How did you achieve enlightenment?

[Jacque Schtrapp]

I was bored at work and worse yet I was going to be bored at home that evening. So in a moment of sheer luck I dropped into the amazon.com games section and stumbled across a review for STW when I accidently clicked on someone's favorites list. Finding myself intrigued by the way this particular review raved about the STW gameplay I decided to skip over to gamespot.com and check out the screenies there. After seeing a few in game shots I decided to drop by the local game shop on the way home and see if they happened to have a copy. It was january of 2001 and STW had already dropped off the radar of popularity so naturally I couldn't find it by scanning the shelves. Instead I began picking up other games after resigning myself to settling for something other than what I wanted. After twenty minutes of browsing I picked up some game (I forget which one) only to find a pristine copy of STW lurking behind it. I was so excited when I got home, I popped in the disc and suffered through the agonizing loading period. I still remember watching the intro vid for the first time. I fumbled around through (manuals? Hah I don't need no stinkin manual http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif ) the strategic map as the Uesegi until about five turns in the Hojo decided to attack me. I waited impatiently as the battle loaded and then.... I stopped breathing.... for a loooonnngggg time. I couldn't believe what I was seeing After years of unsatisfying gameplay someone had finally gone and put me in charge of my very own army. I don't think I communicated through anything but a pithy emmisary or gorgeous geisha for about two solid months. In fact, I still don't think my room mates have entirely forgiven me. But who cares? My Holy Grail had arrived. And the rest as they say, is history

http://www.staticfiends.com/my_trip/enlightenment.jpg

[Shahed]

Not much of a story but here goes:

-Surfing for new startegy games
-found demo of STW on some website (before STW was launched)
-loaded demo
-FREAKED OUT TOTALLY
-Woke up next day and pre-ordered from supermarket

et voila ..... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

[The_Emperor]

I saw a review on TV about it... I forget whether it was on Channel 4 or 5, anyway the show was hosted by Gail Porter and the review that the guy on there gave STW sounded awesome, battles featuring thousands of warriors, in different weather conditions, storming castles, etc.

I said to myself, It will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine.

Anyway like many things it was pushed to the back of my mind and almost forgotten. Until one day I came across the case in the store and I remembered all about it, and had the sudden urge to buy it right then and there.

I swear nothing else went in my cd drive for about a year It also kick-started my reading of Sun Tzu and history in general, and my mates got really tired of hearing me talk about my latest battles and tactics

MTW on the other hand I never heard anything about until one day I saw it in the shop, and I got it... MTW quickly influenced me to join The Guild. And I haven't had enough of it since http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[rasoforos]

have heard about STW , i was thinking of a game like that for many years , liked the idea , however Japan was not my cup of tea , i wanted ancient Greece. When MTW came out i thought it was a good compromise and bought it....

[Sjakihata]

I was at the local computer club (bunch of guys drag their pc's into a room set up a LAN and game etc away).

I saw one of my mates downloading from another guy, asked him what it was, he replied shogun. I was interested in japanese culture at that time too, so I thought it might be cool. After half an hour he called that I should come have a look. What I saw stunned me completly, there he was sitting inside a castle on a hill and shooting an advancing army to pieces (it was a multi-play game). I immeadietly began downloading it from my mate, cracked, and played played played.
I quickly bought the original version to play over the net, and I have bought every copy of tw so far http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif (not we)

Well, the local pc clup days are over, but TW is not

[Al Shama'ar]

Well my memories are not that fun. I had to buy STW TWICE http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif

Something bad happened while playing with the 1st copy. I still can't explain it today, but somehow the CD got stuck inside the CD reader and it blew its front panel, strucking the monitor box on the other side of the room (something like a 10 cm cut). Luckily my PC tower is at ground level and not on top of my desk
Needless to say, the Shogun CD was blown to pieces too.

But I was not to be put down that easily
After complaing about the faulty performance of the CD reader I got a new one for free and was soon playing with my 2nd copy of STW.

