Any Takers On A Fantasy TW?

[ivoignob]

I would like a fantasy game, too. But CA then has to invent a new historical background for that world. We all know something about medieval or roman history, but think if they bring out a game where all these fantasy-factions are already there and we have no relation to them. With no background it would be really boring I think. The problem is, that in TW games there is no storyline. Games, that have a storyline which you are in some way bounded to, are perfect for imaginative fantasy games. Short said: I think the battle map is well suitable for a Fantasy: Total War Game, but not the campaign map as it is now.
God, what happened to my english...

[General4Hire]

gotta be honest, I would puke if CA made a "Fantasy: Total War" and a LARGE percentage of the community was grumbling and groaning very loudly over the spring summer of last year when there was speculation of such.

Anyway, they're making MTW2 next (the fan favorite)...after they do an Alexander's Conquest expansion to RTW. Even if we did ever see a fantasy total war, it wouldn't be for several years yet. You gotta think, MTW2, then it's expansion (if there's only one), THEN looking forward to the next thing...that's three years right there.

[Zenicetus]

I agree with Ivoignob about the game world/backstory problem. Creating a good fantasy world from scratch isn't that easy. Sometimes you'll get a company like Blizzard that has a knack for it (e.g. Warcraft series), but there are plenty of failures too. For example, the Kohan RTS games had a very good strategy/tactical engine, but it had (in my opinion) a cheesy backstory, and the faction designs were not all that creative and somewhat confusing to figure out.

Now, a died-in-the-wool strategy gamer can look past that and still enjoy the game (I did), but it can hurt a game in the marketplace if you don't pull it off as well as Blizzard does. Although the Kohan series is popular among a small hardcore group, it wasn't successful enough (apparently) to justify an expansion, and Timegate's next title will be a first person shooter, of all things. They seem to have dropped the Kohan series, which is a shame. The same thing could happen with CA, if they did a fantasy TW game.

Of course one solution is just to license an existing fantasy world like Lord of the Rings, or D&D, but that's already being done by other companies.

P.S. actually my personal "blue sky" wish would be something like a Fallout: Total War game... a post-nuclear Apocalypse kinda thing, with roving bands of humans, mutants, and radioactive zombies. I think it would be a perfect match for the TW game engine. But I think that's just about as likely as getting a fantasy-based TW game.

[drone]

From the previews I've seen so far, Warhammer: Mark of Chaos looks to be very close to a Fantasy:TW. The strategic side probably will not be as involved (not as many "factions", unfortunately), but the battle map looks very similiar to RTW. It's due out about the same time as Medieval2.

[asilv]

Strategic part of Master of Magic + Total War tactical battles = Best game ever.

[player1]

When we are at Master of Magic, it is good example of how Civilization type of game can be changed to Fantasy type game.

It also shows that sometimes, even without backstory, it can make great game.

[Braden]

I support the idea but feel it’s certainly something that the Mod community should do rather than it be an Official CA release.

As you mentioned there are several in the pipeline but then the question is:

“What fantasy genre?”

Some have gone towards Lord of the Rings, others have gone down the route of pre-empting the Games Workshop Warhammer game…..

…..personally I’d like to see one based on the Forgotten Realms books, but either way as long as a Mod has Elves, Dwarves, Humans and some other “evil” race it’ll do me.

One of the really good things about the Total War games is their Mod-ability. Even someone with vary basic knowledge can change the basic game to suit them in small ways. Those with greater knowledge can change it impressively.