Rome: Total War short review

The_Abyss · Post by **The_Abyss** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 13:38

Just got this now, and installing ready for an afternoon trying it out.

Still no StarWars Battlefront though - questionable whether they actually want to sell any copies now until just before Christmas.

The_Abyss · Post by **The_Abyss** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 15:15

Just played through most of the tutorial and think this game could be a winner. It looks ok, and it seems it can take advantage of proper (or otherwise

) battle tactics.

The financial and building side seems a little thin however, and after you've got a few cities, this might be best left on AI.

Seems a decent replacement for Civ 3 for the time being - I know there is no significant technological progression in RTW but it still seems to feel quite good.

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 18:16

I wait Rome Total War also, but it's not arrived in France!

May be the next week...

I haven't read all this topic, but I want know if RTW is a good game, better than Medieval Total War?

This last one was excellent, so I hope RTW will be better...

(Sorry for my english, I'm french...)

simonnance · Post by **simonnance** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 18:40

have you played the demo?

im getting it 2morrow, it gets delivered to my Uni halls on the day i start! Though finding time to play it might be a problem

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 18:43

No, I haven't the link for the demo...

Could you give me the link please?

Thanks.

simonnance · Post by **simonnance** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 19:02

http://www.fileplanet.com/files/140000/144640.shtml

or

http://www.download.com/Rome-Total-War- ... ag=lst-0-1

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 19:05

Thanks a lot simonnance !

I go to see that!

Bye,
Karagan

simonnance · Post by **simonnance** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 22:00

there is a mod that allows you to play the romans at the Battle or Trebia in the demo.

it makes thing harder, as you have 4 not-so-good units of spearment to counter 3 very good units of heavy cavalry. Plus, elephants are a pain the the ass.

did you know that dying elephants crush units that are under them when they die? i swear i have killed an enemy general like that, when he had the smart idea of using his general unit to counter my elephants.

also, roman infantry REALY march fast dont they! Skirmishers can outrun elephants! This means if you are clever you can use them to outflank and envelop a slower, heavier enemy. Thats how i managed to win the demo game as romans, forced him to commit his big units then outflanked them and encircled them. At one point i had 2 units of Poeni infantry, a unit of cavalry and a unit of barbarian mercs surrounder by 2 Hastati, 3 Principes and 3 Triarii, talk about using superior numbers agains superior unit quality. Even Phalanx formation couldnt help them, and once the cavalry were imobilised and surrounder, they lost most of their advantage.

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 22:04

I have seen the demo!

It's very good and beautiful!

I think it's better than Medieval Total War!

I'm impatient to have the game!

simonnance · Post by **simonnance** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 22:10

http://www.amazon.fr/exec/obidos/ASIN/B ... 59-0605737

its out 8th October, so nxt friday. u have a wekk to hone your combat skils on the demo!

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 22:28

You have seen the news in french!

Do you speak french?

simonnance · Post by **simonnance** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 23:22

a little bit, but all i realy had to do was put "rome total war" into the french version of Amazon. Kinda cheating, but its the results that count.

interestingly enough, it looks like its cheaper to buy from the british site, but then you wont get the french version, and delivery might be a pain.

edit: i also did a google search (google.fr of course) and came up with this http://www.gamekult.com/tout/jeux/fiche ... 0449232730, Date de sortire: 8 Octobre 2004

edit 2: french demo version at http://www.clubic.com/t/jeux/demo/829.html

KARAGAN · Post by **KARAGAN** » Fri, 1. Oct 04, 23:36

Thanks!

The_Abyss · Post by **The_Abyss** » Tue, 5. Oct 04, 16:22

Does anyone know how I can increase the number of governors, as I keep seizing settlements and don't have enough governors to fill them.

TGC · Post by **TGC** » Tue, 5. Oct 04, 18:27

The_Abyss wrote:Does anyone know how I can increase the number of governors, as I keep seizing settlements and don't have enough governors to fill them.

AFAIK you can't. It only happens if you have male heirs, female offspring marry or rare occasions where generals are accepted as family members. Oh, you can bribe rival family members who can take up governor positions.

HTH

The_Abyss · Post by **The_Abyss** » Tue, 5. Oct 04, 21:32

Aha - bribery - excellent. I knew there must be a proper way to get around a low birthrate. I guess this is done through diplomacy.

Thanks for the tip.

TGC · Post by **TGC** » Tue, 5. Oct 04, 22:50

I've noticed the birthdate fluctuates quite a bit - they're like rabbits at the moment

Constipated_Vigilante · Post by **Constipated_Vigilante** » Wed, 6. Oct 04, 01:06

You don't need governors to manage a settlement, actually. You can leave it to the computer by clicking auto-manage, but it's probably not as good. Personally, I don't trust the computer with management. All settlements are under my control. And the Population increase rate changes depending on Public Order (Adjusted by taxes, games, temples, etc.). In my game, I've now wiped out Carthage, Gaul, and Greece, and I can play as them now. I almost control all of Western Europe, the Southern Greek Peninsula, and Western Turkey. I think I'm doing pretty good, playing as the House of Julii.

SteveMill · Post by **SteveMill** » Fri, 8. Oct 04, 16:02

Best. Strategy. Game. Ever.

Before coming to work this morning a small 700 man army of infantry, one unit of javelin throwers and a pack of war dogs was ambushed by 3500 Briton warriors. Curtains I thought, time to stand and die.

They were the advance guard for a larger force on the way to relieve a beseiged settlement but ran out of movement points before I could completely merge them.

It was so cool and so great when the main force of my army turned up as AI controlled reinforcements on the Briton right flank and smashed down on them with a mass cavalry charge. In the end half the barbarians lay dead on the field.

Brilliant game, just brilliant.

TGC · Post by **TGC** » Fri, 8. Oct 04, 17:30

I know what you mean. I did a major city assault last night. Setup a couple of siege towers, ladders and a battering ram with my force of about 1200. I had another AI army marching in from the NW.

Once the battle started, advanced the siege equipment to the walls and gate. The defenders were shooting fire arrows at me and ended up setting fire to one of the towers and the ram.

I managed to get onto the wall with the ladders and the tower, open the gates and let the main forces through. Brilliant.

The level of detail is fantastic and I'm loving this game at the mo'.

egosoft.com

egosoft.com

Rome: Total War short review