The graphics are just something beyond understanding! It's a very beautiful looking game. Also brings a lot of cool new stuff compared to older Total War series games, but the basic idea is the same. The game brings a lot of historically accurate events which of course makes it more interesting.

I never played the original Shogun, as my first Total War game was Rome. Two of my favorite three periods in history are the Roman Empire, and Shogunate Japan. The third is WWII btw. Now, the land combat is great in Shogun 2. If you are familiar with Rome or other Total War games, then you can jump right in and do ok. Things to remember are: Japanese warfare is a bit different than ancient warfare and that guns in this period aren't quite as refined as guns used in European linear warfare. Now, I know the Total War guys just wanted to make a balanced game, and I'll give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to using an all rifle army...perhaps the Japanese just didn't get quite how to employ it on the battlefield. But comparing other linear warfare games to this one, if a bunch of troops with swords and spears come running at your matchlock-armed troops, normally, you mow them down. In Shogun 2, you mow a few of them down, then they cut your heads off. As in most games, balance is key. If you learn that, you'll save a lot of time and in game resources in building them. With all of that said, the game itself is great. Naval battles leave much to be desired, but at the tactical view, it is clear what you have to do, and how to do it. Research and advanced troops help, but do not win the map. It all comes down to strategy and tactics. And so it is a great game for any strategy lover.

Love it! There are just some minor issues that I have with SG2. The AI building their castles and having more advanced troops, way faster than you. During battles, some units will take bad routes, or not do what I click. Also, like many games, you have to purchase downloadable content to get the full experience of a game. These type of things would have already been included into the game, "back in the day"

However, this game is a beautiful looking game with great gameplay! I wish CA would expand this game into an East Asia area game.

Loved the original Shogun TW, and the new one doesn't disappoint! Great graphics and the AI is pretty good, too. Have yet to try the multiplayer feature but it looks pretty interesting. A great way to kill a couple of (hundred) hours.

In true tradition Creative Assembly has provided gamers with another winner. Unlike many games that leave the spirit of the predecessors to make the game more accessible the creators have kept the feel of Shogun without sacrificing anything. As someone who still owns the original Shogun the delivery of this update is a welcome addition to any collection. If you liked the original Shogun you will love this one. Ninja's and their completion videos are back. The ai is more challenging then ever, and the graphics are top notch without running your computer into the ground.

A highly recommended option to anyone who enjoys RTS/TBS.

This game is amazing,one of the best in the TW series since Medieval 2. This game goes especially well with the various expansions available.

I would recommend this to any gamer which enjoys the TW series.

O jogo é extremamente apelativo para os fãs da série de games Total War, ele contém todos os elementos que fizeram da série um sucesso, belos gráficos, combates realísticos e a possibilidade de personalização quase infinita. Como pontos positivos pode-se dizer que os gráficos estão melhores do que seus predecessores, a campanha é extremamente fiel e realística, com batalhas históricas para aqueles que conhecem a fundo a história japonesa, as unidades são variadas e permitam infinita personalização e combinação da armada e as missões são empolgantes.

Como ponto negativo do que não gostei em Shogun, está de que ele é limitado em territórios a somente o Japão e para se adicionar novas épocas e desafios são necessárias DLCs, da qual este tem muitas.

English Version

The game is extremely appealing to fans of the Total War series of games, it contains all the elements that made the series a success, beautiful graphics, realistic fighting and the possibility of almost infinite customization. As positive can be said that the graphics are better than their predecessors, the campaign is extremely accurate and realistic, with historical battles for those who understand Japanese history, the units are varied and allow infinite customization and combination of armed and the missions are exciting.

On the downside than not liked about Shogun is that it is limited in territory to only Japan and to add new times and challenges requires DLCs, of which he has many.

This game is the best leap since Medieval 2. Though Empire was a good game it left me wanting more. Creative Assembly proved once again why it is one of my favorite companies, by coming out with a remake of its debut shogun. This game is a vast improvement on the series as you return to war stricken Japan, to wage...thats right you guessed it, TOTAL WAR.

I would strongly recommend to any history buff, casual gamer, my grandmother, the local deacon really anyone. GREAT GAME

This game absolutely astonished me. I've never been into Total War games before (forced myself to play Empire but I really didn't like it), but Shogun 2 is just so beautifully stylized and intuitive. Even someone who's totally new to the Total War franchise can easily get lost in immersion with this one.

