Empire: Total War

[golightly]

I quite like playing soldiers and this does look rather good. Anyone got this yet? What do you think are the pros and cons of this game?

 

[Threshers_Flail]

Its out?

I only got a shitty laptop, will check the demo now. Loved the previous installments, yet it has lost some of its magic from game to game.

 

[kained&able]

apparently its proper epic. i want!


dave

 

[Threshers_Flail]

Cross my fingers my home pc is up to it, will spend Easter break not revising. This game used to have such a grip on me, i remember first time i played RTW, didn't move from the PC for hours.

Can't believe I forgot about this game, naval warfare ftw!!!

 

[golightly]

Its out?

Well it's on sale from Play. Someone commented that it uses Steam to install which is something of a nightmare.

 

[Jorum]

Am installing now from DVD - but yes it does dial up steam to unlock.
First installation failed as it unlocked but then said "steam servers too busy" (too busy for what ffs, all the data is on these two dvds)
However, is now installing...slowly.
15gb so far and I'm on disk 1.......

 

[ruffneck23]

my mate got his from play on tuesday but couldnt unlock it til last night

 

[kained&able]

so how great is it?

I can't decide between this on pc or fallout3 on xbox as my next game.

Do the navel battles work? They are normally shit on this type of game.


dave

 

[golightly]

Am installing now from DVD - but yes it does dial up steam to unlock.
First installation failed as it unlocked but then said "steam servers too busy" (too busy for what ffs, all the data is on these two dvds)
However, is now installing...slowly.
15gb so far and I'm on disk 1.......

Installed yet?

Tbh, I'm prepared to put up with a day of fucking about with Steam if it runs well once installed.

 

[Idaho]

I used to play Shogun and Mediaval TW a lot back in the day. Played online a fair bit too and was reasonably competitive.

Not played Rome, and probably won't get round to playing this one.

 

[ruffneck23]

my mates playing it but hasnt got as far as the naval battles in single player but says its gonna be a loooong slog.....

 

[Kid_Eternity]

Looks great, although my laptop probably wont be able to run it well...

 

[100% masahiko]

If I buy this, I'd have no life.

 

[Bakunin]

Speaking of sea battles, does anyone remember a good naval piratey type game called 'Sea Dogs'?

YA-HAAAAARRRGH, ME HEARTIES!

I'm still enjoying 'Stronghold 2 Deluxe' as well.

 

[Idaho]

If I buy this, I'd have no life.

Don't be silly - of course you'd have a life.






It'd just be a life where you forgo social contact, proper nutrition and personal hygene for a few months

 

[hendo]

I bought it on the strength of this review from Eurogamer. I shall report back, but the reviewer virtually swoons with delight...

 

[Silva]

I really wanted to give this a go (looks like Cossacks on 3D and steroids), but surely wouldn't work on the laptop. But then again, I thought Shogun was a bit out my league

 

[The Groke]

Started to play it...

Finding it fun but daunting as it is not a genre I usually tackle.

Looking forward to the first patch to fix some of the glitches, but on the whole I am impressed!

 

[golightly]

Part of the reason I'm interested in this game is because I don't often play RTSs and I fancy something different. I've played Imperial Glory in the past, which I think is similar.

What kind of glitches are you getting? Also, how well does it run on your machine?

 

[agricola]

Got it via Steam today... its good, but by no means great when viewed against some of the total conversion mods of MTW2 or Rome.

 

[The Groke]

What kind of glitches are you getting? Also, how well does it run on your machine?

Some control glitches in the battles mostly - sometimes units won't actually acknowledge your command and just stand there getting shot in the face.

It doesn't happen often though and it is usually recoverable.

Performance is - oddly - pretty good on the huge, detailed battles but a little stuttery on the campaign map?!

Perhaps some more optimisation needed here. I did just update to the latest drivers as well which, according to the TW boards, are untested and might be worse than the previous ones!

I am still tweaking the settings at the mo anyway.

My specs:

Core 2 Duo 8600 @ 3.2Ghz, 4Gb RAM, NVIDIA 8800GT 1Gb and Vista 64.

 

[golightly]

My specs:

Core 2 Duo 8600 @ 3.2Ghz, 4Gb RAM, NVIDIA 8800GT 1Gb and Vista 64.

Hmm.. My specs aren't up to yours, so I reckon I will need to run it with some of the graphics settings turned down a tad. Anyway, payday next Friday, so I'll be ordering it then.

 

[Cid]

so how great is it?

I can't decide between this on pc or fallout3 on xbox as my next game.

Do the navel battles work? They are normally shit on this type of game.


dave

Yes, they do... They're tough to get the hang of, but in a good way. The mechanics are detailed; you're having to take into account your position in relation to the wind, the maneuverability of your ships and theirs, the type of shot you're using and whether you want to board any, but at the same time the actual interface and commands are pretty simple because you can use grouped formations.

They also look great, properly modelled from National Maritime Museum blueprints with decent physics built in. Ships can blow up and set fire to adjacent ones, masts collapse, hulls splinter etc.

e2a: imo the most disappointing aspect was the AI in siege conditions, it's just not very good at handling how it moves around the walls (or inside towns).

 

[bmd]

Got it via Steam today... its good, but by no means great when viewed against some of the total conversion mods of MTW2 or Rome.

Which ones would you recommend?

 

[kained&able]

think i will order it once i have completed gta 4.


dave

 

[Psychonaut]

Which ones would you recommend?

I played stainless steel 6.1 pretty extensively - its very nice, except the 'passive siege AI' bug persists from the original, although it might have been lessened. had a look at the darth mod too, same problem.

 

[Nine Bob Note]

Is it worth £25 to someone who only plays the campaign maps on M:TW and leaves individual battles to chance?

 

[The Groke]

Is it worth £25 to someone who only plays the campaign maps on M:TW and leaves individual battles to chance?

There is more meat on the campaign this time around, so yes - if you enjoyed playing it like that on the last one, this will suit you just fine.

 

[Pingu]

Am installing now from DVD - but yes it does dial up steam to unlock.
First installation failed as it unlocked but then said "steam servers too busy" (too busy for what ffs, all the data is on these two dvds)
However, is now installing...slowly.
15gb so far and I'm on disk 1.......

the steam bit is REALLY pissing me off now..

so in an attempt to chill out i unwrap my copy of dawn of war II



lets just say its a fucking good job that anyone who is currently on my shit list isnt within punching distance

 

[golightly]