Medieval: Total War

Rating:
Summary: A worthy successor to Shogun
Review: Medieval Total War is that rarest of accomplishments: a sequel which manages to improve on a great original. They kept most of what was right about Shogun and fixed most of what was wrong with it. The tactical game, which was already splendid, has been kept almost intact except for replacing the unit types with troops appropriate to medieval Europe. But the strategic game, which was rather thin in Shogun, has been expanded by orders of magnitude and is now a considerable challenge in its own right. This is not an easy game and won't appeal to most players who just want elaborate graphics, but fans of serious strategy games will find a lot to like here.

Rating:
Summary: save your money, this game is buggy
Review: This would have been a GREAT game, but it does not work!!!
I tried playing this game on 3 different machines, and it only installed and "worked" on one.
Then, after playing the campaign mode for a few years, this game just crashes at a certain date in the game, and I cannot continue the game.

SAVE YOUR MONEY! A pox on this game!
I am going to burn my copy of this game.

Rating:
Summary: A good mix of strategy and tactical battles
Review: Those of you who are familiar with the Shogun Total War series will find this a good improvement and a fun adventure. There have been a number of significant improvements in various aspects of the game. For example, the tactical battle controls have been significantly improved. Also, in Shogun the geisha was unstoppable. In Medieval Total War there are no such things as unstoppable assassins. There are more buildings to choose from in Medieval Total War, and there is a naval aspect as well.

For those who are not familiar with the previous Shogun series let me say that Medieval Total War is a combination of a turn based strategy game as well as a series of tactical battles. As with most strategic games you must balance the expediture of resources between building up your economy and building up your military. Diplomacy is an important aspect of the game, as well as the careful use of spies and religion. The strategic aspects are easy enough to become competent with, but over time a deeper mastery will develop. The highlight for me is the ability to control the tactical battles. You can position and issue orders to the individual units in your army in each battle, and thus can have a substantial impact on the outcome. For example, in a recent battle I used a force of English infantry to destroy a much larger force of desert warriors by careful use of terrain and a knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of each type of unit. You can concentrate on the strategic game and let the AI fight your battles, if you want, or you can ignore the strategic games and play a series of individual battles if you prefer that. My preference is to play the strategic game and also fight the tactical battles myself.

As with many strategy games the chore of managing your empire can become a bit tedious at times, assuming you are successful at building a large empire. However, that is a drawback to success in many games.

Rating:
Summary: Video card problems
Review: I really loved the Shogun games, and Medieval looks like it could be a major time sucker. However, I'm running a 2-year-old Windows 98 machine with an integrated Intel video card, and this game won't run on it, even though every other game I own works fine, including recent graphics-heavy titles like Freedom Force ...

Rating:
Summary: Opportunity Lost
Review: I waited for this game all year. I played Shogun over and over for a year. I left work and went home to play this game on the day I got it. The graphics aren't good. Original Total war blows this game away. During the big battles it just becomes a big mosh pit. No detail at all. Don't believe the pictures on the box. It looks nothing like it. There is no way to control uprizings and bandints. You may have conquered lands 10 years before and still have to committ an army from front lines to squash an uprizing. Why do rebels have a better quality troops than me. Thats Stupid and makes no logical sense. The historical perspective is good and I get a kick out of conquest so I still give this game 3 stars but this should have been an astounding game and it's not. Also there is no reason to attack castles. Just wait and it will fall. Diplomacy is useless. Pain in the rear to transport armies by water. One great improvement is time compression. It allowes you to speed up battles once the outcome has been decided.

Rating:
Summary: Just one more turn
Review: This game is easy enough to play for beginners and tough enough for old hands.
This is essentially "Medieval Risk" with the ability to enter into real time battles when armies meet. The game has may layers including: royal court intrigue, city development, religious persecutions, and more! Each faction from the Byzantine Empire to the Almohads reflects true Medieval warfare (as far as I know!)

This makes a great gift for a boy (or boy at heart) who likes strategy and likes to think. There is a minimal about of blood and gore. After your kid plays this, watch him impress adults with his extensive knowledge of 12th Century European politics! (Ok, that might be a bit much but he'll have fun!)

Rating:
Summary: Great Mix
Review: When I first bought this game, I had already played the demo. I had been looking forward to this game's release previously from ads. The demo made it seem like an upgraded Age of Empires type, but I was wrong. The spectacular battle seens is just a part of the game.

The minute I saw the campaign, I thought of Warlords (remember that game). What the game is really about is tactics. I'm not just talking about battle tactics. I mean the real "generals' decision" tactics. Unlike Age of Empires, this game makes you think like you're a general in Medieval times.

What this game really is: a mix of Warlords with a twist of Age of Empires topped of with the latest engine, mass numbers, and spectacular tactics. Not much, really.

If you like a very strategical game, Medieval: Total War is right for you. If you like watching mass numbers just go at it, Medieval: Total War is right for you. If you like spectacular graphics (such as sandstorms, kicked-up dirt, and arrows blocking out the sun), this game is also right for you.

Rating:
Summary: the best real time war game ever
Review: Explosive, enveloping, massive, inconceivable, no, these adjectives do not begin to come close to the majesty that is Total War (Medieval), the second incarnation of the Total War Engine, Medieval brings it with a vengeance, sieges, historical detail, role playing, realism, all are accounted for. There is quite simply nothing wrong with this game. If you love wargames, you will love Medieval. It is simple.

Bravo to the Total War team, at least one company is paying attention to the real wargamer.

Rating:
Summary: Save you money and time, do not buy this game.
Review: It should be noted to start with that calling this a game is inaccurate, games are suposed to be fun. There is very little enjoyment with this title.

First the good. The battles are good. The system for the real time battles is very well done. There is a reasonable challenge, but if you practice good tactics, you will succeed. You can get all of this in the demo, though, so do not waste your money. The battles get old fast.

Now the horrid, the Full Campaign. You are in control of one of a number of factions starting in the early, middle or late medieval period. The game bogs down in its complexity. You are also victim to the whims of the AI. The last game I played, and the last I will ever play as I am selling my copy, I was the Danes. I started with one aea and built it up to the east to around 8. I also built many ships for trade. In maybe five turns, one year per turn, I went from 50,000 florins to being in debt, I had already lost two of my provinces and with the Egyptians so strong I had no hope of surviving. I quit in frustration. i could not win! I had experienced this frustration as the Spanish, as the Germans, the Egyptians and as the Almohads (Nortwest Africa). It will take about 400 turns for the full campaign game. The game arbitrarily assigns bad events, to which I fell prey often.

To win you must at least conquesr 60% of Europe, the near east and North Africa. On the Total War bulletin board many people are bragging about beating the game on the most difficult setting. I am sorry, but that requires incredible luck, or the braggers are cheaters.

There is mind numbing detail and even if you read the manual and the separate Strategy Guide, there are still far too many unanswered questions.

As far as I can see, most of the tedium that ruins the game was intended. There are situations where the game indicates that you subjects are happy, but the next turn, you have a huge rebel army of the previously happy peasants. And, somehow the peasants are in huge numbers and the quality of the troops isridiculously strong.

I have been playing computer games for 20 years. Before that I played board games. I have a law degree and Mensa level intelligence.

I warn you all, do not buy this title unless you hate yourself, and are out of work. If you have the patience, you will eventually have enough luck that you can win a campaign occasionally.

Rating:
Summary: 'Ran' and 'Kagemusha' -Akira Kurosawa
Review: A beautiful game,the color,the animation is perfect. When I loaded this program to my laptop,it 'crashed' my laptop (so I removed and reinserted battery),but the second time I loaded the 'Shogun: Total War' Program,it purred like a kitten,sorry to say 'laptop'(Microsoft windows XP) still crashes. This is no x's and o's game,this is truly like watching a movie like 'Ran' or 'Kagemusha'... Next you have to punch-in a 22 digit serial number from a 'red card' located in the box,then press 'next' on the program like 8 times before you get what your looking for. The custom mode is great,you get horsemen [60],riflemen[60],lancers[60]. You get about 16 units of [60],what ever you want. Means in custom mode you can have 960 men and the enemy limited to 60,which is great,you have the control over numbers,you are the 'master' of the game play. Hope this was helpful. Update: 5/17/03,just got new laptop,'Sony VAIO PCG-GRV670 Notebook','Intel P4,2.6GHz Processor w/400 MHz,512MB DDR RAM Memory,40GB Harddrive,ATI Radeon 9000(64MB of dedicated video memory),8X DVD ROM Drive,can get you 'in' and 'out' of 'Shogun:Total War' and 'Medieval: Total War' with a smile on your face,guaranteed! You can play these games on laptop after all! You learn something new every day,ready for 'Rome: Total War'!!!