Best TW Game

[Kaiser of Arabia]

Which Total War game did you enjoy the most?
For me, it's gotta be Medieval Total War.
That one was awesome.
I never played STW though, I wonder what that one was like in terms of fun.
-Capo

[Ldvs]

Even though there's quite a lot of bugs we can't deny all the enhancements made in RTW. If the AI is fixed in the upcoming patch then it'll be the best one for a certainty.

[Quietus]

I'll take back what I said after initially playing RTW. SHOGUN is still the most fun!!! STW had great maps and excellent balance.

RTW battles are too short. RTW has nice potential though if they lower the speed and kill rates! ~:) :charge: Instead of going for the throat and completely breaking the mold, CA reverts to the old RTS model. :dizzy2:

[ah_dut]

STW has the most atmosphere, even though it doesn't have the command and control enchancements of MTW, I think it's the most fun

[Wishazu]

i think rome is the best game and i agree that the kill rates etc. need to be reduced but the one i will allways remember most fondly is Shoggy. i loved the little cut scenes with the ninjas :)

[Slon]

I would choose Rome. It just seems like a very enhanced and touched up version of MTW. Well, except for the AI. The best enhancement has to be the fact that provinces are no longer single shapes. Each province has roads and feels alive. Also, you no longer count provinces by the number of provinces but rather by their size (i.e. not being able to cross Lybia as quickly as you cross Alexandria). The AI definately needs improvement, though. It feels like they took the strategy map AI from MTW and just made a horrible battle map AI (units just stand in city center as my archers pick them off). I guess this would make sence if archer casualties were reduced for shield/heavy armor troops. Chariots also feel like crap. Those blades at the whiles should cut whole lines of people down. The only true melee weapon that would be able to defeat a chariot should be a large spear. They actually produce less casualties than normal cavalry! This really makes the Britons look like crap because the chariots are "supposed" to be their strong point.

[Sasaki Kojiro]

Shogun always.

[Oaty]

For it's time frame Shogun by far. My wife had to convince me I was not a samarai and they did not exist anymore.

RTW went too much for arcade style to draw in the sales. I do'nt mind that too much but high kill rates, cavalry cutting through phalanxes like butter(and this is on huge settings) should be thrown into the arcade style options. And the kill rate mod was great until I found out it unbalanced the game. Wardogs still have the same kill rate allowing them to chew anything up and peasants able to chew generals to shreds. And peasants on a wall were invincible. I think the game was made to allow peasants a minimum kill rate so reducing the overall kill rate did not effect them. So hopefully they make the kill rate more moddable as I hat th pause button. And the worst part is I might pause 20 times for a 3 minute battle(game time) with a total of 30 plus units wich should last a good ten minutes minus the march for engagement.

Also the wooded battlefields, they got the part right you ca'nt see worth a crap in the woods but the part of many battles being fought there is wrong. wooded battles were usually ambushes or the woods were protecting flanks. Now modern day woods around cities are a laugh get away from the city and go into the woods there. They are so thick with underbrush that if you were planning an ambush the area would have had to been cleared with maybe the edge left in tact so that the ambush is kept concealed.


Edit: Also take out those 60 degree slopes in the mountain passes, the comp ca'nt handle it and obviously the comp does'nt get as dumbfounded on near flat maps.

[Tricky Lady]

i voted for RTW.

I agree with many members of this community that RTW still has many flaws but I am optimistic for the patch. If this patch solves the most flagrant errors that are still in the game, I don't think I could ever return to MTW, except if I really want to revive good old times...

One thing MTW has over RTW in my opinion: MTW was much much more addictive than RTW. I just couldn't stop playing that game. I bought MTW in Feb 2004 and played it almost continuously, just until I left for a two-weeks holiday in England, and then when I came back I just couldn't get into the game anymore... :embarassed:

[Kaiser of Arabia]

I like the time period of MTW better, and it did seem alot more addictive then RTW.
However, RTR is helping RTW tremendously.
Also, I very much perfered the battle interface of MTW.
If MTW had RTW grafics that would be great

[Quietus]

I agree with many members of this community that RTW still has many flaws but I am optimistic for the patch. If this patch solves the most flagrant errors that are still in the game Has any of the devs said anything about fixing the kill and speed rates? (This is aside from friendly fire, protectorate etc....)

