Everything I Love & Hate About Total War: Pharaoh - Gameplay Impressions & Review
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- čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
- So Total War: Pharaoh has been announced as the next Historical Total War game in the franchise, spearheaded by the CA Sofia team responsible for the previous Saga games and taking place during the Bronze Age and specifically towards the end of this super underrepresented setting with the invasion of the elusive Sea People invaders.
A ton of gameplay footage and dev interviews were released yesterday that reveal an insane amount of information about both the campaign side and especially the battles in the game from sieges to cultural political mechanics to the end game and in today’s video I’ll be diving into all of this to give you my honest opinion on Pharaoh.
Many people have been asking me for my thoughts on Pharaoh so far and here it is. I’m sure we’ll see more info and gameplay in the next few months and I’ll be making more videos covering these reveals. Hope you enjoyed the video, if you did, give it a like and drop any thoughts or questions in the comments section below! I’d love to hear what you think about everything I’ve discussed here and what you think about Total War Pharaoh so far.
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➡What do you think about Total War: Pharaoh so far? Let me know in the comments below!
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I think the franchise needs a tactical map "in between" the campaign map and the battle map. It's frustrating starting a battle and the location where I want my army to be is out of bounds.
Another idea I had was that the number of units should be directly linked to the number of stars a commander has. A 2 star general would be able to command 4 units plus bodyguard for example, (3 stars would command 6 units) and then you could combine multiple commanders to make a larger army. This would create the dynamic between commanders that 3 Kingdoms was trying to create in a more natural way.
I think they’re missing out on a potentially great unique faction mechanic if they’re going to do the late Bronze Age in the Near East and don’t include Israel as a nomadic, destabilizing Levantine faction with the potential to become a main faction(s) of either the United Davidic Kingdoms or the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel. You can debate the historicity of it - that’s fair - but there’s tons you could do with that to make them a unique faction to play or to have present on the map.
utube gods threw this channel in my feed..so i am happy...reading the comments also has me in a happy place of joining the show with smarter ppl in the mix:)
I Honestly think that this and maybe the next game are going to be all practice for the campaign map and diplomacy. I remember way back when that was one of the main complaints people had, so i think that's why CA has dumbed down battles recently. All of this will be merged into a mega project for the next game or a few games down the line where they bring back tactical battles alongside a decent campaign map. If i were able to add one thing to this game, it would be unit verity in terms of color and function. Think back at medevil 2 Kingdoms America but put it on max. i agree with you that the battles don't seem to be satisfying.
I've lost hope in CA and am thoroughly relying on mods on the older games.
MK1212, Dawnless days, and Total fall of the samurai really coming in clutch. Miles better than all the garbage CA is pumping out
@@robbenn1590 Total Fall of the Samurai? Is that a Mod, or are you referring to the expansion to Shogun 2?
@@SpeCifiC0507 Its a mod, essentially trying to create the victorian time period on Shogun 2. Great mod I recommend trying it
@@robbenn1590 never heard of it. I'll take a look
@@Wha2les Hell yea, its on Mod DB
The thing that bothers me the most is the absence of Mesopotamia and Greece. It is almost certain we will get them as DLC later on, but honestly, didn't anyone in the design team think that something is off for a flagship Bronze Age title that doesn't have Mykenai, Assyria or Babylon? We are receiving way too little content to justify a 60 EUR price tag in my opinion. This is very disappointing.
P.S: The Hanging Gardens did not exist in the Bronze Age :P
Feel exactly the same! And ah fair enough my bad 😂😂
Exactly. They are looking for future money grabs at the expense of what should be standard inclusions.
Excatly.
I play TW games since Shogun 1. But since launch of M2TEW I lost my trust in CA and I won't pay for unfinished products unless fixed and with ALL major factions present. There is no point to rush for the launch date.
Expect DLCs of "missing" factions.. the usual cutting out of already programmed stuff for later moneymaking is nowadays a regular thing unfortunately...
@@PraetorianG2004yes, would have loved Mongols in Ros and Koreans and chinese too.
I miss the combat of Rome 1 and Medieval 2. Individual soldiers would avoid cramming together and could interrupt an enemy’s attack on an ally.
Shogun 2 managed to pull off sync combat animations because they were quick and not as long as Rome 2's animations. Granted, it can still look goofy at times, but it is better than Rome 2's dueling. Let's just hope Pharoah improves this.
@@JipFoxproblem is its shogun.. People want certain ages more than others... I'm not interested in that period of time at all
@@murder13love have you played it at all?
