Total War: Shogun 2

Either playing solo, with friends or against them, Shogun 2 is the pinnacle of the Total War series. This is how you pay homage to a brilliant game that started a franchise, and I wouldn't be upset after seeing what the developer has done here if we saw remakes of Rome or even another Medieval Total War.

The series has scaled down from Empire but lost none of the drama or excitement. The smaller scale makes it easier to appreciate all the things the game does right.

A polished, smart, generous, elegant, and bold strategy game.

From atop this Total War: Shogun 2, eleven years of experience are looking right at you. The gameplay The Creative Assembly crafted for this new title is breathtakingly rich, almost intimidating, but fans will still feel right at home since the new elements aren't plenty. For newcomers, the challenge can be hard to overcome because the ruleset of the game isn't very well explained, but Shogun 2 also becomes, because of this, an adventure that is all the more satisfying to conquer. Metacritic.

Total War may be one of the more complex series out there, and in the past there have been many reasons to avoid it-- mainly stemming from the fact that at times it could feel unapproachable through simply the amount of choices given. The hardcore have always had it as a staple to call home, but this time around it feels as if everything finally met in exactly the right spots, and enough assistance that anyone can get into it if they want.

Less truly is more when it comes to Total War. Shogun 2, with a smaller scale and tighter focus, boasts the best gameplay and design of any entry in the franchise. I can't imagine a realistic way that The Creative Assembly could have made a better case to win back fans put off by Empire. [Apr 2011, p.92]

The mix of turn based strategy (with economical, political and diplomatic ramifications) and real time battles is still wonderful, but the need to balance timing and aggression is more important than ever. Aggressive players will feel a little cheated, while diplomats will hate Realm Divide stage. Still, Total War was always about realism and the AI's scripted actions make logical and historical sense.

While it stuck to what Empire: Total War did and didn't come up with a lot of new things, it was still a lot of fun to play. If you have the dough, you should pick this up.

In conclusion, Total War Shogun 2 is definitely a must have game for those who enjoy turn-based games, RTS or the original Total War games. It's huge improvement over its predecessors and from the very first moments of the game to the last battle of Kyoto, you will be captivated and wanting more.

Best Total War Ever. That should say enough about how great a game this is. It's incredibly deep, complex and magnificent to look at. Still, take into consideration that it's not exactly the most accessible strategy game around, and that you need a ballsy computer to enjoy the game to its fullest. A great return for one of the greatest strategy series ever made. Bravo The Creative Assembly.

Shogun II is a great game, able to resume, improve and innovate many of the aspects that made the franchise one of the most appreciated in the world of real-time strategy games. The only true failure is an artificial intelligence that doesn't always impress, but somehow this aspect is compensated for by a much deeper multiplayer component.

It's a tighter, more focused experience than the continental sprawl of "Empire" and "Napoleon", sacrifices none of their intricacy, and brings improved AI to the battlefield. In the final count, it's consistently thrilling, grand in scope, surprisingly atmospheric, and bloody hard to put down. [Mar 2011, p.75]

With Total War: Shogun 2, Creative Assembly has gone back all the way to its Japanese roots, and as you can see it was not a mistake.

More of a masterpiece than check-in for the series.

It's the finest Total War game CA has ever made, with a beautifully focused campaign and involving multiplayer too. [Apr 2011, p.94]

This is a wonderful strategy game, one of the best we've ever seen. A logical evolution of the concept of the veteran series that has achieved great results.

Beautiful, complex and varied historical strategy which offers hours of fun in single player and multiplayer modes. [Issue#203]

Total War: Shogun 2 combines the best aspects from every Total War game ever made. It's less complicated than Empire yet it brings more to the table. Creative Assembly has shown that, even after ten years, this franchise is only getting better.

It is refined, lean, smartly designed, and still an epic, where tales of your conquests can be so exciting that that alone could warrant a purchase.

When I start complaining about a lack of stat-tracking in a Total War game, however, it's a sure sign that its hooks have sunk pretty deep. The campaign is repetitious, but that's partly because I'm playing a lot of it. I want more multiplayer features because it's good enough to be taken seriously. All these complaints stem from one central fact: while Shogun 2: Total War could be a better game, it is nonetheless a great one.

No one can touch Total War and Shogun 2 simply furthers the point. [Apr 2011, p.48]

Total War: Shogun 2 is a worthy successor and continues a legacy filled with success. Everything that is good in this franchise is here and has been improved.

Creative Assembly's most polished game to date, and serves as a reaffirmation of the values that made the series the revelation it was more than a decade ago. It seems only fitting that those values were reaffirmed in a game based on the same setting as way back then.

A fascinating game. Through the seemingly endless collisions and alliances between the game's factions, you constantly find yourself placed into unplanned yet unique situations, and forced to make unpleasant choices.

Creative Assembly trimmed some of the fat while boosting the flavor to make Total War: Shogun 2 one of the tastiest entries in the franchise yet. It's much more accessible than the last few Total War games without sacrificing any depth or strategy.

Shogun 2 is the best installment in the Total War series. Well-known patterns, due to many years of evolution and constant introduction of new elements, have reached their peak in Creative Assembly's new creation. Even though the game isn't perfect, I have to admit, I had enormous fun with it. The newest Total War's force of attraction is astounding.

There may not be any truly revolutionary additions here, but the tightly-focused map, extensive streamlining, and rich opportunities for strategic gameplay inject a welcome freshness into the series.

If you're a fan of turn-based empire games, you will love Shogun 2 for its deep strategic dilemmas and easy-to-use controls. If you're a fan of military history and tactics, you will adore commanding thousands of troops in realistic battle simulations. If you like samurai, there are literally thousands here for you to play with.