[mfberg]

I voted for Medieval, with the expansion and some mods its a keeper. Now when the patch comes out for Rome ask again.

mfberg

[Tricky Lady]

Has any of the devs said anything about fixing the kill and speed rates? (This is aside from friendly fire, protectorate etc....)

Well actually kill speed and turbo running speeds should be moved under the wings of the "arcade style". I guess some people like this kind of hack hack kill kill speedy games, but they're definitively not visiting these forums :grin2: That would do for me

I must confess that MTW and RTW are pretty much tied up for me; and indeed MTW's timeframe is a tad more interesting than RTW's.

[...]

So I guess I should've voted "MTW" then :tongue2:

[Ludens]

All three games have their qualities. S:TW had a brilliant atmosphere and an elegant simplicity that made the game absorbing. M:TW had more complexity than S:TW, both on and off the battle map, making the game less elegant, but not less good. R:TW has brilliant graphics and an excellent campaign game, but these are spoiled a by the poor AI and the way battles resolve too quickly for my taste.

I think R:TW would win hands down if they solved those two problems, but as it is, I don't have a favourite.

[Scipio]

STW for sure! The game had the best time frame and overall aura to it that I could not put it down. Tho I never played mp in the days of Shoggy I hope for STW2, as it is hands down the best setting for a tw game

[Herakleitos]

With a lot of doubts... I voted RTW. That's because of the fact that the map is not Risk-style anymore and the game is just bigger/better. But the Sengoku Jidai period is SO MUCH COOLER! And when Shogun came out that was the first time a computer game came it which I knew I had to play.

Make Shogun 2 on a Rome engine... with better AI and better balanced units... and more movies... and include Korea and parts of China and Mongolia and... :bow:

[econ21]

I voted MTW because it had good tactical battles and an interesting, but also challenging, strategic layer (glorious achievements, a much bigger map etc). The replayability was great, with very varied factions.

STW would be second - it had atmosphere and very good tactical battles, but the strategic map was a rather boring slugfest with the Hojo horde feature arguably breaking the end game. Replayability is limited due to common units and lack of variation in strategic options.

RTW is visually wonderful and in principle has a much better strategic map. However, I find the AI on the strategic map just does not seem to put up much of a fight. A lot of people have said the tactical AI is also weaker than MTW. I just don't get the sense of danger induced by STW and MTW. In principle, the replayability should be as great as MTW - indeed the tactical fighting styles of the factions are more varied - but sadly I can't seem to summon up the interest. It has potential to exceed STW and may be rival MTW, but it is not there yet.

[Pausanias828]

STW will always hold a special place in my heart ~:) . I love the whole atmosphere of the game. So I had to vote for it as my favourite.

MTW added some nice features, and got me totally hooked on it. Up until RTW came out I was still playing MTW most days, and also started playing STW again, which I hadn't done for about a year or so.

RTW does look good, but I was disappointed by the way the battles play out now, but have refrained from tweaking the game myself as I am hoping CA will remedy this in the patch (but probably won't). I still play RTW most days though, and really hope that the patch will increase my enjoyment of what should have been my favourite in the series. If not, then I will start to play a lot more STW & MTW again.

[ichi]

STW

The recent STW for MTW VI is also very very cool, both for campaign play and online fun.

ichi :bow:

[Swordsman]

Have to go with MTW. Replay value is immense, modding is relatively easy, I like the optional eras. I like RTW (looking forward to the patch), but think the whole strategy map thing is over rated. I personally had no problem with the "province-based" scheme in MTW. I mean, both are still about sacking cities right? So what real difference does it make if you have to march along a road to get there or not.