Great Game. Alots of fun. Game really shines during actual combat when strategy and unit deployment is super important. Other game mechanics are good but not great. Overall a great game to play.

A terrific addition to the Total War series, finally we have a game significantly better than Total War: Medieval 2!

The DX11 graphics are fantastic, the campaign is brutal, the factions are tricky customers, and overall you've got a few hundred hours of enjoyable gameplay.

If you've got an older machine, though, it might be worth picking up Total War: Medieval 2 instead.

Shogun 2 Total War is incredible and a huge step forward since Empire. It is hard to describe exactly what grabs you about the game, but it is definitely superior to the last few Total War games. First off, reducing the amount of troops makes the game much more focused and polished and balanced. Battles are exciting, and the AI is much stronger than in previous games. The strategy is much deeper and you have to be very considerate of terrain and weather.

A big draw for me of the Total War franchise is the seamless marriage of the turn based campaign with real-time combat. The campaign here is also superior, and you need to constantly make tradeoffs and be very strategic about how you develop your regions. Focusing too much on economy will leave you open to attack, something the AI will definitely exploid. On the other hand, trying to build your military without a solid base is also very difficult. That careful balance is executed extremely well, which again makes this game stand out.

This is by far among the best Total War games, and to me, the best since Medieval 2 and Rome.

Graphics: Quite good.

Visuals: Bland and uninspired maps let it down severely, very nice animations and unit models however.

Sound: Superb, fantastic sound track and the in-game audio is top notch also.

Multiplayer: Must rank up, no "custom battle", instead it is more of an RPG mix where you begin with the lowest units and poor stats. Matchmaking is poor: my first two games pitched me against players of far greater skill with far greater levels than me.

Realism/authenticity: if you have little to no knowledge of history pre-WW1 you probably won't notice any of the glaring deficiencies.

Verdict: A good RTS with high production value leaning toward simplicity and spectacle.

Opinion: The multiplayer was immensely unbalanced and battle maps felt horribly amateur. Seems simplified in order to appeal to a wide audience. I was expecting something more strategic/tactical and balanced.

Wonderful, wonderful game. Shogun 2 is a dream come true, with so much incredible moments that it's mind blowing. With intriguing campaign, gorgeous graphics and addictiveness, this one is hard to let go.

The best Total war yet.

They need to work on the campagin AI, while the Battle AI is ok, the campaign AI is not very good.

Also, the setting is not my cup of tea. I know it is a return to the roots, but Europe is more interesting to me. The units are much to similar for my taste as well, lots of battles feel generic.

Shogun 2 is my favorite Total War game after Rome, and it is a fair balance between Shogun 1-Medieval 2 and Empire-Napoleon. What I mean by this is that the good of those two different game types has been kept, while most of the bad has been removed. Back from the earlier generations is the ability to have control over your royal family, like in Rome, you can select your heir, and you can use the adult males as generals. From Empire and Napoleon, you can engage in research, fight naval battle in real time, and use the more handy diplomacy functions seen in Empire.

The game takes place in the same time period as the first one, the Sengoku Jidai, and all of the actual factions are the various Japanese clans scattered throughout the island nation. This would lead one to believe that the game map would be quite small, but that would be wrong, the provinces are quite large and detailed, and the addition of winter attrition will slow your advancement throughout the empire. The multiplayer is quite fun as well, you can play the campaign mode with a friend, or you can create your own avatar, join a multiplayer clan, and fight with others online to gain upgrades for your avatar.

Altogether, this is a solid and enjoyable addition to the Total War series, and I have no regrets about purchasing it, if you hated Empire and Napoleon, while loving the rest of the series, this will probably be a fair compromise for you.

You cannot believe the joy I had when I first heard that CA was finally revisiting their original game, Shogun:Total War. With one DLC campaign and a second on the way in 2012, it looks like the game just gets even better. Only two things drive down my rating. The first is having to deal with Steam. While I used steam regularly before getting this game, the regular updates it allows for the developers are a major headache for modders, where one line of code to a key file can break weeks worth of work. Also, Steam has lately been screwing up some, between getting hacked and helping to botch the Sword of the Stars II release. My other complaint was the change to having just one difficultly setting where previously there was a battle difficulty and a campaign difficulty.

A good addition to the total war franchise, but it does require steam for all those who are not aware.Also, it requires a good computer to run fast. Overall, I think that Medieval Total War 2 was still my favourite, but this is a close second.

