Warhammer Total War: Warhammer 2

[Infinitron]

https://www.totalwar.com/total_war_warhammer_2

Spoiler

Millennia ago, besieged by a Chaos invasion, a conclave of High Elf mages forged a vast, arcane vortex. Its purpose was to draw the Winds of Magic from the world as a sinkhole drains an ocean, and blast the Daemonic hordes back to the Realm of Chaos. Now the Great Vortex falters, and the world again stands at the brink of ruin.

Powerful forces move to heal the maelstrom and avert catastrophe. Yet others seek to harness its terrible energies for their own bitter purpose. The race is on, and the very fate of the world will lie in the hands of the victor.

Prince Tyrion, Defender of Ulthuan, guides the High Elves in their desperate efforts to stabilise the vortex as it roils above their home continent.

Atop his palanquin-throne, the Slann Mage-Priest Mazdamundi directs his Lizardmen war-hosts as they surge northward from Lustria. He, too, is intent on preventing cataclysm, though the methods of The Old Ones must prevail.

The Witch King Malekith and his sadistic Dark Elf hordes spew forth from Naggaroth and their labyrinthine Black Arks. He tastes great weakness in the vortex – and great opportunity in its demise.

Meanwhile a fourth, secretive race stirs, their motives obscured by sinister plots and machinations. The time for revelation is nigh…

Four races, four outcomes, a single goal: control of the Great Vortex, for good or ill.

About Total War™: WARHAMMER® II:

The second in a trilogy and sequel to the award-winning Total War: WARHAMMER, Total War: WARHAMMER II brings players a breathtaking new narrative campaign, set across the vast continents of Lustria, Ulthuan, Naggaroth and the Southlands. The Great Vortex Campaign builds pace to culminate in a definitive and climactic endgame, an experience unlike any other Total War title to date.

Playing as one of 8 Legendary Lords across 4 iconic races from the world of Warhammer Fantasy Battles, players must succeed in performing a series of powerful arcane rituals in order to stabilise or disrupt The Great Vortex, while foiling the progress of the other races. Each Legendary Lord has a unique geographical starting position, and each race offers a distinctive new playstyle with unique campaign mechanics, narrative, methods of war, armies, monsters, Lores of Magic, legendary characters, and staggering new battlefield bombardment abilities.

Shortly after launch, owners of both the original game and Total War™ WARHAMMER II will gain access to the colossal new combined campaign. Merging the landmasses of The Old World plus Naggaroth, Lustria, Ulthuan and the Southlands into a single epic map, players may embark on monumental campaigns as any owned Race from both titles.

 

[bonescraper]

There's no need for a separate thread, faggit.

 

[Andnjord]

Still no skaven?

 

[Infinitron]

Steam page is up, updated OP.

Still no skaven?

Might want to take a look.

 

[Maggot]

TW:WH is going to cost at least $300 for the finished product and the strategic and battle maps still feel neutered. Sega was a mistake.

 

[Raghar]

There's no need for a separate thread, faggit.

They are selling it for new 60$ as a second game, thus we can have second thread.

 

[bonescraper]

TW:WH is going to cost at least $300 for the finished product and the strategic and battle maps still feel neutered. Sega was a mistake.

Sega is what saved them from dying in Activision's hands. Whether you like it or not, they couldn't have it better, they're churning out new titles on a constant basis and selling craploads of copies on a "dead platform". Find me one publisher these days that doesn't have a ridiculous DLC policy? EA? Lol. Ubisoft? Heh, nope. Paradox? Hahaha, fuck no.

There's no need for a separate thread, faggit.

They are selling it for new 60$ as a second game, thus we can have second thread.

Yeah, i wonder how many people will buy this and never bother with the first game? It's nothing but glorified standalone DLC.

 

[Raghar]

There's no need for a separate thread, faggit.

They are selling it for new 60$ as a second game, thus we can have second thread.

Yeah, i wonder how many people will buy this and never bother with the first game? It's nothing but glorified standalone DLC.

People might complain about 60$ standalone DLC, thus they must call it a game.

Looks like it will have: High elves. Dark elves. Lizardmen. And Skaven.

 

[Maggot]

Sega is what saved them from dying in Activision's hands. Whether you like it or not, they couldn't have it better, they're churning out new titles on a constant basis and selling craploads of copies on a "dead platform". Find me one publisher these days that doesn't have a ridiculous DLC policy? EA? Lol. Ubisoft? Heh, nope. Paradox? Hahaha, fuck no.

