Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia

[mondblut]

Of all the "wow, FLASHPOINT MOMENTS OF HISTORY", they have shocked us by choosing the one they already fucking did back in Medieval 1 days

Muh vikings are about as novel and interesting as WW2 by now.

 

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[Maggot]

Why can't they just make a campaign map like the good old days?

 

[Rahdulan]

Man, I really like the old Risk-style campaign map. As contrary as it may sound to this being a video game, addition of movement points just lead to this need to game the system to squeeze that extra movement. Weird complaint, I know.

 

[Maggot]

Man, I really like the old Risk-style campaign map. As contrary as it may sound to this being a video game, addition of movement points just lead to this need to game the system to squeeze that extra movement. Weird complaint, I know.

Old games have better AI on the campaign map (and battle map compared to RTW good work CA) and a bunch of mechanics that never made a return. Also the AI had to cheat a ridiculous amount with the 3D maps to appear semi competent.

 

[AwesomeButton]

Looks way more interesting than any of their recent shit since MTW1 tbh. Supply system where settlement raiding might actually matter. Fresh recruits not starting full strength, upgrades require tech instead of buildings. And removing agents completely is simply incline for a TW game.

Hopefully CA does a Deus Vult saga after MTW3

The impressions I got from these 11 points, although somewhat reserved, as is normal for a CA game, were similarly good. Of course most of the 11 reasons are actually the return of features which we used to have in old games - bigger battle maps, weather, battle maps which reflect the campaign map features of the tile in which the battle is taking place.

What I found even more curious were two fortunate coincidences - after years of trying to portray a continent with the same technology used to portray the Japanese isles, they have reached a conclusion which I had reached and was sharing with people on twcenter.net back in 2009. The best TW games are those that take place on a region-sized map - Japan, the Baltics, the British isles. That way the map can be relatively detailed, and the campaign AI behaves more sensibly at the same time, and the outcomes on the campaign map are not disgustingly ahistorical, which has always been my major source of dissatisfaction with "hisorical" TW gamss. I am glad CA have also seen these advantages.

Second, I am happy that 9 years after I played Rome: Total Realism, the mod for RTW, I see their concept of a regional map where there are major and minor settlements has been adopted by CA. Lovely. Maybe after 9 more years CA will reach the ideas and innovations modders are coming up with today.

Anyway, I plan to follow and cautiously pirate this when it is relesed, to see if it really has potential or it's another one of CA's duds.

Edit, to avoid bumping:
I shouldn't have watched youtube videos...

 

[razvedchiki]

arent the minor settlements a feature since empire?

 

[AwesomeButton]

Maybe, but I am positive they existed in mods since RTW, which is the first 3D TW really, so that's the earliest they could have existed anyway.

 

[razvedchiki]

yes but the realism mod ones are full fledged cities that you can actually build stuff on them,the ones in the newer total war games are gutted linear no brainer gimmicks.

 

[AwesomeButton]

yes but the realism mod ones are full fledged cities that you can actually build stuff on them,the ones in the newer total war games are gutted linear no brainer gimmicks.

Hm, no, I think they had somehow disabled buildings in minor settlements in the RTR mod through scripting. Not 100% sure though.

As for the new minor settlements being gutted and straightforward, they have been so since Rome II as we know The MTWII concept of cities vs castles was still fine but this Rome II shit is dumbing down through and through IMO.

 

[Maggot]

Minor settlements are just a band-aid fix for most battle beings siege battles. It shouldn't have to exist in the first place and exists because the 3D map is shit.

 

[razvedchiki]

the minor settlements were introduced because there were alot of complaints that the building system that existed until kingdoms was "too complicated".setting your economic-military-cultural centres was apparently too much for the average player.
also after kingdoms they cut down the total number of provinces,in empire france was one single giant province.

 

[AwesomeButton]

They also reflect reality better, because you shouldn't be able to fortify everything to the level of the heaviest-fortified city.

They are also much better suited to a region-scoped map, which is the core right move to make. Minor settlements being represented makes sense on a region-scope map, less on a continent-scope. So I think they've got the theory right, it remains to be seen how the execution will look like.

From what I quickly skimmed on Wikipedia, for example, Gallowglass didn't exsit before the 13th c. In videos we have also seen how people living in huts apparently have the engineering ability to construct multi storied siege towers. And if I see yet another medieval game where you can build roads... From what it seems from a first glance of a non-medievalist, the game's historical accuracy is at the usual CA level, which is "why didn't you make it a fantasy game in the first place".

 

[Maggot]

I liked how in VI the tech tree led into the base game tech tree.

 

[AwesomeButton]

Lol, the project director chimes in with office plankton skills at dodging issues:
https://forums.totalwar.com/discussion/214155/thrones-of-britannia-the-gaels/p2

I wouldn't be surprised if the true story is something like "we copied the same names from Viking Invasion and nobody gave a hoot". I also admire the illiteracy of the forum peasants - apparently anyone who reads Wikipedia is now a "history buff". Well, this is where the "everyone is special, everyone is a winner", "say no to "no"" education got us to...

Btw, look at this gem: http://www.twcenter.net/wiki/Rome_Total_Realism

Rome Total Realism VII: Fate of Empires

RTR VII: FOE begins with the Pyrrhic invasion of Italy in 280 BCE. The map was extended to cover all the area between Iberia and Epeiros in the Mediterranean. As the campaign progresses, it eventually leads to the inevitable Punic wars. Playable factions include: The Republic of Rome, The Republic of Carthage, The Cisalpine Gauls, Celtiberians, Kingdom of Massyli and The Kingdom of Epeiros.

FOE is different from TIC in the sense that it is not story-driven, nor is it as heavily scripted. As such the campaign has been extended, FOE is much longer than its predecessor. However, the depth of FOE is extended by the addition of "minor regions" which represent the numerous small settlements that were widely neglected in the original game, and an overhaul of the RTW economic system. These settlements do not grow and provide no recruitment or building options, however they account for approximately half of the player's income. These mini regions add an original depth to the game, and as such received generally positive reviews.

 

[razvedchiki]

europa barbarorum or death!

 

[AwesomeButton]

EB was a glorious mod, until around the 100th turn, when CTDs would start and when you had to manage the Diadochi factions through cheats/switching of active faction/giving out money so that neither the Seleucids nor the Ptolemies would get too powerful before the time came for your historically accurate wars with the Seleucids.

Why rate me edgy BTW? I think I'm being objective :D

 

[Aqualung]

Mmm, inn (>>> mercenaries).

Nice.

 

[Norfleet]

also after kingdoms they cut down the total number of provinces,in empire france was one single giant province.

Yeah, I remember how in Empire, France would often get obliterated quickly because they were just one province, so one battle and POOF, no more France. Rather ahistorical: France didn't get into the surrendering business for another few hundred years!

 

[Fedora Master]

The system of minor towns they had in Empire was alright, no idea why they dropped it.

 

[razvedchiki]

EB was a glorious mod, until around the 100th turn, when CTDs would start and when you had to manage the Diadochi factions through cheats/switching of active faction/giving out money so that neither the Seleucids nor the Ptolemies would get too powerful before the time came for your historically accurate wars with the Seleucids.

yes if you wanted historical accurate wars you should manipulate your neigbours,which is kinda realistic.

 

[AwesomeButton]

No doubt about that, I just wish I had the proper game mechanics for it :D BTW, what I'd love most of all is RTW with the diplomacy AI of the more modern Attila and WH.

 

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