This game and all of the dlcs available for it are some of the best out there. Any self respecting strategy game fan ought to pick them up. The pacing is great, the difficulty can be quite challenging and the AI has been much improved from previous titles. Given the regular promotions on it, it is a no brainer... You'll be in for many hours of fun or many nights with little sleep!

wow,

ca listened to the fans and made the best total war yet.

the map is beautiful, the units beautiful, the game captures the essence of the east, creates an epic struggle, masterfully put together.

every aspect has been improved.

land and sea warfare is brilliant, the units control well, the maps are full of realistic textures and strategic worth, the naval warfare especially is the most improved over napoleon and empire.

diplomacy is still the weak point of the series but the diplomacy has been beefed up and include more variety of options.

the province upgrade has been refined and mixes the central control rtw style with the province wide etw. you can set everything from the capital, no more lookig arround for places to upgrade, but enemies can still raid specific areas province wide. makes for a more streamlined experience without taking anything away.

great effort by ca, all total war and strategy fans must have this title.

Ridiculously good game, another worthy induction into the Total War series. Highly recommend to fans of the series and to anyone who is thinking about getting into it.

Very good and packed with loads of graphic and detail info, But has a learning curve the highest I've ever seem. Its not meant for the shoot-em up types but the Serious Gamer with loads of time available. Very good storey line and maps. The download is 12GB.plus it plays through Steam. Terrific Game and worth every cent.

This was my first time playing a Total War game, I am NOT disappointed at all. Would say that it requires patience to enjoy to its fullest. Learning curve is a little steep, I would say, but the tutorials and the advisor do a great job teaching the basics.

Purchased this with little idea about the Total War Series, but came out completely satisfied. The gameplay is complex, engaging, and beautiful. The game offers multiple routes to conquer Japan, forcing you to play diplomat, economist, and warrior to put down your rivals. Then there is the constant stream of random events that can make or break your strategy!

There does seem to be an issue with coop campaigns, and online play is supposedly difficult as there are unbalanced strategies. I've yet to move on to this part of the game though. Regardless, the solo game is well worth it. Would stir clear of sea battles...

Total War has been one of the best strategy series for years, and it shows that with this Shogun 2 again.

Sengoku period is a rarely seen topic here in Europe. Only a few movies and books talk about it. Fortunately, The Creative Assembly has realized that and gives us another Shogun title, even better than the first one.

Its graphics, sound effects, voices and battlecries... All of them make this game the perfect battle experience. It beats Napoleon and Empire, showing that this developer is growing, and it will grow larger and better.

In the words of George Takei, "Ohh myyyyy". This game feels like every previous iteration of Total War was just a beta for Shogun 2. Semi-decent AI, great late game challenges instead of the usual mop-up, diplomacy, skillsets, naval battles, breath-taking graphics. I can finally shelve Medieval 2 (well, maybe not with the Third Age mod), Rome and of course the first Shogun. Good job guys, now take my money!

This game is clearly the best yet of the Total War Series. The classic TBS model of the "main" game remains intact and has been improved further still. It's just as good as it ever was, and maybe a bit better. The RTS combat side is also very much improved over some of the earlier iterations.

The only real down-side to this game is that you will want to play it all the time, and if you aren't careful you may be too tired for work the next day!

The best TW so far. A lot has been finetuned and the few flaws or lacking fields of the game have been compensated for. A must-have for tacticians who love a good dose of global strategy intermixed with hints of diplomacy, rpg and economy.

The Total War series have truly dumbed down to an "access for all" formula. The game look amazing of course. Sounds and graphics have high production value as can be expected from this kind of high budget release. Nonetheless it is a strategy game for diehard fans of the total war franchise, and for those who haven't played Rome or Medieval 2. I spent four hours on this game to figure out the dynamics and find a formula to beat it. It was surprisingly predictable. There is nothing wrong with that you can say. But there should be enough going on beside the "conquering" part to keep you interested... well there wasn't for me. The best part of it was that it made me remember Dominions 3, where i luckily got to spend another 200 hours...

Finally a game worthy of TOTAL WAR Series name in it!

So far it is one of the best TOTAL WAR series games developed.