And now I have a terrible confession to make... I have never played STW :shame: . Didn't get started until MTW, and then just couldn't put it down for , ohhh, about 2 years!! My wife, a fairly devout Catholic, got quite tired of my tirades against "that !#@#!* Pope!!" :charge:

[Drisos]

Shogun forever, hope my vote can change something in the poll. (MTW is winning ~:mecry: )

Respect to everyone voting for shogun! (for everyone of the forum actually, but especially them!)

bye. :bow:

Drisos. :bow:

[Drisos]

For it's time frame Shogun by far. My wife had to convince me I was not a samarai and they did not exist anymore.

haha, i've had the feeling a few times too!

addicted to STW and voted for it!

[Pericles]

I will have to vote for MTW: it has varied factions, great tactical battles, The Golden Horde, Crusades, tons of different units, and the game is very moddable, with many excellent mods...

STW comes in a close second: great atmosphere, movies, cut-scenes, etc. Everyone should own both games.

RTW: I must confess that I don't have this game yet. But from what I have been hearing, it sounds like it needs some fixing...

[AntiochusIII]

Of all three Total War games... Everyone are unique.

Thanks Creative Assembly for such horrible, horrible games. They almost killed me for lack of sleep. ~D Since the first day of Shogun!

That's why I vote for it. It's all about originality.

Japan is very simple, making war simply about better tactics. (You can't find the more powerful Chivalric Sergeants to crush the petty spearmen head-on.) It is also related to the fact that this is first game ever that I really love.

The Medieval Europe is the "perfection" of Shogun. I love its differing events. You can find a thousand different campaigns playing in it.

Rome, however, has been given too few credits here. Sure, it's very, very far from perfect. Some say not even good. I, however, need to point out that CA is taking a whole new step. Things in game are horribly messy, true, but I expect that the patch will help a bit, and the expansion will be a BANG!!! :balloon2: It has far more potential that the mighty Shogun once possessed.

[avatar]

The first time I played Shogun I was hooked on Total War. I played the Dunes, Starcrafts, etc. but nothing came close to the range of emotions I experienced playing Shogun. Then there came Medieval - very good. Then the Viking expansion - excellent. Then Rome - good??? I spent a lot of money to upgrade my computer to play this new Total War game. I do like Rome (they gave us war elephants), but I am a bit disappointed. Maybe my expectations were to high. I vote for Medieval.

[Aelwyn]

STW of course. Hands down. I loved MTW in its prime...

[Red Harvest]

CA should be very worried. RTW is now trailing badly in third place...

[Duke John]

I voted for M:TW, but as AntiochusIII said, R:TW has the most potential of all three. I think most of the disappointment comes from the realization that not all potential is being used. This is what CA said many months ago:


Q. Will there be an editor so players can make their own battles, create personalized banners/shield devices, repair Greek hoplite shields?

A. Rome: Total War is going to be the most moddable game in the Total War range so far, and there will eventually be a range of editors and tools to make it easy for anyone to create new campaign worlds, units, factions, cities and much more besides. Rome: Total War won't just be a game, it'll be a tool kit for empire building! It's going to be fun!

Q. Can you give me some details on the main campaign modes that make up the game?

.....The smaller campaigns are just that: small campaigns (doh). By concentrating on the important action we can highlight the exciting bits of ancient history: the Spartacus slave revolt is a good example. Spartacus never left Italy, so his war can be fought on a smaller, more detailed map. Likewise, Caesar conquering Gaul only really needs a map of Gaul! (Doh! Again). We're also including a special 'Prologue' campaign to ease players into the new game.

Q. When is it set ?
.....There's loads of juicy stuff in the period: the Punic Wars, Hannibal, Spartacus, Pompey, Caesar in Gaul, the conquest of Spain, the rise of Roman 'Imperial' pretensions in the leading families, and finally the seizure of power by the Imperators... That's a lot of gameplay and history! We will be including a couple of smaller campaigns and a selection of tasty and exciting historical battles for those who want a snack rather than a full-on Roman feast!
I read enthusiasm and love for the subject in the answers. But when I play the game I do not get that, it feels empty. To me it looks like they focused too much on the graphics and forgot the atmosphere. When browsing through the files I see traces of the enthusiasm from the interview. There were glorious achievements, smaller campaigns, but at some point they decided against the "juicy stuff".

