Napoleon: Total War (Official Expansion Thread)

[Ibn-Khaldun]

Have anyone thought that it's SEGA who pushes CA to make another game? Perhaps CA would finish ETW if they could but with SEGA on their back they can't? AFAIK, ETW was very popular and it would be easy to use it's popularity to make another game with the same time period.

EDIT: Also, Orgahs should consider the fact that many of those who bought ETW never visit any of the forums and actually don't know how many faults ETW have.

[HopAlongBunny]

Have anyone thought that it's SEGA who pushes CA to make another game?

Yes. It also doesn't matter. An inferior product is just that; I do not doubt that CA could produce something worthwhile, its just that they don't. Point fingers anywhere you want, in the end I have to judge them on the product I receive.

[pevergreen]

Its simple fact that the community will never be happy.

I made a big post somewhere else, but this gmae is unfinished = unhappy.
Blizzard delays games until finished = unhappy.

deal with it.

[pevergreen]

Interesting find on the CA website:

Job vacancy:

Auction systems programmer -
ideally you will have worked on a shipped title including an in-game auction system, but you will certainly have good database and networking skills, including scalability and security.

Uhh...what? Like Auction as in MMO auction, selling items and so forth? If so...wow. What could this be for?

[antisocialmunky]

Is it the same CA studio that's doing NTW or is it the main one that did ETW?

[al Roumi]

Interesting find on the CA website:
Uhh...what? Like Auction as in MMO auction, selling items and so forth? If so...wow. What could this be for?

Doesn't sound like a great development to me, especially if it has anything to do with the mp beta...

Maybe you can buy your general Napoleon's saddle-cloth for a a morale booster to your army or something equally idiotic.

This whole thing is completely absurd. Who on earth at CA or SEGA thought it was a good idea to cut and run from ETW so quickly? And the cheek to email all subscribers to SEGA about being "ready for a challenge", well they are bloody running away from one.

meh.

[Durallan]

Just to be the Devils Advocate for a minute and throw a spanner in the works and make everyone think outside the square,

Most of the programming has been done in Empire Total War, considering NTW is using the same engine there isn't going to be a whole lot for the programmers to do, which they would more likely be spending time on getting the Campaign and Battle AI up a few notches, but as an open letter to CA and Sega, Again, if the CAI and BAI isn't up to scratch in your expansion (or up to scratch by the time its released), No more Total War games for me.

I do not expect the AI to do everything I think they should do (life isn't fair generally) but,

1 The AI needs to figure out how to play the game and have a chance of winning (forming alliances allying with like minded countries, Good relations etc) cause right now none of them get that big without player intervention or intentional non-intervention

2 There has to be some way to randomize the outcomes of the game or influence it (random events?), after all it is a game and we do not want to see history repeat itself everytime we play a campaign (do historically minded people agree?) unless the randomization process is the faction that the player choose's themselves and the world organises itself into its different alliances and factions. (or is this too much for the historically minded people?)

3 AI should learn to trade, utilize the trade nodes and manage its economy, they have given up in the later patches (is it really that hard to program the AI to be good at managing the empire? I suppose you want a bit of randomness so not every faction is the same but still...)

4 The AI needs to figure out how to protect its countries, IE don't guard the village, guard the fort or the capital, and don't send raiding parties unless they are excess units, DON'T BREAK UP YOUR ARMY to do it!

5 Better Sieges would be nice, I really don't know how you would do that but it is so lame that they run up to the walls, climb the walls, run to the flag and try to capture it one regiment at a time, coordinated assaults are needed! I know that must be hard for a bunch of routines but it must be done before the expansion is released!

I'm sure there are many other things that can be added to the list, but thats pretty much a bare minimum of STANDARD that I would expect as a consumer if I'm to purchase this expansion as well ( I Pre-Ordered Empire I thought it would be so awesome, and while I was pleasantly suprised with naval battle ( I know a few people were disappointed, but me being so desperate for some sort of age of sail naval simulator thats half decent, I didn't complain) and the shiney graphics, you hurt my feelings CA, you did.)

[Equilibrium]

Gamestar, a german pc gaming magazine has published a preview from the gamescom at cologne:
http://www.gamestar.de/preview/strat...total_war.html

So I knocked up a quick translation for all you non-german speakers.

Napoleon: Total War

At the Gamescom we took a first look at Napoleon, the expansion to Empire: Total war.

Napoleon: Total War is not only gonna feature one campaign, but three. In the stand alone Addon for the strategy hit Empire:Total War you will follow the career of the just as powerhungry as well as small frenchman - from general to emperor. The first campaign will lead you to Italy, the second one to Egypt and the near east. The thirds campaigns focus will be the struggle for Europe.