Developers have nailed it at all levels:

* Graphics: are astonishing.. everything to the tiniest detail. You can close up man to man battles, arrows pierce through knock soldiers to the ground and you can watch them struggling to get back up on their feet so they could die with honor in a fight, You can damage individual castle buildings, shoot the town with fire arrows and watch it all burn with the most beautifully rendered fire and smoke ever seen in games.

* AI - an excellent and challenging AI, especially compared to Empires and Napoleon series, which were somewhat lackluster. True Total War is back

* Unit Balance - arrow and gun units feel a little overpowered. units in the original SHogun:Total War were more distinct and their advantages and disadvantages were more clearly felt on the battlefield. Many advanced units in Shogun2 simply feel more expensive but not much better than lets say Sword Samurai :D

* Multiplayer - very interesting advancement of units and general. Players can choose if they prefer castle sieges or fight it out in the open. A drawback was that I started playing multiplayer at a later date, so I ended up playing alot vs LVL10 as LVL 3. Also for first several months There were serious bugs with matchmaking and launching multiplayer games, but it should be fixed by now.

Buy the game :D

Sorry to say,

but I am deeply disappointed by the fact that I bought a game here and have to download, install, register and keep running a 3rd party software. Gamersgate states all these inconviniences with a dark grey on black "very transperant customer relationship" req. 3rd party etc.

I am used to get better information especially when leaving good money on a regular basis at a retailer. So please do not sell what you do not provide for. I wouldnt have bought at steam even if it was the only platform to buy at.

A worthy successor for Total War series, the graphic is just beautiful. Less truly is more when it comes to Total War Shogun 2, with a smaller scale and tighter focus, bringing the best gameplay of any entry in the franchise.

The attention to detail is astounding. There are so many features in this game it's mind boggling. Get it nao! xD

Reminds me of the good old days. It takes you back to the beginning with the benefits of later releases. Sure you still might miss sending out that emissary not knowing whether you will receive a yes to the piece treaty you always wanted or get a head back.

The game delivers where you would expect one of the Total War series. Big massive battles, plenty of strategy and deceit involved. You will get more as well: being honorable is important for the time period. No more backstabbing and getting away with it as easily! Want to get those nice guns and get an advantage over the enemy? Become a christian. Sure everyone will hate you for it, but you can always shoot them!

Multilayer is there to keep you entertained (especially with the Avatar system) though you might find the co-op at times buggy, however issues get resolved and you still can have a fun time conquering Japan with your friend and closes ally!

A good game indeed and definitely worth a look if you missed the roots of the series even though it doesn't have the same mechanics it certainly delivers the feel you got back then

As a long time fan of the total war series Shogun 2 was a must buy for me,and seeing as i had picked it up when gamers gate was running a sale i got even more out of this great game. As total war games go, this is the best in the series with improved multiplayer with a customizable general and improved naval and combat mechanics. Would highly recommend this game.

Total War Shogun 2 is a awesome game where you fight for control of Japan using real time battles between opposing clans of warriors and a turn based strategy portion where you setup your armies and your clans overall goals. Both the realtime battles and the turn bases map portions of the game have unbeatable graphics and sound with the music like a sympony. The battles themselves are utterly satisfying to watch as armies clash together and it seems that you don't even need a top of the line system to run the game. The Multiplayer is also a blast because you can setup a Avatar or character to grow with you as you win battles and lag does not seem to be a big issue if you have a decent connection. Overall...if you love strategy games or even not you have to pick up Total War Shogun 2.

The definitive Total War. Total War comes back into Sengoku-era Japan, better than ever before. The game plays as a campaign map, which is turn based, on which units and cities are monitored and controlled. If a battle is to occur, the game goes into the tactical battle mode; one of the greatest strengths of the series is this realistic mode which encompasses units size, armour, penalties and bonuses vs. certain units and morale. The Creative Assembly has fine tuned this mode, and made it the best it ever has been

The turn-based campaign map is much like EU3 and offers depth in upgrading and improving units and settlements. Terrain plays an important part in a battle; engage on a bridge and you'll fight on a bridge.

The best improvement however s the multiplayer. Despite the somewhat small-scale campaign that lets you down in terms of true unit variety, multiplayer allows you too level up an avatar and control an army, gradually unlocking units and retainers. It's incredibly fun; the avatar bringing a greater incentive to multiplayer. If you have a friend who has it too, might be worth playing some multiplayer campaign, as that option is also available.

The game, on top of all this, is tremendously aesthetically pleasing. The menus are in a Japanese style, as well as the map itself.