The series has gotten progressively worse since Sega was in charge. I have yet to see another publisher push out $20 faction DLC that wasn't playtested properly and ends up breaking the campaign map until they patch it a few months down the line like Wood Elves. The worst part is apologists like you gobble their shit up and defend their incompetence.

 

[bonescraper]

Activision or any other developer would definitely push for better, more complex mechanics, better AI, better maps, no DLC and DRM policy and higher overall quality. They would also give them at least 5 years to develop their games and gladly push back deadlines for extensive QA and testing.

Also, i'm not defending anyone, you goddamn moron. All i said is they're in a good place as a company and their future is quite secure for now. They wouldn't exist anymore if they stayed with Activision.

Now go on, make your retarded concussions and projections again, fucking retard.

 

[Maggot]

Their future is secure as a mediocre, lazy developer that survives by nickel and diming drones like you. TW:Warhammer with its 3 games + overpriced DLC tacked onto every one makes SC2 look good.

 

[bonescraper]

 

[Gepeu]

I thought this thread was a joke.
Then I've opened it.

 

[bonescraper]

Yeah, looks like it's filled with easily triggered edgy newfags who can't into reading comprehension.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2...2-creative-assembly-answers-the-big-questions

Total War: Warhammer 2 - Creative Assembly answers the big questions

Multi-game campaigns! Victory conditions! Day-one DLC! More!

By Chris Bratt Published 31/03/2017

Creative Assembly has just announced Total War: Warhammer 2, with a trailer confirming three of the four playable races we can expect (High Elves, Dark Elves and Lizardmen). We're yet to see any gameplay, but given the time we've spent with the first game in the series, we have some idea of what to expect from this sequel.

That being said, there are still a few important questions to be answered. Since the release of Total War: Warhammer, we've been told to expect this trilogy of games to slot together somehow, allowing players to experience a grand campaign on an incomparable scale. Is that still happening? And if so, how will it work? And what about day-one DLC? Are we going to see a repeat of the controversial Chaos Warriors DLC?

I spoke to Total War: Warhammer game director Ian Roxburgh and communications manager Al Bickham at EGX Rezzed this week, and put some of these questions to them. Here's what they had to say.

Okay, let me start with the question you won't answer. That was the Skaven you were teasing at the end of your trailer, right?

AB: What's a Skaven?

IR: Yeah, they don't exist. Aren't they something the people from Middenheim made up?

Fine. I get it. I had to ask. Can we talk about the setting instead? So, the Vortex shown in the trailer is above Ulthuan, right? Then given the other two races you've confirmed, it'll be Lustria and Naggaroth too?

IR: That's right. There's also an area called the Southlands.

Who lives there?

AB: We're not ready to talk about that yet.

IR: But together these locations are known as the New World and in fact, it's not just one race per area, there are a lot of sub-factions dotted all over the map as well.

Oh, including factions from the races we've seen in the first game too?

IR: Yeah and in fact, if you look at the Warhammer lore, there's loads of examples of these kind of sub-factions, so we had a lot to draw upon. It also, inevitably, makes for a more interesting gameplay experience as you're not just interacting with the same handful of races.

Now one of the big features you've talked about since the first Warhammer game was the idea that these maps would be able to slot together. Warhammer 1 and Warhammer 2 could be combined somehow. I noticed you didn't mention this in your press release, is it still happening?

AB: Yes, it is. We're going to have a fully-fledged standalone campaign for Total War: Warhammer 2, featuring all of these new races, each with their own unique victory conditions. It'll be a full Total War experience, but for those who also own the first Warhammer and any DLC, we're going to be introducing the option to play a mega campaign, shortly after the release of Warhammer 2.

Is that what you're calling it? The 'mega' campaign?

AB: We're not sure yet! We've been playing around with other names, but maybe we should just go with mega campaign?

IR: When players start one of these, they'll be playing a campaign which includes both the Old and New World. Any DLC they've bought, or FreeLC they've installed, will be included. It'll be one giant map.

That sounds incredible. How will it actually work? Mechanically, things like the time it takes between turns seems like it may be an issue here. Already, it can take a little while as you wait for each AI faction to make its moves. This is only going to be a bigger problem here, I'd imagine?

IR: It will probably mean that some of the smaller factions will need to be cut, but we don't want to sacrifice too much here because of the time it takes between turns. If players get into a campaign like this, they're going to want everything to be there. There's a lot we can do in terms of optimisation and it's not just a case of bolting two land masses together, there's more to it than that.

