PC Powerplay Magazine teased their next issue with a screenshot of R:TW and a big fat “II” right on top. Creative Assembly also said they would be announcing a new Total War game in early July.
So it’s very likely what we’ll see is an upcoming Total War: Rome II.
Anyone exited?
I’m changing my underwear as we speak.
I’m honestly not sure. I like the Total War games well enough, but Rome I wasn’t that long ago and the engine hasn’t changed too drastically since then, so I’d rather have seen them do something completely fresh, like ancient China or Egypt or something. There are only so many variations you can do on legionnaires, you know?
I did think they might try something more modern in their next iteration, WWI, maybe?
But it might be to radical for fans of the series and the backlash, I’m sure, would fill forum boards and blogs for months.
Rome was probably my favorite of the TW game, followed by Medieval, so I’m happy to get either!
EDIT: I did just look up Rome Total War’s release date though, It’s been 8 years, probably 9 by the time the game actually comes out. I think that’s long enough for a sequel.
They gotta do something about the load times though, and maybe tie DX 11 a little tighter into the engine. It should help when it comes to rendering thousands of troops!
Also… 8 years! God I’m getting old. 
The second expansion was released in 2006, though, so it wasn’t quite so long ago.
Ahh you’re right, I forgot about the expansions. The game did seem a bit fresh in my brain.
I guess senility is kicking in too.
God damn it.
Heh, I was playing Shogun II a few days ago and wishing they’d update the Rome game to take advantages of the newer engine, naval battles, better strategic AI, etc. So I’m excited, and think there’s been plenty of imporvement in the TW franchise in the last decade to warrant a new version.
I rather had my hopes up for a Total War: Three Kingdoms. Still, a Total War: Rome with all the Shogun II improvements to the interface would kcik ass.
Their last two games were set in Japan, so setting it in China might get a bit repetitive for American consumers. They had a timetravelling Ancient Egyptian faction in Rome Total War.
WWI wouldn’t work. The scale of a battle in WWI was just too large in terms of range and number of troops. Long range indirect artillery (which would have to be completely offscreen) came in, I think, in the late 19th century and that’s the furthest they can go and still have a recognizable Total War game.
Since Rome shows they don’t mind having one big faction that dwarfs all the others, I wonder how well a Mongolia game would work.
Do we know enough about the period in between 500 and 1000 to have a game? Would it be too much like Medieval war?
How about the period in between the Egyptians and the Romans?
Renaissance total war?
They’ve shown that American Civil War style battles are possible with the Fall of the Samurai, so if they really wanted to cater to American consumers, Total War: North vs South would be the way to go.
They sort of covered the period between Egypt and Rome with the Alexander expansion to Rome Total War. The Viking Invasion expansion to Medieval Total War (that’s the first game, not the sequel) covered AD 793-1066.
The Renaissance would be interesting with pike and shot formations, the Thirty Years’ War, and the disintegration of the Holy Roman Empire.
Not counting Empire, out of six games in the series, we’ve had a grand total of two different maps. Empire mixed it up by adding the New World and India, but the biggest map there was still Europe. Frankly, I’m getting sick of fighting over the same territory over and over. I really wish they’d go somewhere new with it.
A Victorian Age game with an American Civil War expansion (or vice-versa) seems like the last obvious place to go. Other settings seem like they’ll either be less familiar and interesting to Western audiences (TW: China), are too similar to already existing efforts (TW: Renaissance would be pretty close to the endgame of Medieval II) or are past the age where large set piece battles were a major component of warfare (WWI or WWII).
I am just finishing Napoleon after being re-introduced to the franchise by Empire (I played the original Shogun, but that was a couple of computers ago I reckon).
I never played the last Rome, and was just discussing with my gf looking into Shogun II. Looks interesting to me.
A game ranging from 1840 to 1900 would also offer the largest range of military technological development of any game. Think about it - in 1840, most armies used breech-loading muskets and wooden sailing ships; in 1900, they had Maxim guns and dreadnoughts. One of the reasons I loved Medieval 2 the most is that my armies and tactics at the beginning of the game were often completely different from those at the end. This would take that to the nth degree.
I wonder if they are going to go with the traditional very loose narrative style for their campaign, or a more structured one like for Napoleon.
I prefer the former, but I wouldn’t mind seeing the latter in a form of “Scenerio” to go through apart from the grand campaign.
Something more narrowly focused, with a stronger narrative, and with a lot more substance than the historical battle scenerios.
One could be the rise of Rome, for example. The earlier city states battling the Etruscans and each other to eventually found Rome. Perhaps having to deal with raids from Carthage and the Gauls, but limited to just the Italian peninsula.
Another scenario could be focused on greece and the various wars there with a focus on you conquering enough territory to withstand invasion from the Persian Empire!
Man, I want this game now!
It’s official guys:
Coming out 2013.
They briefly mention a short demo of the Roman army besieging Carthage which involved using both ships and ground units in a coordinated effort, on the same strategic map. Something we haven’t seen in a Total War game yet.
More info:
The budget for this title has increased by 40% over previous titles and the man power working on it is nearly doubled (I guess it’s SEGA realizing it’s smart to put this on a series that has sold so well in an increasingly digital market place!).
They mention a new engine in the promotional blurb, as well as huge battle maps the size of actual cities. Interesting.
I do like the idea of “province management” which is supposed to make managing a large empire less tedious. No details on this system though.
The live action trailer is certainly different: - YouTube
Ahhhh! So much awesome in that trailer. Makes me wish for another season of HBO’s ROME.
Between this, Company of Heroes 2 and C&C Generals 2 2013 looks like the year of the Seriously Good RTS. Hot damn, Carthage looks gorgeous. Makes me all nostalgic for Caesar III.