Empire Total War Review

Empire: Total War was released in 2011 to universal acclaim. It brought a whole new level of gameplay to the Total War series and offered  improved graphics and detail to the game. Comparable to both Age of Empires and Civilization 4, Empire brings the best of both worlds, as it allows you to control not only your armies, but your nation’s  path overall. So let’s check out my Empire Total War Review. 

The overworld is very similar to other games, such as Civilization Complete and the other Total War series. In Empire, unlike other Total War Games, you are offered maps in three regions, or theaters, which are the Americans, Europe, and India. You can also trade in the West Indies, Ivory Coast, East Africa and South America using Trade ships.

Each player is given a turn, like in Civilization. This gives the world a very strategic feel. You can either choose to make your nation an economical powerhouse, or a war hungry state. Each nation is given their own unique units and it really gives that personal feel to the game.

You are given the choice to follow the thirteen colonies as they prepare to fight first the French, and then the English. The final chapter of this campaign also allows you to play as the United States in the Grand Campaign style, which is the campaign that most players choose. You can also choose to fight single battles, whether historic or not, in the three battle maps: land, naval and siege. For those players who want to test their abilities against others, there is also a multiplayer option.

The Sour Spots:

The sour spots in the Empire Total War have to be the siege battles and the naval combat. In the naval combat, the auto-lock is completely hopeless, but it can be worked around by manually controlling your ships. In the siege battles, it was completely botched. The attacking forces scale the walls using grapples, but this can be a pain, as they can be picked off very easily. Even if you break through the walls, it can be a headache to attack.

The last point of criticism, and probably the most annoying thing about the game, is the diplomacy of the AI. It can be very tricky to measure how other nations feel about your proposals and more often than not, they will reject them, even if they are something like recommending a trade proposal to a friendly nation. Sometimes, even hostile nations will accept the same proposal that a friendly nation rejected, which can make for some annoying diplomacy.

Another point of criticism is the fact that allies in Empire are not as helpful as they could be. You can’t coordinate attacks between the two of you, or even direct their motions at all. The most you can hope for is that they will attack when you need them to.

Empire Total War Review: Case Closed

But, despite all of these issues, Empire is a fun game. It is addictive and each game can last hours, depending on the type of campaign you choose. I really had fun doing my Empire Total War Review. After all, it’s definitely earned its place among the other Total War titles.