Total War Games: Empire and Napoleon

[Jarhead0331]

To be fair, you can't tell how seriously not to take the games from their marketing campaigns.  ::)

From the stated intentions of the publishers they were meant to be taken seriously as strategic games for the period, and as tactical games for the period. If we have to plant our tongues firmly in cheek to enjoy playing them, they still failed to meet the expectations generated by Creative Assembly marketing -- in that broad sense. (They also failed to provide a particularly stable game for Empire on release, and for a long time afterward.)

As gorgeous games which feature a lot of somewhat-relevant strategic/cultural management and tactical action, I think they undoubtedly succeed, assuming you can get them to run stably.  ;) There have been many competitors but the Total War series is still, very deservedly, the champion for this kind of game, despite its frequent warts and aberrant mutations.

Sorry...only a fool would look at the promotional materials and think they were going to get an authentic historical military gaming experience. Especially in light of the past offerings in the series. Empire and Napoleon were what? Games number 5 and 6 in the Total War series? The world was well on notice. The games do offer an undeniably strategic experience in terms of campaign and tactical battles. That may not be an entirely authentic strategic experience, but I don't think that makes their marketing disingenuous.

[panzerde]

If you want a good RTS that has the look of the era represented and isn't terribly taxing to play, these are good games. I'd agree that these are not wargames that reflect the military realities of the periods represented, but they can be good fun. There are some interesting tactical and strategic situations that you can run into, from a kind of general perspective.

TW:N seemed more "finished" to me on release, but as someone else mentioned TW:E turned into a decent game, especially with the Darthmod added.

So, I guess it depends on what you're after. The TW games are a series of great RTS games that provide period flavor. If you really want to play something that's more accurate to the period, these are probably not it, but if you want the spectacle of that period, these'll do.

[Cyrano]

I dunno, from their very own Steam page:

Advanced weaponry enables new tactical options and even more exciting real-time battles on an epic scale, while the highly detailed environments and improved battlefield buildings guarantee a realistic recreation of famous historical battles.

::)

Of course, I kid...

[Gusington]

In case anyone here is interested, I give you...Victoria: Total War (open beta):

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?693179-DOWNLOAD-VICTORIA-TOTAL-WAR-0-2-OPEN-BETA-DOWNLOAD

[Jarhead0331]

In case anyone here is interested, I give you...Victoria: Total War (open beta):

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?693179-DOWNLOAD-VICTORIA-TOTAL-WAR-0-2-OPEN-BETA-DOWNLOAD

Seems like it has a long way to go.

[jomni]

I played ETW only once. Played as Indians.  United India, resisted the British and conquered the Persians... The game ended with me extending my empire to Jerusalem.  As for other TW games, I played several times but only won once.  My problem with Empire was the AI. It was a cake walk but it was quite fun.

[mikeck]

I dunno, from their very own Steam page:

Advanced weaponry enables new tactical options and even more exciting real-time battles on an epic scale, while the highly detailed environments and improved battlefield buildings guarantee a realistic recreation of famous historical battles.

::)

Of course, I kid...

Lol. Yeah, well Chrysler says they build quality cars too but you know what your getting.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

My biggest problem with ETW is that the AI doesn't seem capable of moving forces from Europe to either India or the Americas and this makes it pretty easy for the player to roll both of them up in short order.

[Labbug]

My biggest problem with ETW is that the AI doesn't seem capable of moving forces from Europe to either India or the Americas and this makes it pretty easy for the player to roll both of them up in short order.
[/quote

With Darth Mod I have seen forces moved from Europe to both the Americas and India.  ]

[MengJiao]

I liked Empire and Napoleon the least in the series...it's been so long since I played either I can't even recall why.

  I didn't like anything about them at all.  I gave up on the whole Total War series until I played the Shogun2 demo.  I've been a total
fanboi from then on.

[JasonPratt]

I dunno, from their very own Steam page:

Advanced weaponry enables new tactical options and even more exciting real-time battles on an epic scale, while the highly detailed environments and improved battlefield buildings guarantee a realistic recreation of famous historical battles.

::)

Of course, I kid...

Lol. Yeah, well Chrysler says they build quality cars too but you know what your getting.

And that was my point. No one thinks Chrysler succeeds in meeting their marketing, and so in that sense the cars "fail". But adjusted for experienced expectations they do okay -- and Creative Assembly has a much stronger position in their market than Chrysler, for good reasons.

[Yskonyn]

I like Empire a great deal, but only when it is patched.
In comparison with the AI from Atilla or even Rome 2, Empire's AI still does weird things sometimes.
And because of the absolutely huge campaign map I find it sometimes hard to focus on key frontlines. But that is a problem I have with more TW titles and their strategic maps. :)
What I *really* love about Empire is its naval Warfare.
Those big wooden behemoths clashing at Sea is to me what Longobeards on land are for certain other individuals! Loin moistening greatness! ;)

[Gusington]

Forgot that Empire TW was the first in the series to offer naval combat...for.that it should get some credit.

[Skwerl]

I love ETW. 

Is NTW worth a purchase if I already have ETW?

[Pete Dero]

It certainly is worth 5€ : http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-NTWB/napoleon-total-war