All this comes together to make the best Total War yet

A very strong edition to the Total War series. Though it lacks in a lot of departments such as variety and length, it definately makes up for it in the department of graphical performance and the new RPG style integrated into the generals system.

The multiplayer out does previous installments by allowing the player to customize their general and troops. Definately a must for those arm-chair generals.

Though my frustrations in the game fall more in line with the constant tweeking of the game through Steam which actually does more harm than good, I cant seem to hold off on it for more than a week even if it is to play a custom battle or to mess around with my multiplayer avatar. If you dont play this game, then you would be hard-pressed to call yourself a Total War fanatic.

If you've played the former Total War games, there really isn't much to say. Everything is as it has been in the previous installments except it's been thoroughly refined and improved. You have your campaign map, your battle map, and a host of soldiers ready to die in battle for you.

It's probably the deepest and prettiest game of the series so far. In short, it's the best CA has made yet. However, it's all beginning to feel old. Ever since Rome, I've played the same battles again and again. CA will need to do something drastically different next time around if they are to keep the series fresh.

With a compelling single player that you can sink hundreds of hours into, and an amazing multiplayer action unmatched by any other game, Shogun 2 is outright the best Total War game yet.

The game's visual design and graphics are absolutely gorgeous. You may find yourself running the game a few notches above what your computer can handle, sacrificing performance simply so you can get a look at how magnificent the game is. Not only technically proficient, the imagery is all very artistic. The campaign map and individual battles are all superb.

Sound design is just as flawless. The units and generals all speak authentic Japanese. The sound effects are immersive, from the popping of matchlock fire to the screams of charging masses of infantry. The music is wonderfully crafted, from the pensive campaign map music, to the heart-thumping battle tracks, to even the sad, stoic menu theme.

The single player campaign is a fantastic experience. The AI is challenging, both on the campaign map and on the battlefield. While not as capable as a human, even on Normal difficulty it's very good at throwing together large, threatening armies that you will have to use your human ingenuity to defeat.

The battle AI is not a human, but you will see much less suicidal behavior than in previous Total War games; this is the first Total War game where the AI's superior ability to micromanage its soldiers truly becomes a factor.

Some may complain that the campaign has been simplified, with most of the factions relatively streamlined and able to access all of the same units. In actuality, this adds depth to the game. There are about two dozen land unit types, all of which have a unique niche they can fill on the battlefield. As you advance in the tech tree, rather than simply replacing your older units with newer, superior units, your tactical flexibility is expanded. Rather than having dozens of units across the factions to represent the same unit role (heavy infantry, heavy cavalry, archer, etc), each unit type in Shogun 2 has a special role to play. The result is a much deeper tactical game than ever seen in Total War.

This leads us to multiplayer, which is a riot. Jumping into Shogun 2 multiplayer can be a little rough, and the online matchmaking system is far from perfect (luckily, you can still choose your opponents from a list, and it still counts for your avatar progression). You are given an online "avatar," who levels up by conquering the "Avatar Conquest Map," which is a provincial map where win provinces by winning a ranked match against a human opponent.

Multiplayer is a blast. The game allows tactical flexibility and creativity in a way never seen in a Total War game before. All sorts of army compositions are viable, and you'll be hard pressed to find a single setup that is unbeatable.

There are some unfortunate problems with multiplayer, though. The avatar system means you have to play quite a few battles before fully unlocking all units. This is a problem because matchmaking is imperfect; often the only way to reliably find a similarly ranked opponent is to go to the battle list. There are some ongoing issues with abuses like drophacking, and the ladder rating system simply currently does not work. Still, if you're willing to see past those issues, there is an excellent multiplayer experience waiting.

Why are you still reading this? If you are any fan of tactical warfare or strategy games, this game should be in your library.

In the latest of the Total War games you are once again back where it all started lots of years ago, in ancient Japan. Shogun 2 gives you the opportunity to play as one of the Japanese Daimyos and as leader of you clan and fight against tour rivals until you, hopefully, are the only victorious clan left.

Since its a Total War game the game focuses around war. There are no other way to become successful, and even if diplomatic options could be a great help sometimes you will not be able to claim victory without your samurai armies. That´s no news for a veteran Total War player. The difference from other TW games are that this game are a bit harder to win. You will soon find that you get into war with almost everyone when you reach a certain point in the game. And from there diplomacy are more or less futile and you will only win by the sword.