Unfortunately i never got to grips with fighting my battles, somehow i lost control of my armies when i had to fight with more than 5 units at the same time. ** Lame, you say ** http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif

Nevertheless I enjoyed the strategic part of the game immensely and later bought Medieval and Vikings, and with perseverence I am now able to defeat my enemies in combat. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smokin.gif

Cheers

Al

[Dîn-Heru]

I saw a review in VIMenn,(us men, translated). Went to the official site, and downloaded the demo. wrote it on my christmas wishlist,(hate to pay for things to myself with my own money, but both MTW and VI was baught with my money as soon as I found them in the store, haven't found MI http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/mecry.gif ) And after opening the presents on Christmas Eve I was emerged in the world of totalwar.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Included in my copy of Sid Meirs Gettysburg was a small catalogue with a list of games. I saw Shogun there and thought it looked good. Went to the website, watched the intro video, zoomed in on the No-dachi animation and watched for a while and then ordered the game http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[frogbeastegg]

Well my journey has been well chronicled already you can read it here (http://www.totalwar.org/cgi-bin/forum/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST;f=24;t=9494;st=25), just scroll to about half way down and look for Frogbeastegg: An epic tale of a young frogs quest for glory and knowledge.

To cut that epic short I played the demo of Shogun before the game even came out and I immediately fell in love with the high class production values, realism and historic feel it contained. I bought it for £29.99 at 9:30 on the day of release. Ever since then I have played each TW as soon as the demo appears and bought the full version the day it hits the shops. Shogun is still my favourite though; thank heavens I've got it working after a year of absence

[Revenant69]

Well my way to enlightenment was a bit bumpy indeed. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

I have played Shogun pretty much as soon as it came out (believe it or not i bought it used for 14.99 Canadian bucks acouple of weeks after its release - some looney must have sold it). I must say the game was really good. However, ever since I was like 8 years old I dreamed about Medieval world, knights in armor, etc. Was reading alot of history books about that period. I did find STW abit easy so it went back to my shelf and sat there for a long time, until.....

So, when i got my hands on MTW - i drooled for like 48 hours nonstop. This is EXACTLY the game that i wanted to play all my life http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif Thank you CA. This game is sooooo great.

I cant say enough about how much i love MTW.

[Mount Suribachi]

Wayyyyyyyy back in 1998 when I bought my first PC, I bought an issue of PC Gamer (UK) to inform myself about the latest & greatest in PC gaming. On about page 6 there was a 2 page preview of a just announced game called Taisho I believe it was. The game was being developed by a UK company by the name of Creative Assembly. The screenies looked awesome, like nothing else out there. The previewer was gushing with endless phrases about if this is as good as it promises to be then...

Cut to 18 months-ish later. A demo of the game is on PC Gamer (UK). But it won't work on my PC Noooooooo

A few months later, PC Gamer (UK) reviews STW. Reviewer is orgasmic about everything the game has to offer. I think this game looks like a must have. But still I am not sure. PC Zone (UK) reviews game. Multiple reviewers gush all over its gaming goodness. And one reviewer writes the words that convinced me I must have this game you can pause the battle screen and issue orders. YES No more AOE style click fests

2 Months pass, STW is still not released. Games mags say we have no idea where the hell the game is. Then out of the blue, rec.computers.games.strategy explodes with americans who have just bought this game. It sounds like manna from heaven. 1 week later game is released in UK, I take day off work to buy & play Shogun on day of release. Many thousands of brave Samurai die. I am happy. CA have transcended the overwhelming lack of vision that dominates the computer games industry. They deserve our thanks.

[Lehesu]

Borrowed from a friend. Bought Shogun WE later. Bought Medieval not too much later.

[el_slapper]

Commentaire[/b] (SeljukSinan @ Aout 11 2003,17:57)]Not much of a story but here goes:

-Surfing for new startegy games
-found demo of STW on some website (before STW was launched)
-loaded demo
-FREAKED OUT TOTALLY
-Woke up next day and pre-ordered from supermarket

et voila ..... http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif
Nearly the same. I was following the games news, and was hooked even bedore playnig the demo..... bought the second day. Bought MTW the first day.