Shogun 2 is a tour de force, plunging even the most detached and practical of real-time strategy fans into the heady waters of the Shengoku Jidai.

Artistic, formidable, and action packed, this remarkable strategy game is the best Total War yet.

Creative Assembly is flirting with a new audience with its totaly new and fresh multiplayer component and a streamlined overhaul of the Total War series. But underneath the polished surface lies the Total War we know and love and Shogun 2 has not lost the depth and complexity that has been established over the last ten years.

Shogun 2 is an expertly tuned turn-based strategy game filled with exhilarating real-time tactical battles against a capable artificial intelligence or others online.

Shogun 2 is the best game in the award-winning series! It looks fantastic and the campaign is really good. The AI isn't the greatest though.

Polished to the core with freshness and excellence, Total War : Shogun 2 is a mastered lecture of design of every kind, reinforced by a fully renewed multiplayer. Better and deeper than we could expect, this episode sits on the very top of the franchise, by far.

A shrewd and often brilliant game that reaches its destination with most of its goals realised, not discarded and left in the dust like the forced march of its predecessors. [Apr 2011, p.94]

Shogun 2 is an homage to Shogun: total War. We'll never look back though, knowing that Shogun 2 is simply a better game, thanks to the strongly improved gameplay and a turn-based section that knows even more depth this time around.

Creative Assembly delivers another solid RTS, deep and stratified, full of visual beauty and dense as no other.

It's wonderfully colourful and completely unique, and it should provide the usual hundreds of hours of gameplay for the hardcore. Those worrying about a retrograde step being taken for the series shouldn't have done so - it's a classic, no question.

A brilliant reinvention of the series that maintains the epic of scale of battles and yet increases the accessibility and focus.

This is the most fully featured Total War to date, and a great homage to the game that launched the series.

A homecoming for The Creative Assembly; an opportunity to show how far the series has come in the ten years since its inception and, as far as we're concerned, it's a homecoming of ticker-tape parade proportions. This latest Total War marks a peak in the series not so much for its landmark features but for the amount of love and sheer dedication that's been applied to the setting. Truly, it's a beautiful recreation of Feudal Japan with gameplay to fit that billing.

Those expecting revelatory improvements in areas like AI may be mildly disappointed by Shogun 2. Those after a sumptious, weekend-whittling strategy epic heaving with flavour and challenge can reach for their uchi-bukuro with confidence. This is a corker.

Shogun II is a comeback to the past, but it's also a game able to show the path followed by Creative Assembly in these years. Well-balanced, with a superb multiplayer mode and with the always-present attention to detail, Shogun 2 is the new Shogun of strategic games.

Shogun 2 is like a melting pot for all the ideas, gameplay and concepts we've seen in the previous games of the Total War series. Its pillars are quite similar to Empire's, but this game has improvements in many areas, and the setting is so charming, that it feels like something unique.

There is a je ne sais quoi elegance on how the game is presented and how well put together the game as an entire corpus is. Although it's still mired by some version 1.0 bugs, Shogun is highly playable and deserves a place on any Total War fan's hard drive.

Foreign accents in games often sound unconvincing, or even borderline racist, but the Japanese-inflected English you hear in Shogun 2 is respectful and well-acted. The music and sound effects are visceral and period-appropriate.

Even though it is clearly still a work in progress, Shogun 2 is a beautiful, deep, incredibly stylish, enthralling game.

Shogun 2 takes the series back to its roots and got rid of a lot of complicated and confusing details. Now it's possible to concentrate on the really important tasks again: battles, ruling the country and cursing.

It might take every last bit of power for your computer to make it shine, but samurai combat and ninja assassinations never looked better. You don't need a geisha's help to convince you that this sequel is worthy.

Shogun 2 isn't revolutionary, but it improves upon its previous Napoleon iteration. Its new focus helps give the game a little extra innovation, however the campaign feels limited.

Shogun 2 is without doubt a worthy part of the Total War game-series, but it has almost all the shortcomings of its predecessor. This is somewhat disappointing, but especially by the improvements in the Multiplayer-part, it's still quite a lot of fun.

Shogun 2: Total War is a great addition to the Total War series, and is definitely one to pick up if you're a fan of Sengoku-era games, or have the slightest interest in RTS titles.

Ignoring modern trends for simple and easy games, Creative Assembly offers an enticing gameplay for hardcore followers and newcomers alike. Shogun 2 has indeed evolved into a superb and tighter experience than its predecessors.

As a lovingly crafted remake of the 2000 game Shogun 2 is almost perfect. And yet from the standpoint of a Total War series evolution it leaves something to be desired. [Apr 2011, p.11]

Shogun 2 is a wonderful example of deep rich strategic gameplay with both battles and resource/province management requiring more than just research upgrade clicks.

More focused than Total War has been in awhile, but still as strategic and deep as the series has ever been.

A triumphant game. It's wonderfully complex and detailed, and vibrantly decorated with historical trappings that will satisfy anyone with a passing interest in military strategy. While the presentation and multiplayer are a little rough around the edges, there's more than enough content to make the game a more than worthwhile experience.

The series is back where it all began and Shogun 2 is both at tribute to the original and a testament to how far the series have come. It's a solid game with excellent gameplay, but prone to becoming a bit monotone after several playthroughs.

Simply refines the challenging gameplay armchair tacticians have come to associate with the Total War franchise. [Issue#107, p.92]

Shogun 2 is a magnificent looking game with huge play and replay value. In terms of ambition and progression for the series, it arguably takes half a step back, but the huge leap forward in graphics and gameplay more than makes up for it.