The Ai is competent and can give you a pretty good fight. There are still some annoying bugs with AI units that gets stuck, but with the new patches the situation becomes better.

The graphic are very good, if your computer can handle it (mine can´t).

The music and sound effects are well done. Some of them could perhaps be a bit repetitive sometimes.

The MP parts of the game are very good. It´s fun to fight against other players and there are some nice campaigns where you are able to unlock new units and abilities.

As a conclusion I recommend this game, it´s great to play both solo and with a friend. And there is few other joys that beats when you break the backbone of his armies and send you cavalry in to plow down your opponents remaining forces.

This game starts off well but quickly falls from grace.

The graphics are nothign short of superb from each unit to the interface as a whole. A lot of time was spent researching, what i assume, is authentic Japanese imagery and it really does pay off.

The main map is stunning to behold and each menu is drawn to perfection.

The gameplay however is not as good as it should be. After the poor previous two games they decided to go back to basics. A good theory but they actual reality doesnt work.

For starters, each faction is practically identical. They all build the same units and have the same improvements. The only difference being that one or tw units/ resources have a couple of plus ones added on depending on the factions. This instantly kills a lot of the replayability.

The Naval combat is tedious once you have got over the awe inspiring beauty of the water and ships you will quickly get bored of them.

The land battles are similar. Their lasting appeal is better than the naval combat but after a while you will quikcly realise that you are just doing the same thing every time.

The sieges are long and drawn out and oyu will begin to want to autobattle them.

The map is also far too small. I realise the size and layout of Japan is out of their control but their really should be more provinces, because as it is, you are only ever fighting a two fornt battle at most.

Its a good attempt, and better than Empire but no where near as good as Rome or Medieval 2.

The best vanilla total war game whose only real shortcoming is the lack of modding capabilities.

The battles are now bigger than ever and it is now possible to have tens of thousands of men on screen provided your computer can handle it. The game looks amazing and the developers have clearly taken great care to portray a believable version of sengoku era japan.

A worthy purchase for all strategy gamers.

This is one of the best strategy games released in years. Cut back a little from the massive maps of the previous Total War games its a lot easier for beginners to get a grips with (but not easy!).

The AI is some of the best around with only a few flaws (mainly when armies with 20+ units clash). It will not give you an easy victory like most games do lately (civ5 Im looking at you).

You will need a good PC to run this. If your PC is top of the line the game is beautiful.

Shameful Display!

That's what you'll hear a lot if you don't lead your army to victory.

Shogun 2 is the most impressive Total War game to date and is definitely one in the books for a Total War fan.

Back to the feudal age, you'll be engage combat with melee,cavalry and archer units once again.

One of the best things of the game is that getting your hands on special weapons such as the siege weapons and fire arrows, you can get the upper hand in battle. Also there is a mastery tree where you can learn the mastery of Bushido or Chi, each giving you special bonuses.

Diplomacy has been improved, so now you can't just wage war or ally with someone blindly without knowing the consequences.

Without a doubt, best buy from GamersGate.

This game is outstanding, great and very complete game. I recommend it to every type of players. It is amazing and the best in all of the total war series. Even though I am not much a fan of it only limited to Japan. It is however, great and fun and you will love the game. It just extremely great and I recommend every player to purchase it. It also has wealth of information that is very educational. Moreover, the download speed is fast so do not worry about the size of the game it didnt take me long to download it.

Probably the best and the hardest of Total War ever. Maybe AI is cheating, but is more challenging this way. All Total War games are fun but with Shogun 2 Crative Assebly proves that this series is permanently evolving, not like many others. Large armies decimating each other, ninjas and geishas taking "care" of generals, just little bit of RPG and beautiful graphics in every way (strategic map, naval and land battles). You like good and challenging strategies? Must have.

Arguably the best Total War yet (my previous favorite is Medieval 2 and I found Empire to be good but disapointing). This latest installment is much more focused than previous iterations, dropping off on the grand scale and breadth to focus in on, and add depth to, core gameplay. Generally the strategy game seems a little deeper and more balanced, with better town planning and resource management requirements than previous TW games. Also agents finally tend to be useful and not die so frequently as they did in prior games. The tactical battles are more polished and balanced. The AI seems better than in prior games too. The return to Japan is also a welcome change of atmospheric pace. Graphically the game is gorgeous, with superb art direction, and charming use of Japanese themed art and sound. All up, I highly recommend this game to any war gamer, or Japan buff.