Is there anything else you've needed to tweak for this mega campaign? In the first game, for example, you've got a big, end-game invasion from the Chaos Warriors. If you're playing a race from Warhammer 2, what kind of impact does that invasion have on your game?

IR: These are all things we've been working through at the moment, but we're not able to talk in detail about this sort of thing now. But they are there. If the Chaos invasion happens through Kislev and in the lore, didn't happen for the High Elves, then so be it. They'll have their own set of challenges to worry about. But as a principle, what we've said with this mega campaign, is that ultimately it is a sandbox. We're not going to build an entirely new narrative, as long as the victory conditions make sense...

So if a player is controlling the High Elves and wants to go and get involved in that conflict, they can, even if, narratively, they may not need to?

IR: Yeah. Really, we think that mega campaign is just 100 per cent sandbox. We can't create new narratives for every race, but the Vortex victory conditions in Warhammer 2 is all about that. We're doing a lot more with the narrative there.

The Vortex plays a role in the victory conditions for each of the four new races, right? Either they'll want to control it, or corrupt it, or whatever that may be?

IR: Ultimately, each of the races will have various mechanics to be able to cast rituals. Stage by stage, this will increase their ability to affect the Vortex in whatever way they need to. Some of the races want to keep it in its integrity and some want to destabilise it so they can use the chaos that ensues to their own nefarious end.

AB: It is almost a race between the races, to see who can reach that final, race-specific ritual. So, you can lose the game.

Without even being wiped out?

AB: Exactly. You may be doing all your good nuts and bolts Total War: expanding, unlocking technologies, expanding your infrastructure and armies, all that good stuff. But that final stage in the story can still happen for another race.

In Warhammer 1, it was either a case of completing your victory condition, or getting wiped out...

IR: And it has been in every Total War game we've ever made. We did sit down for Warhammer 2 and talk about this. In various Total War games in the past we've tried to do a new end-game thing and it's never really created any tension in the end. With this, we said, one of the things we really want to do now is create that challenge right up to the end, so people don't just stop their campaign before they've even finished. And so the Vortex is the mechanic for that and it means you can lose the game, even if you own over half of the map. Everyone is racing towards this and there are things other than the capturing of territory that can progress you in this race.

It keeps you having to push and having to race, right up to the end. But, having said that, it's also a vehicle for telling narrative as we go along as well. Each of the races has their own individual take and storyline to do with the Vortex. If you do want to ignore that, you can just go and do world domination, but there's this alternative route and other races will run for the Vortex, if you don't wipe them out.

I don't want to get too bogged down in the smaller details here, but say you're playing a mega campaign and you're controlling a Warhammer 1 race, does the Vortex matter? If one of the other races completes that objective, is it game over?

IR: No, in the mega campaign they won't be concerned with that. We're not really talking in any detail about how that'll work yet, but don't panic!

Strategy game interviews are always like this. We can't help it. You faced some criticism with Warhammer 1 for the Chaos Warriors being offered as pre-order DLC. Has this changed your approach to the fourth race in Warhammer 2, that may or may not be the Skaven?

AB: We can't talk about it yet, but what I will say is: we do listen very carefully to what people think of the stuff that we do and the content we release. It will be appropriate, let's put it that way.

On the flip side, one of the things you nailed with that first game was your approach to DLC, both free and paid, following the release of the game. Is that something you want to replicate in Warhammer 2?

AB: For sure. DLC, freeLC and tweaks along the way as well.

In a similar fashion to that first game?

IR: It'll be the same blueprint in terms of DLC for Warhammer 2, but then we've got the mega campaign, which is effectively building on that as well.

AB: We think it worked really well for the game. Without having to wait for years to release a new game with all that new stuff in it, it gives us a way to drip feed all the content we want to make. The Warhammer universe is so huge. As long as the game keeps being successful for us, then we can keep doing it.

IR: And for us, as developers, it's brilliant to be able to continually work on that game and keep chiselling away and keep refining it in the way that we want to. I don't think there would be a developer anywhere that would release a game and not want to do anything else. You always want to and it's given us that opportunity.

And as this is my last question, just to confirm, the mega campaign will include everything that players have bought and installed? If you've bought Warhammer 1 and Warhammer 2 they slot together, and then any DLC you own just plugs into that?

AB: That's it. Yes.