@@simondesanta5774 not interested in samurai at all, so no. Not interested whatsoever
@@murder13love Well you don't necessarily have to share interest in a specific time period to enjoy a total war game. I share no interest in the medieval ages but I still enjoy Medieval 2. And I was specifically talking about matched combat overall. Shogun 2 pulled it off way better than Rome 2 but that's just my opinion
This is a very small critique, but I still feel like it's worth noting. In this game, the unit cards are all just 3D models without any historical context. The Shogun 2 and Fall of the Samurai unit cards were my favorites because they were authentic to the historical period and added immersion to the game. Additionally, it was one of the things that sparked my interest in Japanese history. Since CA stopped making unit cards that fit the historical background, it just doesn't feel the same. Sometimes it's the little things that you miss.
They did that in rome 2 as well and everyone complained, which is why they stopped doing that with the exception of age of charlamagne
@@guildmasterwigglytuff235 That's fair since Rome 2's unit cards looked too identical whereas in Shogun 2, each unit card looked different
Egyptian art is not good on details , unfortunately , best to keep it like it is.
The art from the era of the game, will be similar to Rome II. Not every era or culture has the best potential art for cards.
@@cseijifja its not too difficult to figure out a way to make it viable.
Just lazy devs copying troy’s disgusting features.
I honestly think naming the game "Pharaoh" was a mistake. Don't get me wrong, I love Ancient Egypt, but something like "Total War: Bronze Age" would have generated much more hype and probably help with sales.
They've had other bronze age games so that would not work
@@ChumHistory Would have worked fine, other bronze age would be Troy? Troy is said to be what it is, a saga. The game needs the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Mycenae.
@@dgray3771 All I want is to make a Phoenician trade empire, carthage in the east. :(
The limitation of the map to the western Levant and the resulting lack of different cultures is just sad. Personally, I am also not a fan of the narrative approach. I would rather have an well designed sandbox that generates stories on its own through impactful random events. If you want to facilitate a civilizational decline narrative just increase the frequency and intensity of disasters and dilemmas over time. This way you will end up with a more natural implementation compared to the somewhat abstract prosperity mechanic.
Greece and Mesopotamia are a must for a proper Bronze Age Total War Game.
They explicitly said there wasn't a narrative approach and that this is probably the most sandbox total war they ever did. You can even randomize your spawn region on the map x)
This is going to focus so much on the coastal settlements from Egypt to Anatolia with i expect very little inland action, i think this is a big limitation.
Hope we get a sandbox mode too.
Every year we hope for something good and are always disappointed!
We need an rival to the CA Total War Games
You basically need a good budget, animators ,artists , programmer's,designers and you can rival total war. And the first project will take 3 to 4 years to fully understand this genre of game development and finally the first project will be Total Garbage.
And every year we have fans like you that bitch and moan because the did not get what they want
SO badly.
That’s Paradox for you my friend.
@@gillesjacquemin3433 If Paradox made battle, sure. Paradox makes Grand Strategy games, not mixed Grand and Real Time.
The degrading armor makes sense for the era but I would like a visual representation of the status and level of armor and weapons as we had 13 years ago with Medieval II
CA take 2 steps forward and 5 steps back with every new release since Rome 2.
I hope to see naval battles come back. Even a river battle would be a decent start.
They are literally adding “the sea people” if there is no sea battles it will be such a missed opportunity of a comeback of sea battles
Yes despite the "sea people's" being the main threat and most of the map covering the Eastern Mediterranean coastline i don't expect to see naval battles in this.
The biggest battle ramses had was on a river i dont care much for naval warfare never had but it would show they care it would be a nice touch
I hate the lack of UI banners both on campaign map and lack of stylized unit cards. On both the campaign map and in battle, it’s basically impossible to tell who you are fighting or even who is who. It’s just “red team vs green team.” This was already bad enough in Attila, but now when there is a lot of cultural similarity between units, it’s especially egregious and bland. The fact that we see authentic Egyptian art in some of the background art yet have generic 3D model unit cards just makes the missed opportunity all the more glaring. I’m *desperately* hoping that this is just an alpha build problem and they add what I mentioned later, but I remember holding out hope for Attila after their early release footage and we still ended up with green vs red battles and tiny circular faction icons that were barely distinguishable from one another.
You hit the nail on the head with all the missing major cultures and empires that are just cut from the game. Assyria would be awesome to play as, playing as Egypt and Hattusa should feel like playing declining hellenic powers in the classical age whereas Assyria should feel like Rome, just over there gathering power and getting ready to unite the entire known world at the time. The Elamites, Babylonians, Medians, etc are all disappointingly missing.