This is TOTAL WAR. Shogun 2 total war is the refined and in my opinion the best version of Total War. The game might not have 100+ units but it does not need it. Shogun 2 is all about tactics and using the rock, paper, scissors system to countering enemy units.

Shogun 2 is played on two maps. The campaign map where you control and manage your armies, economy, and awesome ninjas and other agents. The campaign map in my opinion is the best and most balanced map in the total war series. Even though it is just Japan and not the whole world doe snot make a difference, it still posses a challenge.

The second phase of Shogun 2 is the battle map where you control your armies. The only gripe I have with the battle system is that the morale of troops and length of battles are very short. Battles last an average 15 minutes. Because there are not 100+ units, I think that CA has refined the battle system so that you actually have to know what counters each unit and your unit positioning.

I love the mods that are pouring out for this game. My favorite mod is the realism mod. The realism mod makes the game extremely more difficult and makes battles last much longer. This mod makes this game the perfect total war game.

If you like the Total War series then consider this a purchase, if you hated the bugs of Empire Total War and didn't like Napoleon either this is a return to the roots of CA but don't expect a massive conquer the world campaign just an awesome rebirth.

After Medieval 2: Total War and Empire: Total War, I was extremely reluctant to pre-order another Creative Assembly title. The previous games were so bugged after all.

However, after seeing more and more screen shots, followed by doing a couple of previews I simply couldn't resist. The Japanese setting isn't my favourite but oh boy did the gameplay promise a lot of good. I wasn't disappointed when the game arrived.

Make no mistake: This is by far the best installment in the total war series so far. Almost everything we've been discussing within our team in regards to what Total War needed, has been implemented. Skill trees for generals, better experience system for normal units, Hero units, agents which are fun to use rather than a drag/boredom - it has it all.

Diplomacy is deep and intriguing and the AI is more than capable of keeping you on your toes. To top it all off, the multiplayer Avatar campaign and clan systems are fantastic and well worth buying the game for alone.

Only word of warning: If you expect to play the game on high or ultra settings, better bring a decent rig. I'm playing this on an i7-950 with 12GB ram, SSD and 2x GTX 460 (SLI) and am happy to see 45-55 fps depending on the circumstances.

Buy this.

My review on this game, based on 1.1 patch:

CA has had a string of stinkers, and I was ready to give up the ghost on them. Then, they put out Shogun 2. I felt this game would have a chance to be good, given the simplification and going back to the basics. It turns out, I was mostly right.

The single-player is like it has been in other Shogun games, it's fairly simplistic for thsoe used to Paradox's games, but it works well enough. There are some events which make things annoying, such as Realm Divided. I honestly have not given a whole lot of attention to this side of the game, as I feel it is the less interesting part of the series, and this game.

On the battles- the battles are well done. Going back to Japan and simplifying the units actually makes the game a little deeper- as hard counters are more important. I do feel the original game (Shogun) had a slightly better UI- and UI is a knock on the game right now. Overall, this is much, much better then Empire though, and the game is worth getting for this (though unsure if it's worth full price)

MP- if you're getting this game for MP, I'd say wait a bit, or wait for a sale as well, but get it. MP is fun, but there are problems right now. Avatar campaign is fun especially.

a) MP battles have no time limit. This can lead to stalemates with "I'm on a hill with archers, nyah nyah!" "I am too". Both sides end up sipping tea.

b) Dishonorable Coward bug. CA put in this tag to punish ragequitters. Right now though, it's punishing everybody. They have found the solution to this I believe, so I think it will get patched out. Still annoying

c) Bad Omen is real powerful early game, as was a payola retainer.

d) There are some matchmaking issues as well.

Overall, despite the many flaws and bugs listed, this is still a good game, at least in the battle side of things, and some people may enjoy the strategic map content, though I'd rather wait for Sengoku personally. I'd give this game a solid B 8/10 rating, and say worth it on sale. Not regretting the purchase, though I hope Sega/CA manages to bugfix this time. They got the big thing right, now they just need to finish the deal to get back in my good graces.

Shogun 2 greatly expands on the Total War series. Set in an intriguing setting between warring Japanese Clans, the player feels invested in his Clan. This connection between player and country is enhanced by many new features added to Shogun 2 including an RPG/promotion system for agents and generals and new diplomatic options such as hostages. During battles, the AI has been vastly improved, and will attempt more flanks and intentionally surround and often overwhelm your forces. Overall, Shogun 2 is a great milestone in the Total War series.