That sounds brilliant.

 

[Andnjord]

Steam page is up, updated OP.

Still no skaven?

Might want to take a look.

Well, I stand corrected.

 

[Psquit]

TW:WH is going to cost at least $300 for the finished product and the strategic and battle maps still feel neutered. Sega was a mistake.

Still cheaper than the tabletop game.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.pcgamer.com/how-total-war-warhammer-2-aims-to-fix-the-strategy-genres-endgame-fatigue/

How Total War: Warhammer 2 aims to fix the strategy genre's endgame fatigue
"We want to keep people challenged and on the edge of their seat right to the end."

Creative Assembly recently revealed work on its second Total War: Warhammer game has been "underway for some time." Details of the specifics are still coming through, however the developer has now lifted the lid, ever so slightly, on how it plans to keep players engaged throughout its perdurable campaigns—something the strategy genre often struggles with as a whole.

Speaking to PC Gamer at EGX Rezzed in London Creative Assembly's development communications manager Al Bickham and game director Ian Roxbourgh explained how Total War: Warhammer 2 aims to tackle endgame fatigue.

"We don't want people to be like 'okay I own half the world and I've won the game I'll just start a new campaign'," says Roxbourgh of a typical scenario in grand strategy and 4X games. "We want to keep people challenged and on the edge of their seat right to the end. So now instead of only being able to lose the game by losing your last territory, you get past the point very quickly where that's never going to happen and now it's a genuine race. You are seeking to influence the vortex before the other races do and they might get there first.

"Part of stopping them from getting there might be to go and beat them up, but you've also got a series of rituals that you need to cast that also feed the narrative of your individual race. If you win that race you effectively win the campaign. It's building the narrative and the endgame into this climactic end for the first time so you feel like 'I've gotta get there oh oh oh I've won'."

Roxburgh continues, suggesting that while there's much fun to be had in conquering huge sections of the map, the developer's metrics suggest a sizeable number of players actually sidestep ascertaining each and every victory condition in favour of starting new campaigns.

Bickman adds to this, saying at this stage in the game the challenge has gone and players are simply "painting the map" from hereon. He says there's a big desire to address this problem, one which many strategy games face.

He continues: "If one of the other races goes through the various motions that they need to [in order] to reach their victory conditions, you'll be able to see, you'll be able to track in some way, how well the other races are doing so you know if you see one race is getting ahead—you'll be like: 'well I've got to pull them back line'. You might want to go and attack those guys, there's the possibility of losing and we've never had that before."

One such way Creative Assembly plans to underscore this drive for long-term engagement and more diverse battles is by rearranging how Legendary Lords take to the battlefield. In the first Total War: Warhammer, each race had two Legendary Lords that started from the same locations, however the sequel will now see them separated.

"Not only do you get the diversity of each legendary lord having his own or her own unique skill tree and everything there, but being plonked in a different part of the map fighting different enemies makes it a new kind of game as well," says Bickham. "So we've effectively got four new races but eight playable factions. Again, we're doubling on it and it gives us a chance to play with more things create more diversity."

 

[Norfleet]

2? I can't even recall when they finished *1*. DID they ever finish it? I never saw it.

 

[Infinitron]

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

I can't be bothered to read all that, but I really hope they're doing something to improve strategic layer at least a bit. It's literally 1/10 right now and really dragging the game down.

 

[A horse of course]

I can't be bothered to read all that, but I really hope they're doing something to improve strategic layer at least a bit. It's literally 1/10 right now and really dragging the game down.

If by "improve the strategic layer" you mean "We can't be fucked to make engaging strategy mechanics or implement naval combat so here's an ebin!11 scripted campaign for 10/10 cinematic immershuns".

 

[Raghar]

Remember "Shogun I" was when Turnbull was assisting as a consultant and loved it.
"Rome I" was work of passion.
Both medievals were nice.

Now, it's about earning money.

 

[sser]

Reminds me of L4D2 coming out one year after the first game. Even Valve got a lot of hate for that.

 

[bonescraper]

Remember "Shogun I" was when Turnbull was assisting as a consultant and loved it.

And? Real special forces operators worked with Splash Damage on Medal of Honor Warfighter. Oblivion had soil erosion. Far Cry Primal uses a language created by historians and lingustics experts.

Original Shogun still laguhably ahistorical. MoH:W is a shitty CoD clone. Oblivion is Oblivion, and Far Cry Primal is a lazy reskin of FC4.