You could have numerous migratory starting points as well, the proto-Persians beginning as a migratory faction in the Caucasus mountains, the Dorians starting out as a migratory faction North of the Danube getting ready to adventure South to settle in Greece. I know the Sea peoples are going to be glooped into one single faction called the "sea people" as well but they should really be unique marauder/migratory factions in their own right.
They didn't go into it but how far down the Nile does the map extend also, will we get to play as Egypts great rival Kush? How about Punt or the proto-Ethiopians? This is also the age of the great invasion of India by the Aryans and destruction of the Indus-Valley civilization.
They seem to think the Bronze Age collapse only affected Egypt, the Levant, and the Hittites. This is the era where entire civilizations from Southern Italy to India literally went extinct, their writing systems died out, and everything laid in ruins for about 300 years until the start of the Classical age around 800BC
Oh we will get them all. Glory to the greed gods of CA!!! May they continue to rob us of every last god damn penny.
Good point:
Missing important Mesopotamian factions. Concentrating on Egypt and the Hittite Empires.
It seems like it suffers of what it wants to be, causing it to feel shallow and wanting. Just like Three Kingdoms, between magic and historical. Ended being something no one actually cared for.
Egypt but not deep enough,
Hittite but not deep enough,
Bronze age but half of important faction missing,
Welp, they trying to sell me a turd, change my mind!
Here I am wishing for empire 2
Same.
Am I the only one that really wants another total war game like empire or napoleon? Just imagine a polished revolutionary or civil war game… That would be so sick.
I don’t so much mind an artistic approach to unit design especially for the Bronze Age considering there is little to no remaining cultural evidence of the groups that existed. Many recreations today are best guesses and interpretations from what I’ve heard. I’m interested to see where this goes.
3:50 Troy had this mechanic, it had generals with bodyguards in their historic mode, they were also customisable. One thing I would like to see in this game from Troy is the ability to dismount your chariot, chariot units didn’t have this but the heroes did.
6:02 I mean that’s wholly untrue about Troy, yes it had fantastical elements, but you could choose the game mode that didn’t implement them, the gameplay wasn’t all masses of bodies, there was tactical depth, especially with the new unit types and varieties, in fact prolonged grinding is bad because you get more losses that way, you really wanted to capitalises on your chargers and flanking units, there is a lot of shields in Troy, so skirmish units worked a lot better than bows to get behind the enemy while your front line dealt with them, your statement here is only true if you don’t know how to play the game.
6:49 you are saying this with full knowledge that 4 new factions are already confirmed and a campaign pack
9:40 Troy could have had that if they didn’t have to cut support of it, The map is a lot bigger than the playable area and it could have included a lot more cultures.
I dont see why people are so excited, dont get me wrong it looks better then what i excited but still it looks like a troy dlc or mod tbh. I hope its gonna be good but i think it will end up like troy and 3 kingdoms, ok but far from great games like medieval 2 have about 2800 ish players while troy is barely 200 players, medieval 2 is 16 YEARS OLD and troy is 3 years old. The older model of total war was flawed but it is superior to this new form of "historical" total war, it is basicly just warhammer in the real world i love warhammer but i play warhammer for fantasy not realism vice versa not semi-realistic. I hope it will be a good game and i do think some of the new things like no pocket ladders and weather mechanics are super cool and hope its here to stay for the long run. you can also see how they borrowed the unit stance from manor lords with give ground and hold ground.
Because I love the Late Bronze Age, particularly the Bronze Age collapse. So basically they made this game for me.
I get that Troy isn't every one cup of tea, it's a saga title after all. But getting player count from steam and using it as a valid point seems pointless in my opinion. Troy was free for every one on the premiere day on EGS, thus majority of the player base can play there. It's hard to say whether it's true as to EpicGames does not share such informations. Medieval 2 is also played to this day due to mods, so as I said comparing two titles seems like a stretch to me. Thrones of Britannia would be a lot more suitable for the comparison in my opinion.
@@atrim3433 that is true but still it certainly is far from a fan favorite. Also try to narrow your eyes Down and look at the battles Can you really tell if it is a troy dlc/mod i cant. I think it is unfair to make a game that is borderline the same and could have been a dlc and Price it 60 dollars. The same Can be Said for Thrones and atilla. I have to disagree When it comes to active players i think it is a valid argument since it shows how much people enjoy it. Also for me total war is beginning to look a bit too much like call of duty in terms of getting a new game every year that almost the same with differences but basically the same.
