Total War: Shogun 2
| Total War: Shogun 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio |
 Creative assembly
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| Publisher |
 Sega
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| composer | Jeff van Dyck | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
 March 15, 2011 March 15, 2011 |
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| platform | Windows , macOS , Linux | ||
| Game engine | Warscape | ||
| genre | Combination of real-time strategy game and turn-based strategy game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Mouse , keyboard | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
Windows
Mac |
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| medium | DVD-ROM , download | ||
| language | English , French , German , Italian , Russian , Spanish | ||
| Age rating |
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Total War: Shogun 2 is the seventh part of the computer strategy game series Total War by the British developer studio Creative Assembly . The game is a remake of the first series title Shogun: Total War . It was announced on June 2, 2010 and was released on March 15, 2011. On July 31, 2014, the British studio Feral Interactive released a port of the game for OS X , followed by a port for Linux on May 23, 2017 .
The completely redesigned multiplayer mode aroused particular interest. For the first time it is possible to create your own avatar and join a clan with it. In the so-called clan conquest by defeating fellow players, he can conquer areas on a smaller map of Japan and unlock new units and specializations for the multiplayer mode. The avatar also receives new attributes through certain tactics. Citizen conquests play a more central role again, similar to Medieval II: Total War . So opposing castles have to be captured in order to conquer an area. The Japanese castles are characterized by the fact that, depending on the level of expansion, up to four defensive walls are used for defense.
scenario
Shogun 2 is set in the 16th century of feudal Japan, following the Ōnin war . The country is split up into individual clans that are led by local daimyos in the struggle for supremacy. The player takes control of a clan with the aim of subjugating the other clans and thus gaining control over all of Japan. The basic game allows eight playable clans, all with different starting positions and differing military, economic and political strengths. There is also a limited edition of an exclusive ninja clan, the Hattori, and two other clans can be unlocked via DLC (Ikko-Ikki, Otomo).
Gameplay
The main game is the endless mode known from global strategy games. In this campaign, strategy and tactics are combined in such a way that the results achieved by the player in one part influence the situation in the other. The aim is to lead the faction belonging to the player to victory under the given starting conditions. This can be achieved in all five games by dominating the strategy map. In addition, there is the possibility to fight individual battles separately in the tactics part. These can either be replayable, historical battles or scenarios created by the player himself. It is also possible to play on the strategy map in multiplayer mode.
The campaign
In the campaign the player takes control of the development of settlements, military, economy and technological advancement. The armies and units are moved over a stylized map of feudal Japan to fight battles with the other clans. In addition to fighting, the player can create allies, vassals and enemies through diplomacy, agree trade agreements and embargoes, and acquire and surrender territories and gold through agreements. Ninja and Geisha can also be used in the game as assassins and spies. New compared to the predecessors in the series are "Metsuke", which can be used as a kind of secret police and counter-espionage. Even if religion is not as important a role as in Medieval II, it cannot be ignored by the player. For example, with closer cooperation with European traders, Christianity is also spread in the Japanese provinces, which can lead to considerable religious unrest. Monks and priests, as well as some buildings (e.g. Buddhist temples) can influence these conversions.
There are nine large different clans that are divided into the Japanese provinces , from which the player can choose one. Each clan has special advantages in certain areas to enable alternative ways of playing.
- The Chosokabe Klan inhabits the province of Tosa and can recruit superior bow infantry and receive additional income from agriculture.
- The Date Klan controls Iwate and can recruit superior No-dachi samurai. In addition, all units in the clan receive an additional attack bonus when they attack enemies.
- The Hojo Klan can fall back on cheaper buildings and siege weapons and lives in the province of Izu and Sagami .
- The Mori Klan starts in Aki Province and has advantages in shipping and seafaring.
- The Oda Klan is particularly good at deploying the simple Ashigaru troops and is home to the Owari province .
- The Shimazu clan populates the Satsuma province and can recruit superior katana samurai, and the generals are more loyal to the clan than other clans.
- The Takeda Klan rule Kai Province and have particularly good cavalry. Its leader is Takeda Shingen .
- The Tokugawa Klan inhabits the Mikawa province and is characterized by diplomatic skills and can fall back on better ninjas and metsuke
- The Uesugi clan controls the province of Echigo . He specializes in Buddhism, which allows the recruitment of better monks and greater income from trade. Its leader is Uesugi Kenshin
In addition, there are three other factions that can be added by download, whereby the Hattori Klan was temporarily only available through the pre-order version.
