Do you think the latest patch fixed many of RTW's flaws?

[DisruptorX]

I recently reinstalled and started playing RTW again, after a very long break. I bought the game when it was brand new and was disgusted at the buggy mess that was this game and how it sucked compared to MTW. The AI was laughably easy to exploit, the units were not balanced, and army variety was boring.

Now, I have the newest patch and have been playing the game both single and multiplayer. Firstly, yes, the AI still is a mess, thats a given. However, I don't really find that units rout too fast unless they are attacked from behind. Phalanxes no longer move constantly to the left/right and a solid block of half-decent infantry no longer folds to a frontal cavalry charge.

In multiplayer, I've had great fun playing against friends, we choose balanced armies and put skirmishers to great use, making feints with light cavalry and horse archers, before our main blocks engage each other. I don't really find that the MP battles go much faster than MTW's did, and the results are highly reliant on tactics and skill.

The animations are still incredably silly, units still freak out when approaching town centers, but I think the game isn't nearly as bad now as it used to be.

[Puzz3D]

A lot of things were fixed by the patches. Try the XGM (Extended Greek Mod) for a more challenging campaign. XGM ReadMe. The mod doesn't write over or replace the original game since it uses the -mods option, so you can still play vanilla.

[Irishman3]

I think they did. The biggest one for me was the save game/siege bug, where AI would lift a siege for no reason at all after saving/exiting and restarting the game. That bugged the snot out of me since I often (especially in the late game stages) only have enough time to play one turn a night. And though I don;t believe the AI is much smarter than before, they definitely act and re-act better on the battlefield with 1.5, at least when compared to the 1.2 and 1.3 patches. Player1's bug fixer mod is a must IMHO too, and Darth Mod formations can add a bit of flavor to the battles against AI, though since reinstalling and starting to play again about 4 weeks ago I have not been using it.

But, from my standpoint, CA fixed a lot of the critical issues with 1.5 so I feel I have gotten my monies worth, and really enjoying the game still. Which for a game thats what...over 2 years old now?...speaks volumes in todays game industry/sales market.

[Tamur]

Having come back to it after 18 months, the 1.5 patch really does make a great deal of difference. I still needed to mod the unit hp/missile strength, and terrain movement, simply because I like battles to last a bit. But battlefield AI is markedly better than the 1.1 version I left, and campaign AI is a bit of a surprise. Diplomacy is a bit dodgy, but the military engine is much better -- Massilia is currently being beseiged by two full stacks from Spain, an unheard of feat in 1.1

So yes, I'd say some major fixes have made a big difference. My hope is that all the learning that's gone into RTW will transfer to M2TW in the same way that Shogun/MI learning transfered to the original Medieval.

[The Spartan (Returns)]

well, there still the stupid phalanx bug.

[Irishman3]

well, there still the stupid phalanx bug.

What's the 'phalanx bug'? I usually play Julii so don't use phalanx and hardly ever run into them, so maybe have not experienced or noticed it yet.

[DisruptorX]

What's the 'phalanx bug'? I usually play Julii so don't use phalanx and hardly ever run into them, so maybe have not experienced or noticed it yet.

The one I'm talking about is how if you have phalanxes gaurding a narrow street, say like this:

]xxxxxxxxxx[ where ] [ are the street sides, and x are the phalanx troops.

The phalanx will constantly move to the side so that your formation eventually looks like this

].......xxxxx[

leaving a huge gap for the enemy to flank and destroy you. That bug was pretty much fixed.