[Nowake]

Very simple here: someone showed me in a ICafe the demo of STW, and I knew I had to have it. After that ... I became addicted.

[barocca]

Shogun had just been released, and i knew nothing whatsoever, i had read no reviews, seen no demo's,
nothing...
then one sunny day a friend, who shall remain nameless, gave me one of those gutted versions of STW you could download from some less reputable websites for a birthday gift,
played the gutted version once, a few turns of a campaign, fought 2 battles, THEN went straight down the shop and bought the real thing,
i've been terrorising this joint ever since...

my brothers borrowed the gutted version from me, then all 3 went and bought copies,
then they gave it to a friend, he went and bought a copy,
he gave it to a friend, that friend went and bought a copy,
etc. etc. etc.
... eventually that one gutted copy generated dozens of sales for EA and CA, and we wound up with a huge group of mates who would come over for LAN fest's featuring Shogun Total War...
imagine being able to chat to your team mates because they are right next to you... it is amazing http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

this post is in no way meant to condones piracy, just pointing out that without that gutted copy i would never have found Shogun...

[KukriKhan]

Never played games more complicated than 'Scrabble'. Youngest son insisted I try out his Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun. Put it on my machine (mostly to quiet him)...and not only had fun moving the little guys around - discovered I wanted something more substantial: the ability to direct teamwork.

Searching the web for keyboard shortcuts for C&C:TS, I stumbled on a review of STW, with words like: ...move thousands of samurai on epic battlefields.... The Bushido Code had always fascinated me, and I was intrigued by the anchoring of the game in actual history. I'd already tried my hand at writing What if...? alternate histories in a newsgroup I subscribed to, and STW sounded like a neat dovetailling of my interests, old and newly-discovered.

Found the demo, played it, got hooked, bought the full game, spent every free minute playing for a month (to the amazement of my family). Found multi-player - and a whole new world opened up. The very idea of playing, in real-time, with guys from London, Berlin, Singapore & Sydney, etc absolutely fascinated me. And I didn't totally suck as a player (troop selection was much simpler than MTW, at which I truly DO suck http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif ), winning 'friendlies' about half the time.

Met many good guys (and a few nuts), and they aimed me to this place.

Tried some other games, but none have held the magic of the TW series. And the camaraderie here keeps me coming back.

[Duraz_asks]

i was at wal-mart with my grams right after she had just got brand new comp and i asked if i could get a game and i almost took aoe instead but i saw the pictures on teh back and chose it and now ive baught every version so far.. also for aoe all except the new mythology http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[ichi]

As a student of Sengoku period Japan, samurai movie buff, and avid gamer I kept my eye out for something Japanese.

After a series of disappointing PS2 games I read a review of an upcoming release of a game called Shogun. I purchased it about a week after release here, on a Friday, and ended up taking off the next Monday, and then skipping out early Thursday to start another three day weekend.

I must have watched the ninja movies a hundred times each before I finally turned them off. To this day I cannot look at a handcart without thinking of the poor gutshot emissary.

ichi

[Emp.Dacosta]

This Medieval nut I know recommended it to me. I don't know why I bought it, but its certainly changed my perception of a good game. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Alrowan]

well for me it was a matter of buying a PC, after months of playing HoMM IV i needed a break and a change.. and there it was, in a shining demo, MTW, ever since that demo was released i was hooked, i had to get it. So the moment i found out its release date in australia i went to EB on that day.. not in, so after 5 days of them telling me it would be in the next day, i bought it. And now you all have had to deal with my insufferable presence.

BTW i was so hooked on MTW i reverted and got STW WE

[Louis de la Ferte Ste Colombe]

A combination of blind luck and tough winter.

Louis the Simurgh,

[A Nerd]

I went to my local wholesale club one evening to buy a pizza, some groceries and a bit of vodka. Saw the game there and bought it. Was amazed as I sent a group of Warrior Monks into a castle and watched them fall beneath arrow fire before engaging. Needless to say by the end of the night I was drunk on vodka and countless custom battles http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/eek.gif

[Portuguese Rebel]

Quote[/b] ]Something bad happened while playing with the 1st copy. I still can't explain it today, but somehow the CD got stuck inside the CD reader and it blew its front panel, strucking the monitor box on the other side of the room (something like a 10 cm cut). Luckily my PC tower is at ground level and not on top of my desk
Needless to say, the Shogun CD was blown to pieces too.



EEEEEKKK, remind me not to have my cd rom pointed at my head http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

Were did you buy that cd reader? It wasn't in feira da ladra was it? http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/joker.gif

I stumbled in STW while searching for another game... i looked at the box and the price was good. I did not expect it to be a very good game, i thought it could not be what it said in the box... But it was and more... MTW came next due to STW.

[TheViking]

I was at a friends place, looking in one of his pc-gamers magazine, then i saw this game, it saidsomthing like this:
Control your own samurai armys, i always been fashinated of the japanese culture, then it said, if you cant beat the enemy general on the field send in hordes of Ninjas to assassinate him. after reading that note and looking on the screenshots i was hooked.

i was looking on release date but in every magazine said it should come out next month. but it never got out. but thanks to my lucky star i got an offer to start buying a pc-magazine, cant remeber which anymore i got this game for free, so i start buying them, but it took another couple of months cus this game was coming from germany, but the company that was making them got problems with theirs machines, that was what they was saying. finaly i got it

after that i went out to buy my first computer http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

I still get goosebumps when i think back http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[lancer63]

On a Cossacks forum a guy kept saying that STW was as good if not better than Cossacks. I'd never heard of it before but decided to look into it. Must confess that STW didn't strike me as such a good game just by looking at it, but the MTW demo was fresh out in the web and after the first few seconds into it I knew I had to get the game. It took me 2 monts wait and a major upgrade on my machine but it was more than worth the wait and the money. I've been playing MTW,and its expansion now, since last early october. Had never played a PC game for so long.
MTW will take a rest when RTW takes its place. http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

[econ21]

I kept hearing good things about Shogun on usenet, but it sounded too good to be true - an interesting strategic layer and a good real time tactical engine. Some other wargames had tried that - Empire's Civil War and a Napoleon 1813 game - but failed abysmally. However, the fact that Shogun was being marketed and discussed in as a real time strategy game put me off. A French poster to usenet, Dunc, who had also been burned by 1813 assured me that Shogun was the real deal. I took him at his word and found out he was right - Shogun was at heart (forget about the geishas etc) a revolutionary wargame comparable in its innovativeness to the much vaunted Combat Mission. (Only now does this seem to be generally accepted in the comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.war-historical group.) However, it's scope was so specific and the campaign strategically rather limited, I played it for a few months and moved on. Medieval has the same virtues, but fewer vices - larger scope, more interesting strategic layer - and has been my main gaming interest since it came out.

[Gregoshi]

I read a preview of STW in a gaming magazine and was mezmerized by the description of the game and the screenshots. I was not the slightest bit interested in the Japanese aspect at the time, but the game looked soooo good.

Then I downloaded the demo...which grabbed me by the lapels, smacked me around, took my wallet and held it in front of my face saying You WILL buy this game the day it comes out Understand? Needless to say, I bought the game the day it hit the shelves. It has been a great ride ever since. The game also fueled an interest in Japanese history and culture. It was more fascinating than I had imagined.

[Knight_Ni!]

About a year ago, I put a CD found on a magazine in my PC, browsed the demos a little bit (I think I installed one)...nothing special.

Next thing I remember is waking up in a hospital with my mother by my side. A doctor enters the room and says something about crisis or gone frenzy.

I really don't know what happened...but I believe something has happened to me since that day...

Oh no...I feel it...it's coming...it's chocking me...no my eyes get blury...I sound strange sounds...like swords and stuff...NO NO N0 Not again...my hand stretches to the CD case...can't...no..something...mEdIEVal..... NOOOOOO


http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/dizzy.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/dizzy.gif http://www.totalwar.org/forum/non-cgi/emoticons/dizzy.gif