In the first two campaigns you will only command the french army, while having the option of playing as another european nation in the last one. Just like the tutorial campaign in Empire: Total War, you will have to win one campaign to unlock the next. Hence if you feel like going to war as Prussia, you'll have to lead the French to victory beforehand.

Smaller campaign maps

The three campaigns of Napoleon: Total War do not take place on the regular Empire globe, but on special and smaller campaign maps. Napoleons first campaign focuses on northern Italy, the last one on european nations and the western russian border provinces. Take a note: provinces, plural.

Contrary to the very rough world map of empire(with France consisting of just two regions) the scenarios of Napoleon: Total War are divided up into many more areas.

In the campaigns of Napoleon: Total War historical missions will give you a general guideline. In Italy for example, Napoleon does not have to conquer all cites but just important population centres like Milan or Turin. Additionally there are different kind of troops available to the general in each theater. In Italy he commands only unexperienced regiments, in the near east battle proven veterans and mercenaries like camel riders.

Supply lines and Resources

Contrary to Empire you will have to care about the supply of your army, as your troops will continously suffer losses in difficult terrain like snow steppes, deserts and mountains. If one doesnt make sure his suppy lines are intact, he will soon face his Waterloo. To secure the supply of your troops you have to build depots and build up conquered farms. There are also new resources in place on the campaign map of Napoleon: Total War, contrary to Empire though they will not be a source of money but instead bring specific advantages with them. One certain italian province will provide especially robust horses, and through conquering that province you improve the strength of your cavalry.

Cities and Agents

You will expand cities in Napoleon: Total War in three different development paths: industrial, economical or intellectual. Industrial metropoles will provide you with the most advanced troops, economical centers will earn you more tax income and improve the supply of your troops. "Intellectual" cities not only make your citizens happier with buildings like operas, but also allow the recruiting of spies. These agents will replace the rakes of Empire and of course are used to spy on enemy armies and the like - an immense tactical advantage.

Armies and Generals

In the first two campaigns of Napoleon: Total War you'll best avoid casualties as much as possible, since supply is not only costly but recruitment is scheduled to take a lot longer than in Empire. Only in the last campaign there will be more troops at your disposal, since as an Emperor, Napoleon commands the whole french army.

You will not just recruit generals in Napoleon: Total War by clicking a button, but instead choose historical persons from a list of generals. Every one of those leaders will offer certain skills - one might be good at sieges while another one is more efficient at mountain combat. Hence you should choose your general always depending on where your armies are gonna be fighting.
In the real time battles every general now has an area of influence, all allied units within that area profit from a boost in morale. Therefore sending your general directly to the frontline now makes sense. Napoleon himself rides over the battlefields as well and has special talents like a warcry that improves the attack value of all nearby french troops.

Advancements on the battlefield

The developers are promising further gameplay innovations, for example cannon balls will leave their mark on the terrain, i.e. craters - just no major ones. "Our terrain is not completely deformable", says Creative Assembly director of communications, Kieran Brigden. But the craters will have an actual gameplay effect by hindering cavalry and providing limited cover.
Assaults on cities will play out more dynamically as it will take less time to garisson or clear buildings with infantry, which will allow the player to move their troops around more to be able to push back the enemy house by house.
In naval battles the warships profit from new abilities like being able to repair smaller damages themselves - limited of course.

Diplomacy

In the first two campaigns of Napoleon: Total War you won't have to mind about diplomatical finesse as the short frenchman is just a general, not a leader of a country. Only in the last campaign you'll have to care about dealing diplomatically with other countries.
There will be additional options like getting other nations to fight each other, Kieran Brigden did not want to reveal anything detailed. "Let's put it this way", he oracles "You'll be able to do more good to your friends and more bad to your enemies."

AI and Multiplayer

The AI combatants are supposed to be smarter in Napoleon: Total War, and be able to hand the new gameplay mechanics. At least Bigden says so. We can only wait, as Creative Assembly made the AI issues bigger with the patches for Empire: Total War rather than patching them.
Those who at last want to fight against a human adversary in the real time based campaign should be happy as Brigden promises that the beta test of the multiplayer mode for the regular Empire campaign will start before the release of Napoleon: Total War. You will be able to play together both via LAN or the internet, and the european campaign of Napoleon will be playable in this multiplayer mode as well. If this beta test will start early enough will will see at the latest point in the 1st 1. quarter of 2010, which is the scheduled release date of Napoleon: Total War