ShackNews interview

**Martok** · 11-14-2008, 02:34

ShackNews has done a rather extensive interview with CA's Kieran Brigden. In addition to talking about ETW, he also discusses the franchise in general and CA's perspective on it. A pretty interesting read overall.

Of particular interest (in regards to Empire) are some more details dropped about the Road to Independence campaign:

Shack: Can you explain what the Road to Independence campaign entails?

Kieran Brigden: Road to Independence is a story-driven campaign that sits alongside the grand campaign. It's another campaign for you to play in the box. It's separated into three chapters, so if you imagine it like, the first timeline, kind of comprises of the foundation of Jamestown by the British, the defense of those new colonies, surviving the winters, and defending your people essentially.

You then go into a second phase, which is the battle to remove other European powers from the sphere. So you've got George Washington fighting on behalf of the British as a Virginia colonist, not as a Brit but as a Virginia colonist, and you've got to get the French and everything else alongside the Brits out of North America. And then finally you move into the last phase of the campaign, which of course is Washington and the revolutionaries kicking the Brits out of North America and establishing the thirteen colonies as an independent nation.

Now what that means in real terms for players: it's a focused, goal-driven campaign. So you've got a number of resources, there are certain options available to you, and you always know what your next move is and why. So you're not going to go, I need to achieve this objective, maybe I'll attack this, defend that, make this treaty or whatever. The point is, that decision is made for me by the timeline in which I'm playing.

So it's a nice introduction for people who haven't yet played Total War games. It's also a really cool way of playing through a very interesting story. So in that respect, we hope it'll offer something new for both parties.

**Mailman653** · 11-14-2008, 05:07

French and Indian wars, cool.

Too bad you can't play as the French in that situation. Maybe one of Native allies is named Magua

Magua

**fenir** · 11-14-2008, 13:04

Interesting.

So you've got George Washington fighting on behalf of the British as a Virginia colonist, not as a Brit but as a Virginia colonist

Thought that was funny. Considering he held a British Army Commission. And that all subjects of the "Nova Albion", where Subjects. Therefore British. Same as Canada, Australia NEw Zealand et cetera...

Most seem to forget that the americans. before america, where british.

Sincerely

fenir

**SpencerH** · 11-14-2008, 13:41

Originally Posted by fenir

Interesting.

Thought that was funny. Considering he held a British Army Commission. And that all subjects of the "Nova Albion", where Subjects. Therefore British. Same as Canada, Australia NEw Zealand et cetera...

Most seem to forget that the americans. before america, where british.

Sincerely

fenir

George Washington never held a commision in the regular british army. He held a commision in the Virginia militia which was looked down upon by the brits. In fact, he actively sought a royal commision in the british army for himself and the Virginia regiment but it was denied.

**Hosakawa Tito** · 11-14-2008, 14:05

Originally Posted by SpencerH

George Washington never held a commision in the regular british army. He held a commision in the Virginia militia which was looked down upon by the brits. In fact, he actively sought a royal commision in the british army for himself and the Virginia regiment but it was denied.

Spot on. In fact, a Virginia regiment led by Lt. Col. Washington fired the first shots of the French & Indian War by ambushing a French Canadian scouting party in Pennsylvania.