[AntiochusIII]

Hmm... Duke John, do you noticed something in the DATA folder as I did?

Or is it just me being silly, hehe. I've found parts, lots of parts, of Caesar's campaign in Gaul. It is far from complete, and I'm no programmer. There are names for provinces and tribes and alike. Funny it's still there, the legacy of the lost Atlantis empire in Rome, perhaps?

Could anyone with more experience than me look around the DATA a bit? It's an amusing adventure (after getting bored slaughtering 2000 Gauls with a small army.) through the files that get me hooked about Rome's true potential. May be they can find some necessary parts to reconstruct the "Provincial campaigns" that was left in it.

[Kaiser of Arabia]

MTW IS IN DA LEAD!
TAKE THAT N00B BIZNATCHES!!!!!
Not that there are any n00bs here, i just hate n00bs with a passion.

[JAG]

STW - there is no substitute. I played that game for so long I can't even remember how long it was. It was the first game I played on the internet and I played it obsessively.

Original and best.

[Mouzafphaerre]

-
I voted for MTW for I couldn't have done for any else. I've only played MTW vanilla and VI so far.
-

[Al Khalifah]

Shogun was original and had such an awesome atmosphere. I loved the way that you despite the huge number of strategic options available that the game was essentially won and lost on the battlefield.
You couldn't just set up huge trade empire, hire mercs and then bribe the enemy ad infinitum. In Shogun each unit retained its usefulness throughout the entire game which meant that you had to continue to rely on strategy as the game went on - meaning that the end-game wasn't nearly as tiring as in Medieval where once you reached a certain point your Chivalric Knights and Chivalric Sergeants and Longbowmen could win battles against thousands of peasants and only sustain double figure casualties.
Even the ashigaru had a definite use in Shogun besides being dirt cheap - they were quick and when disciplined could repel cavalry or be used as a reserve. The bowmen remained bowmen throughout the game - so you didn't spend all your time waiting to build castle -> build superior trainer -> build castle -> build superior trainer which all took 30 years.

In short Shogun was raw strategy and I loved it. GOT MY VOTE!

Medieval was awesome because of the variety of units - but the end-game tended to be tiring and the trade element was too over the top - how many people want to buy gems, jewells and butter anyway? The first 100 years were intense and the battles were exciting because of the different cultures, you could never be sure what you were going to get. Add to this the humour/irritation value of his Holiness, the ever looming terror of the Golden Horde, the mad rush for Constantinople and those pesky Almohads and you have a game with a personality all of its own.

Rome will be awesome IF they resolve the strategic outrageousness (is that a word). In many ways its too weak on strategy, but strangely enough in others it exagerates the strategy way too much to the point where you have to not decide what would be a good plan - but what Rome will let you get away with.

[Paul Peru]

I'm not voting yet.
I'm giving RTW some more time. It's been soo long since I played pre-VI MTW, and if I remember correctly it was getting old and stale at one point. (medmod kept CTD-ing on me)
With the big 1.2 patch imminent, I think it's unfair to compare RTW in its current state to my recent experiences with the latest XL and BKB mods for MTW.
Suffice to say: my choice for "which TW game would you bring to a remote island" proved to be MTW+VI+BKB Super mod.

[Iguanus Commodus]

Shogun. The atmosphere was great. Each unit had its specific purpose. The best game ever. I played it till the end online. :bow:

[L`zard]

~STW, MTW,RTW ~

Now, rtw+mods=goodies!

CA ; they have to do what they have to do, eh?
If (remind you IF..) CA keeps the faith as they have so far..............

Well, I can wait for it, eh?

Noted: my life in :tw is'nt so extended as some peeps, but it's still one of the best turn/real time games ever issued to my thinking.

Dissapionted by the 'caving' to the rts sorts, but 'they' got to market games, eh? (ie: camera views really suck!)

Can wait and see .....................

[mikey2001]

Ive only played STW and RTW and out of the two, i've had more fun playing RTW, but maybe thats because I havent played STW for quite a few years.

Time to get it out of mothballs, methinks.... ~:cool: