Where next for Total War?

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-10-27 09:48pm

What should the Creative Assembly do now?

I think it's pretty clear that any version of Total War involving gunpowder (*bang. bang. die. bang. cannon. charge. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*) so where else can classic melee combat go where it hasn't gone before?

Or- fuck going where they haven't gone before, and just use the engine created for Rome to do Shogun 2 and Medieval 2?

Grand Admiral Thrawn · Post by **Grand Admiral Thrawn** » 2004-10-27 10:29pm

Bah, I say a 30 years war Germany: Total War could work.

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-10-27 10:49pm

I don't even know what that is.

Oh and EDIT: I mean to say that gunpowder Total War would be boring as shit.

Grand Admiral Thrawn · Post by **Grand Admiral Thrawn** » 2004-10-27 11:04pm

Vympel wrote:I don't even know what that is.

Oh and EDIT: I mean to say that gunpowder Total War would be boring as shit.

Gustav disagrees!

PrinceofLowLight · Post by **PrinceofLowLight** » 2004-10-27 11:24pm

What about Classical China or India? There's a rich history of bloody mass warfare that we're still missing out on.

Or maybe just MTW with the RTW engine. I'd buy that.

Post by **fgalkin** » 2004-10-27 11:40pm

What about the Native Americans? Or Africa? Or China? Or Assyria? Or Middle Earth

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

White Haven · Post by **White Haven** » 2004-10-28 12:02am

Oh lord, watch China scream if a realistic portrayal of their own history ever makes it into the gaming market. They already do whenever anything that doesn't toe party-line even mentions China, never mind an entire game directly focused on it. *shudder*

Rogue 9 · Post by **Rogue 9** » 2004-10-28 12:10am

White Haven wrote:Oh lord, watch China scream if a realistic portrayal of their own history ever makes it into the gaming market. They already do whenever anything that doesn't toe party-line even mentions China, never mind an entire game directly focused on it. *shudder*

Who cares? So they ban the game in China. So what?

Pablo Sanchez · Post by **Pablo Sanchez** » 2004-10-28 12:13am

I want to see Shogun: TW 2. That would rock.

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-10-28 12:15am

I think you could already easily make a Middle Earth mod for Rome:Total War. Besides, EA wouldn't give the license, not when they've got their own RTS coming out.

BlkbrryTheGreat · Post by **BlkbrryTheGreat** » 2004-10-28 12:22am

Grand Admiral Thrawn wrote:
Vympel wrote:I don't even know what that is.

Oh and EDIT: I mean to say that gunpowder Total War would be boring as shit.
Gustav disagrees!

As does Wallenstien!

Master of Ossus · Post by **Master of Ossus** » 2004-10-28 12:31am

White Haven wrote:Oh lord, watch China scream if a realistic portrayal of their own history ever makes it into the gaming market. They already do whenever anything that doesn't toe party-line even mentions China, never mind an entire game directly focused on it. *shudder*

Games are counter-revolutionary!

Seriously, though, it would be nice to see a game in India--especially if there were multiple time periods, culminating with the arrival of the British and the campaign to colonize the sub-continent.

It would also be bad-ass to play around with some of the Middle-Eastern kingdoms, Arabia, etc., though that might be a bit close to the R:TW package.

I also wouldn't mind playing as Shaka, sending wave after wave of my own men against the English.

Sokar · Post by **Sokar** » 2004-10-28 01:05am

I have to disagree, personally I think Total War: Napoleon (or insert your fave pre-WWI setting) would kick ass

BlkbrryTheGreat · Post by **BlkbrryTheGreat** » 2004-10-28 01:33am

Oh god- a WW I total war! Just have you men sit in the trenches only to periodly attack to advance a few yards.... if anything it would be good anti-war propoganda.

Stofsk · Post by **Stofsk** » 2004-10-28 01:43am

Is there something in the Total War Bible that says it must have copious amounts of melee warfare?

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-10-28 01:57am

Stofsk wrote:Is there something in the Total War Bible that says it must have copious amounts of melee warfare?

Yes. Or it just ain't total war, as far as I'm concerned.

Macross · Post by **Macross** » 2004-10-28 02:36am

I would really like to see Middle-Earth: Total War! But that will probably only happen in a mod.

I think the next Total War game will probably be about Napoleon, followed by an America: Total War, that takes place from the Revolution up through the Civil War.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2004-10-28 02:46am

Vympel wrote:
Stofsk wrote:Is there something in the Total War Bible that says it must have copious amounts of melee warfare?
Yes. Or it just ain't total war, as far as I'm concerned.

Disagrees.

BlkbrryTheGreat · Post by **BlkbrryTheGreat** » 2004-10-28 02:56am

Let me know as soon as TW is capable of rendering over 100,000 people (as would be required for the Great battles of the Civil War).

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2004-10-28 03:01am

BlkbrryTheGreat wrote:Let me know as soon as TW is capable of rendering over 100,000 people (as would be required for the Great battles of the Civil War).

Well they could use 2D cardboard cutout soldiers. That would save graphics memory.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2004-10-28 03:53am

BlkbrryTheGreat wrote:Let me know as soon as TW is capable of rendering over 100,000 people (as would be required for the Great battles of the Civil War).

They already are. They just use a single soldier to represent what, 3 or 4
people in ROME.

Lord of the Farce · Post by **Lord of the Farce** » 2004-10-28 03:56am

How about Neanderthal: Total War?

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-10-28 03:57am

As does Wallenstien!

And Pappenheim!

1400's to late 1600's might be interesting. Of course, I'd really like to see a Eurasia: Total War, with a map covering all of Eurasia, North Africa, and the Middle East, with every faction playable inbetween, with periods of 476-1066, 1066-1453, 1453-16-- (whenever the Peace of Westphalia was signed).

Laughing Mechanicus · Post by **Laughing Mechanicus** » 2004-10-28 04:49am

Given their past MO, they will first make an expansion pack to Rome which will be based on an outside threat to Rome. Perhaps it will be set near the end of the Empire, with you having to fend off big barbarian raids.

After that their next game will almost certainly still use the Rome engine with some enhancements here and there. I'd say it is going to be either American civil war or Napoleonic wars, because they are famous conflicts and they offer a challenge over the old games (they would probably rather take the plunge into gunpowder wars now than when they also have a new engine to deal with) - and seeing as the Creative Assembly is based in the UK I think we'll get the Napoleonic one.

I personally think this will be great (not least because I too live in the UK

) but because I'm sure by now the developers are getting bored of doing melee combat, and Rome seems to have very nearly perfected it. I have total confidence thay they will be able to make gunpowder age fighting work properly, because the designers are very experienced by now and know how to weave a game into a historically accurate scenario rather than bulldozing through it like most other historical games.

What I'm hoping, in my deepest darkest fantasies (and which will probably horrify some people), is that they also take the plunge and finally include some battle map fought naval combat, with all the realistic details you would expect from them, wind, weather etc... This is probably unlikely, it depends if the designers think they are up to it or not and want to take the added risk on top of doing gunpowder fighting.

All that said, Electronic Arts will probably buy them and we'll be playing "2250: Total War" with massed formations of robots shooting lasers at each other, it could happen folks.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2004-10-28 05:04am

White Haven wrote:Oh lord, watch China scream if a realistic portrayal of their own history ever makes it into the gaming market. They already do whenever anything that doesn't toe party-line even mentions China, never mind an entire game directly focused on it. *shudder*

Would the Chinese government really care that much if a China: Total War game was made? I don't see why they would suddenly cry foul over one game after like 20 years without a peep over all the other games that focused on Chinese wars from hundreds of years ago (at least that I know of, which I admit I don't know much).

I mean, it's not like nobody knows about all that stuff already. You can pretty much find out all about them in textbooks and academic sources.