attempting it, but how's it going to play out? They're jumping right into the MOST complicated naval combat style with sailing, as you point out. Earlier oar-based ships, or later internal combustion tactics are a lot more direct and easier to understand.

It doesn't have to be too complicated. If each ship has an AI captain and the player doesn't have to micromanage the actual sailing, then all the player needs... even someone new to sail tactics... is a clear indication of how far the ship (or a fleet, in formation) can point upwind; a clear indication of where the "invalid directions" are on the compass.

This could be done on the tactical mini-map as a pie-shaped zone ahead of the ship where you can't go, when a single ship or a fleet is selected... something like that. The fleet selected as a whole would be more restricted in maneuverability than some selected single ships, because some of the smaller designs can point further up into the wind than the big square-rigged ships of the line. By contrast, if you're in the wrong tactical position... dead downwind from a ship of the line in a smaller and more maneuverable but slower ship (compared to a square rigger running downwind), and with fewer cannon, then you're hosed. You can't do a tactical retreat upwind in a smaller vessel.

If the information is clearly shown, along with info about broadside firepower vs. bow and stern chaser cannon, then a beginner could get the basic tactical ideas fairly easily. This could be really exciting and interesting, if they do it right.

Hopefully, they're also modeling things like the way you can tack faster (change direction across the wind) when running downwind, vs. heading upwind where the ship has to use momentum to pull the bow across the wind. But again, if the AI captain can handle this, then all the player has to know is that the ship turns faster running downwind than trying to cut across the wind. I'm hoping the game is this fine-grained in sail tactics, but I guess we'll see.

[Drisos]

Can't say I'm overly enthusiastic.

Nostalgia forbids me to like any new releases except STW2.

[gregori99]

Too early to say. Will there be too much emphasis on graphics at the expense of gameplay, like in Rome?

Not my favourite era, I prefer the ancient world. Can I suggest an Ancients mod already? Think galleys, ramming, greek fire, all those sail designs you could have

[Rodion Romanovich]

If they make it what I wrote in thw wishlist thread, it'll be a great game!

If they don't make it like I said it, I'm convinced it will not be very fun

[Charge]

Not happy at all. Don't like this era.
But I'm will be very surprised if in ETW will be no bugs, so 6th TW (which I guess is ROME) should be less "buggy" and more advanced.

[Freedom Onanist]

Best yet!

[pevergreen]

A new engine will be a good thing for TW. As stated in the interview, military and diplomacy were apart, so they would conflict.

[DisruptorX]

Diplomacy was so broken in previous total war games that I never even bothered to use it. Unlike in, say, the Civilization games, where there's tangible benefits.

Improved diplomacy will help prevent early blitz from being the only tactic.

[NagatsukaShumi]

To be honest, I am happier they are going elsewhere this time, because I would hate to see the TW series just turn into revolutionary sequel after sequel.