Total War: Shogun 2 Review

Posted By Johnny Maloney about 2 years, 2 months ago

Total War: Shogun 2 Review

Top 5 Reasons Shogun 2 Will Kick Ass!, 10.0 out of 10 based on 1 rating
It’s turn ten, and I’m completely surrounded by people who don’t like me. I get the impression that something really, REALLY bad is about to happen. Naturally, I pick up my laptop and calmly walk out of the church. Turns out they’re not tremendous fans of people who swear incessantly at their computers during sermons. My sudden relocation to a more friendly place to play doesn’t seem to make a difference though, as the Oda use their next opportunity to give me a close up view of the underside of their boot. It’s official: I love Total War: Shogun 2.

The Total War series is where I go when I want to get my ass kicked. I know that sounds like an unusual desire, but some strategy games are made to help the player succeed. Mission by mission, you climb up the ladder and unlock new units each time you start a new one. No matter what though, that mission is the only one you have to beat before the game continues. Every other level you’ve completed is in the bag, finished, chalked up to your victories, you bought the T-shirt and worn it to singles mixers on the weekend to tell people “that’s right baby, made it to Dune 2′s FIFTH stage as the Ordos.”

Total War just isn’t like that. You’re always under pressure to lose it all. One poorly planned advance, one turn spent ignoring your army placements or your recruitment lists and it can all come tumbling down. The past few installments of Total War (Napoleon and Empire) had changed this around some, focusing more on a plot driven set of campaign missions. These were interesting directions to go in, and I wasn’t disappointed with either game, but it was a simpler task to roll through a map picking off territories bit by bit. Shogun 2′s campaign mode will plant you smack dab in the middle of the pair of shoes belonging to the daimyo of whichever clan you’ve picked.

With the Tokugawa… I wasn’t winning. Charlie Meme, I mean Sheen… would be ashamed.

As such, some clans have it a little rougher than others, and seeing as how disastrously my attempt at siding with a winner (the Tokugawa) ended in just ten simple presses of the enter button, I opt again for a clan down the south end of the island to slowly work my way up the spine, back to the wall strategy. Each clan has a specific reputation, giving you bonuses to units, build times, costs, etc. My new clan, the Shimazu are ‘Masters of Integrity,’ giving them reduced upkeep for samurai units, increased loyalty for generals, and the ability to hire on more skilled samurai hero units.

It starts a little smoother this time, with a military alliance to the Mori, cemented by a marriage between one of my sons and his daughter. Together, we take the south island without incident and look northwards. Well, I say without incident, but what I really mean is having to consistently put down a Christian rebellion in the Hyuga province, which happens at least three times during the course of my military advance on my Chosokabe rivals in the north.

I love the smell of springtime… smells like victory, after generous bribery and sabotage. Smells like… eggplant quiche.

Fans of the Total War series will rest easy, though this information may not be news, considering we mentioned it in our hands on preview of Shogun 2 last month; the AI has finally figured out how to use boats properly. The sneakier opponents are now bringing armies around the coast and dropping them in territory long thought secure from advancing forces. The AI will downright stab you in the eye if you don’t keep one of yours on them at all times. Negotiating peace and begging for mercy is likewise an uphill affair, even allowing you to present one of your children to your opponents as a hostage. In my experience, this didn’t work the one time I tried it, as per the first paragraph of this article.

What has also received a makeover is your military unit list. Other Total War games opted for some semblance of historical accuracy, keeping each factions units named specifically and getting specialized bonuses. While complete, in their total inclusion, it was a niggling criticism that the difference between the Prussian empire’s Bosniak unit and the Russian Gardes a Cheval were not immediately known. Choosing a new army to start with might require some decent amount of personal research into your new units to maximize your effectiveness. Shogun 2, while still sporting an impressive unit list, has taken a more universal approach and slimmed the armies down to more basic unit types: bowmen militia, spearmen militia, samurai bowmen, samurai spearmen, samurai swordsmen, etc. Each of these units usually have some kind of specialty, and definite vulnerabilities. Charging your light cavalry into a spear wall, wedge formation or not, is never a bright idea. What results is an easier means of army customization, and faster response time on the field to counter your opponent’s maneuvers.

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