I would not reccomend buying Shogun 2 Total War.

The only thing the game has going for it are better graphics than the original (but still nothing spectacular - the graphics kind of remind me of someone who wants to use all of their toys, and ends up over-doing it).

You have to play it through STEAM (which is something for which I truly do not understand the need - for ANY game).

The game itself is overwrought and has too many "new" features and departures from the other games of the Total War series. One will barely recognize it as another game in the genre.

Everything has been unnecessarily complicated and is no longer as intuitive as the other Total War titles.

Save your money (or at least wait until it is a year or two old and then only pay $9.99 for it, it is not worth the $50 I just paid 3 days ago.)

For any Total War fan, Shogun II is the game to get. Even on a PC that isn't the best machine out there(but still in decent shape) the game looks amazing. Every single man on the battlefield feels like he's alive, the animation is so engrossing, in the middle of a giant class of swords and spears, the player can always make out two individuals that are dueling to the death.

The Campaign map itself is beautifully done, where the unexplored areas of Japan are not just(like in previous games) covered by the proverbial "Fog of War" but instead replaced with a beautiful ink-drawn map that indicates where resources, villages, towns and castles are.

At the time of this review, I can say that most of the game is unexplored, but I am sure that it will exceed my expectations.

A wonderful game SEGA has shown again that they can do no wrong with the total war series. Beautiful graphics, excelent gameplay just all togeter a awesome game. I recommend it to everyone.

A couple of points first - the 3rd Party download is a Steam first-day patch and there seem to be a few issues as of first day with how Steam recognises a Gamersgate intallation which may mean you need to download directly again from Steam. Hopefully Gamersgate will iron those problems out. The game is also directx 9 on release and lacks AA (forcing it via GPU causes other issues) though CA have promised a patch to reintroduce dx10 and 11 within 4 weeks. The current version on Gamersgate is the basic edition - so no ninja clan available to play.

Ok, early issues out of the way, this is quite frankly a wonderful release from CA. They've taken onboard the criticisms of previous releases in terms of campaign and battle AI and have really upped their game. That's not to claim perfection, but it is at least now a challenge and the AI conducts itself adequately - cavalry wings utilised properly in my first battle was a fairly typical introduction to the battle AI.

It's also a pretty game even in directx 9 and without AA if you can ignore the jags. The music, the mock-contemporary watercolours and just the overall feel of the game leave you wanting more. When this one is polished it will be stunning.

Basic gameplay hasn't changed too much from previous Total War titles - develop your provinces, recruit armies, go conquer. However there's a welcome return of having a family tree for your leaders' family and the customisation of each leader as he progresses is very nicely done. Perhaps the best of the new features for me is that you can now have a human player play the AI army in your campaign game. Which has the potential to really push the campaign game into new territory.

After a good dozen hours of playing, I've got to say I've been very pleased by CA's work on this title. It's stable, I'm running everything on ultra with no problems - multicore support ftw, and it's been immense fun so far to play.

Here's hoping that this provides a base game with the longevity of R:TW for the modding community. From first impressions, it really deserves to be played for a long time.

My test system: Radeon 5770, AMD 1055T, 4gb, Win 7 64-bit (no overclocking)

Very impressed by this game. Amazing battles and a great campain that will keep you busy for hours. The interface works great and the new RPG elements for generals is fun and makes you care more about your generals. Only negative is that you really need a good computer to run this game on high settings. But if you have it, it looks great!

Great game so far. The only thing that I see that could be a problem is the system specs. My i7 with SSD and pretty good vid card is getting eaten by this game pretty hard.

On to the good stuff. The RPG elements that were added to the game make this a MAJOR win. Being able to advance your generals in the way you wish is great. Also, the graphics are top notch. The in game movies are great as well. All of the voice acting is very well done. I can't really find any faults in the game so far. If you liked Rome, you will LOVE Shogun 2. It is leaps and bounds ahead.

A worthy successor for Total War series, the graphic is just beautiful. Less truly is more when it comes to Total War Shogun 2, with a smaller scale and tighter focus, bringing the best gameplay of any entry in the franchise.

The attention to detail is astounding. There are so many features in this game it's mind boggling. Get it nao! xD