- The Hattori are the ruling family in Iga Province and can recruit specialized ninja and combat ninja with increased experience.
- The religious rebel clan Ikko-Ikki controls the province of Echizen and province of Kaga and recruits ronin as well as superior combat monks.
- The Otomo clan lives in Kyushu Province . As the only Catholic clan, it can recruit superior firearms units and Portuguese elite infantry.
Strategy part
Provinces are administered on a three-dimensional overview map, orders are given to troops, and strategic units are used (including for the operation of diplomacy). Similar to Civilization, the map is divided into small hexagons. Depending on its composition, each army has a certain number of movement points available, which receive a movement penalty, for example due to poor ground conditions or bad weather.
The overview map is based on the scenario, which is different for each part of the series. On the map, the land and (in the first two games) sea areas of the scenario are divided into provinces or areas. In each of these provinces there is a city whose values represent that province. Only the respective provincial cities are administered by the player. In these buildings and facilities can be built on the one hand to improve the values of the city, and on the other hand troops and strategic units can be raised.
Strategic units can be used for diplomacy (diplomats), spying (spies), opposing personalities (generals) and strategic units can be eliminated ( assassins ). There are other units and functions available, but they differ in the individual parts of the series.
The troops can be used for warfare by moving them on the strategy map. They can be grouped into armies to make organization easier for the player. As soon as an army meets an enemy army, you can choose whether to fight the enemy or to withdraw your own troops. The fight can then either be calculated automatically or carried out by the player on a three-dimensional map (see tactics part). The situation in the tactics part corresponds to that of the strategy part (number and types of troops, terrain, climatic conditions).
Tactics part
In a three-dimensional environment, battles are fought between two or more factions. Each faction leads units into the field, each consisting of 12 to 240 soldiers. The number of units per army is limited to 20, so an army can consist of up to 4,800 soldiers. As usual for the Total War series, each soldier is displayed and calculated individually, so that battles can result in which up to 38,400 soldiers and one general per army, including the war equipment suitable for this scenario ( horses , ballistae , catapults, etc.) .) take part.
Orders can then be given to these units. This includes movement and attack commands as well as formation and behavioral instructions. The latter can affect both the direct combat power and the morale of the units, which is an important factor in these tactical battles. The soldiers' uniforms and weapons mostly correspond to those of their historical models.
The opponent is defeated when there are either no more enemy troops on the tactic card or when all troops still on it flee. It is also possible to win by expiring a time quota, which can be set in the settings beforehand. There are also many other ways to win the battle.
Download extensions
For Shogun 2 , five downloadable content has been released, so-called DLCs :
- The first DLC is called Ikko-Ikki Clan Pack and adds a new faction to the campaign and some new units to the multiplayer mode.
- On July 28, 2011 the Sengoku Jidai Pack was released , which added ten new units for all factions of the single and multiplayer mode.
- The third DLC, Rise of the Samurai - Campaign , was released on September 27, 2011 and expanded the game with a new campaign for single and multiplayer modes, a new scenario, six playable clans and over 30 new units for new and existing factions .
- The fourth DLC, Hattori Clan Pack , adds a new clan, another historical battle and new armor for the Avatar.
- The fifth addition, Blood Pack , was released on November 30, 2011 and added blood to the battles and is not available in Germany due to explicitly portrayed violence.
reception
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Community criticism
Since Creative Assembly always strives for historical authenticity, the number of units has been significantly reduced compared to the previous Empire. At the beginning of the game, the player has the choice between 10 different parties, called "clans", which all have the same unit types in the field. Thus, according to the community, the replay value drops. In addition, the campaign map has been reduced significantly compared to its predecessors (it only includes Japan).
In advance, Shogun 2 was touted as a DirectX 11 game, but this functionality could only be submitted via patch.
The community has criticized the game's steam binding (the game is bound to the Valve Platform Steam). The download extensions (DLCs for short) are criticized from parts of the community because the cost-benefit ratio is too bad. By purchasing the DLC, additional clans, some new units as well as historical battles and armor can be unlocked for the multiplayer avatar. Since these newly acquired units can also be used in multiplayer mode, there are balancing problems if the other player does not own these units.
Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai
| Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio |
Creative assembly
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| Publisher |
Sega
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
March 23, 2012 | ||
| platform | Windows , macOS , Linux | ||
| Game engine | Warscape | ||
| genre | Combination of real-time strategy game and turn-based strategy game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Mouse , keyboard | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | DVD-ROM , download | ||
| Age rating |
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Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai , marketed under the title Total War Saga: Fall of the Samurai since 2019 , is a stand-alone expansion to Total War: Shogun 2 that can be played without the main game . It was announced on November 28, 2011 and was released on March 23, 2012. It deals with the demise of the samurai in the 19th century through the modernization of traditional Japan, with the old Japanese shogunate dealing with the new empire, which was caused by the Arrival of Europeans and Americans is triggered.
In 2019, the expansion was renamed Total War Saga: Fall of the Samurai for marketing reasons . It is now formally a standalone game, part of the saga series that was created several years after Fall of the Samurai was released with Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia .
content
The expansion adds a new, 19th century campaign to the main game. For these, the strategic map was enlarged and the number of provinces increased. In addition, six new factions were added.
| clan | loyalty |
|---|---|
| Nagaoka | Shogunate |
| Jozai | Shogunate |
| Aizu | Shogunate |
| Tosa | imperial |
| satsuma | imperial |
| Choshu | imperial |
- new foreign powers: France, Great Britain and the USA
- new methods on the campaign map to transport units
- 39 new land units and 10 new naval units
- new combat type port siege
- three new agent types : Foreign Veteran, Shinsengumi , Iishin-Shishi
- improved castle defenses
- new historical battles
- a new multiplayer map with new uniforms and entourages for the avatar
- Ability to have multiple avatars
- Artillery and naval units can be controlled from the first person perspective
reception
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Most of the criticism was artificial intelligence , which, according to the testers, has deficiencies even at a severe level, which are very influential on the result in combat. These deficiencies are noticeable in both land and sea battles. So, in land battles, computer gamers set z. B. the cavalry is not always correct.
Web links
- Official website for the Total War series (multilingual)
- Total War: Shogun 2 at MobyGames (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Shogun 2: Total War - The release date has been set. In: GameStar . IDG Entertainment Media GmbH , accessed on October 18, 2014 .
- ^ Yours for the taking - Total War: SHOGUN 2 for Mac is out now. feralinteractive.com, July 31, 2014, accessed April 28, 2019 .
- ↑ Learn how to master the highest level of warfare in Total War: SHOGUN 2 and Fall of the Samurai - now available for Linux. feralinteractive.com, May 23, 2017, accessed May 23, 2017 .
- ↑ pc.ign.com
- ↑ Total War Shogun 2 encyclopedia in the Demo files
- ↑ Jörg Luibl: Test "Total War: Shogun 2". 4players.de, March 18, 2011, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ^ Test "Total War: Shogun 2". Computer Bild Spiele, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ↑ Tim Stone: "Test" Total War: Shogun 2 ". In: Eurogamer . Gamer Network , March 11, 2011, accessed on April 15, 2014 (English).
- ↑ Michael Graf: Test "Total War: Shogun 2". In: GameStar . IDG Entertainment Media GmbH , March 11, 2011, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ↑ Nezdad Hurabasic: Test "Total War: Shogun 2". gamona.de, March 16, 2011, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ↑ Izanagi : Test "Total War: Shogun 2". looki.de, March 18, 2011, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ^ Robert Horn: Test "Total War: Shogun 2". PC Games, March 15, 2011, accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ^ Meta-evaluation "Total War: Shogun 2". In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ^ Meta-evaluation "Total War: Shogun 2". In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed April 15, 2014 .
- ↑ Shogun 2: DirectX 11 patch comes 2-4 weeks after release on www.pcgameshardware.de, accessed on March 11, 2011.
- ↑ twcenter.net
- ↑ twcenter.net
- ↑ Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai becomes Total War Saga: Fall of the Samurai , 4players.de of August 13, 2019; Accessed September 27, 2019.
- ↑ Rob Zacny: Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai Review. GameSpy, April 12, 2012, accessed October 18, 2014 .
- ^ Meta evaluation "Fall of the Samurai". In: GameRankings . CBS Corporation , accessed October 18, 2014 .
- ^ Meta evaluation "Fall of the Samurai". In: Metacritic . CBS Corporation , accessed October 18, 2014 .
| Japan / China |
Shogun: Total War • Total War: Shogun 2 • Total War: Three Kingdoms |
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| antiquity |
Rome: Total War • Total War: Rome II • Total War: Attila • Total War Saga: Troy |
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| middle Ages |
Medieval: Total War • Medieval 2: Total War • Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia |
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| Modern times | ||
| Warhammer Fantasy | ||
| Offshoot |
Spartan: Total Warrior • Total War Battles: Shogun • Total War Battles: Kingdom |
