Rome: Total War Hands-On

Although action games continually dominated throughout most of the E3 show this year, we managed to get a glimpse of a couple of excellent RTS titles - The Lord of the Rings: the Battle for Middle-earth and Rome: Total War being the most important. Why are they important? Well, there are two answers to that question. One, they both exceed the visual appeal of standards noted in contemporary RTS games. And two, I honestly don't know if I've every seen such impressively coordinated real-time battles in a strategy game before. The object of Creative Assembly's next endeavor is to run everything in full 3D this time around. This includes fully rendered and carefully animated unit models, improved particle effects, etc.

Ready, aim... No dammit! Wait for it!

Let’s try and talk this over, people!!

Rome: Total War is a strategy game that's likely to bring the Shogun series to new heights. The series distinguished itself over the years as a delightful combo of classic turn-based elements (conveyed through an intuitive 2D campaign map) and addictive RTS gameplay. While players rule their empires, they are also able to conquer enemy territory in real-time 3D. The sheer size of some of the battles on display was amazing.

Amongst the many promising features of Rome: Total War, the lads at Creative Assembly were very keen to unveil that some battles will actually show 10,000 fully modeled 3D units on the screen at once. Apart from that, other graphical improvements are also included such as additional details in the background which makes maps look exceedingly better than in earlier incarnations of the Shogun series (actually, I remember them being somewhat flat and a bit to low on textures).

The demo running on the E3 show, revealed two battles. From the moment we saw the first one in action, we were taken by some of the game's advantages. The new 3D camera can be panned in any direction, therefore allowing players to devise any tactic they wish to conquer their enemies. One particular scenario displayed a large Gaul army charging relentlessly at the Roman lines which were, as you'd expect, extremely well-organized. The Romans carefully weighed their options. Instead of rushing forward to meet the opposing Gaul army head on, they began to shift formation, placing archers and catapults at the back, while pushing the infantry onward to form a dense defensive perimeter. Simultaneously, the cavalry attempted to flank their oppressors and take them by surprise. Given the Romans' apparent tactical advantage, the enemy didn't stand a chance. Almost half of the Gaul army was wiped out in a rain of arrows and catapult fire (archers and catapults were placed on higher ground to increase accuracy). The infantry succeeded in holding back what was left of the enemy, while the cavalry rushed into the fray to finish the job (sounds familiar... Russell Crowe? Gladiator perhaps?). The best moment in this segment showcased to us, was when the intuitive new camera zoomed in on the action... up to a point where you could see all the mucous and blood dripping from the nostrils of each soldier on the battlefield. Well, not really. But it sure as hell zooms in close, I'll tell ya that much. In any case, it was at that moment that I realized how much things had change since the last Shogun game. Also, the new engine obviously did a great deal to intensify the combat, allowing for varied terrain formations (which in turn opens additional strategy maneuvers), enhanced particle effects, and so on.

In the following map we were able to see a lot more. First off, we witnessed the overhead view (i.e. the turn-based part of the game) which gives the player a chance to weigh his options before he marches into battle. The dude who was playing the demo was about to lay siege to a colossal enemy castle. Prior to his assault, he ordered the construction of several siege weapons including catapults, siege ladders, siege towers and a kick-ass battering ram. He was also able to eradicate a smaller army which supposed to act as enemy reinforcements. The onslaught began, and it was a fantastic sight. Siege towers and ladders were rushing towards the castle walls, while the battering ram started punching through the main gate. The castle's defenses did their best to stop the powerful offensive. Flaming arrows were shot at the oncoming army below at the foot of the city walls, catapults were firing, and boiling oil was being poured onto the soldiers who were moving the battering ram. To protect soldiers from flaming arrows, they were instructed to use their shields for cover - the Roman lines formed an impenetrable turtle shield. (Ed - You ancient scholars might like to know that the name of the turtle shield is the Testudo.) Gradually, the walls were scaled and conquered, and the city was conquered.

No trolls around... Someone has to push those siege towers.

Gang way, coming through!

Some of the units are not that easy to beat. Hannibal's Elephant warriors required something a little more radical. History notes that the Romans discovered a weakness in these massive battle units. Using soldiers, archers and cavalry has very little effect on them, so the Romans decided to use... well pigs - they'd smear them with tar (Ed. - Then add a pinch of flour and a light coating of Soy Sauce and White Wine for flavor), set them on fire and turn 'em loose. The commotion caused by the burning, squealing pigs scared the crap out of elephants, rendering them completely powerless. (Ed - Then they ate them. I would.)

The interface and new 3D map appear to work quite well in the game's turn-based mode. Everything went smoothly throughout the entire demonstration. All crucial icons, options, and menus were on hand, and we believe most gamers are going to find it intuitive and straightforward.

The Rome: Total War soundtrack is yet another tribute to Ridley Scott's Gladiator. Most of the tunes we heard playing sounded an awful lot like those from the movie (originally composed by Hans Zammer - the dude who co-wrote soundtracks for Pirates of the Caribbean, The Last Samurai, The Rock, The Fan, and many others). Overall, the in-game music was spectacular and blended well with the action.

Describing the rest of the game would be an apparent waste of time. You have to see it for yourself to believe it. Rome: Total War is by far one of the most promising strategy games currently in development. Creative Assembly are doing their job well seeing how the game looks thus far.