@@juliusdamsholt1222Yeah, I'm not saying that Pharoh will be a game that will change everything and put total war back on tracks. It won't, it's hard to say if it will be a good or bad title, the game did not come out yet. What I'm saying is that Pharoh seems to fix mistakes from Troy (based on the promotional videos that are always meant to show only the good bits) and be an improvement over the previous entry. I also said that comparing Medieval 2 to Troy seems like comparing Fallout 76 to Fallout New Vegas, proved classic to the game, that from the start was meant for just a part of the community.
@@atrim3433 i do agree on they fix a lot of things from troy and i do Think they are changing their games for the better. It does not even have to be one of the most popular total war games, take atilla for example it is much more controvesial it has about 1700 active players and troy barely hangning on 200 and yes their are definitely more on Epic gamesbut i still dont Think it is as High a number. And even if it is mods that keep it Alive witch definitely is since they have great mods its more then just that. The ui in the okser games is so much better the new one in my opinion the new looks like Civilization VI at best and a mobile game at worst you are welcome to disagree but i know many people feel the same. Also their is a reason Why modders make Big overhaul mods for these games its because they are superior in most ways.
Great work on this early game review of Total War: Pharaoh! Unlike many of your subs, I am very excited about this upcoming Total War game! Always had an interest in Ancient Egypt stemming from my teaching days and ironically this September I am finally going to fulfill a "bucket list" dream and actually visit this fascinating part of the ancient world. So needless to say, I will be pumped to see what this latest game has to offer when it launches in October (hopefully). As to your comments about a lack of several other important ancient civilization that existed in this time period not being part of the game, I suspect we many see some of these as DLC content in the years to come. Thanks again for all your hard work and I am looking forward to viewing future reviews that you create dealing with this game, Terminator!
Thank you mate! I hope its as good as you would like it to be :)
It would be fine with the smaller scope and the troyification if it was a Saga title and not a 59.99€ full priced game. They are using so many assets from troy that it doesn't justify the price in my opinion. Also the amount of DLCs they have announced already are a huge red flag. Overall it seems to me like an opportunity for them to make a quick buck with minimal costs. However, it is such a shame because after this we will probably never see a proper Bronze Age Total War on a larger scale.
Feels more like this game is just a Campaign pack for Troy itself, they just removed the Saga branding but that's what it is under the hood.
And what has the main historical team from CA's HQ been doing since 3k released ?
Excellent. You made a great point that the entire Bronze Age experience is being split when it could be done in Pharoah entirety
The running spear throw animation looks hilarious lmao
Yeah, I modded that shit out of my Troy as well; why do we need our infantry to throw spears while charging anyway? what was wrong with just throw>charge?
It seems like a step in the right direction. They really need to step away from making warhammer clones and make something unique and not like warhammer. I wouldnt be surprised if some of the Egyptian weapons and animations are from tomb skins in warhammer
it's a troy reskin with minor QOL improvements. It's not a full fledged game. It's going to be a placeholder for something bigger but they need quarterly profits...if you had the business mentality of a corporation with shareholders to appease, you would know that this is just to stabilize profits. Nothing else.
@@elviselcapo Stopgap measure just like NTW was between ETW and Shogun 2. Cosmetic changes to what is under the hood basically Troy 2.0. CA's main historical team from Horsham must have been working on something since 3k released ????
Loved the vid man, keep it up!
You are beautiful ❤️
Happy to have you back!
I'm hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. I'm very sceptical because of CA's past and those DLCs... I really hope they are no moneygrabs and really add valuable content but...
❤️❤️❤️
they should have at least extended the map to the fertile crescent so we could have Assyria and Babylon in the game.
come on Assyria even survived this period but dont appear to be in the game
Those are beyond a paywall unfortunately but should have been at release.
@@IceniTotalWar behind a paywall... Thats lame!
Things CA will never do, because the casuals are the target market. Things that WERE ALREADY IN THE SERIES A DECADE AGO.
-Removing passive replenishment.
Having casualties matter. Reinforcing army should be costly (finite resources such as population) as well as reducing exp lvl of the reinforced unit. It also should require active macro from the player. Otherwise campaign map is just custom battle faction selector and nothing more.
-Proper upkeep costs, prices and economy
No more overbloated stats that make elite units just straight forward upgrade from lower tier unit. Make elite units small size specialized elites for specific job with huge upkeep. Also make them fucking limited. No more T5 doomstacking by turn 40 and steamrolling map...
If they implement population, hope they just learn from thr DEI rome mod.
It impacts economic growth, and forces you to mix and change your military as you grow more or less powerful.
Its literally right there for them to copy the idea... They can adjust it to be less punishing or something.
Twenty bucks says the Sea-Peoples are represented by Atlantis, complete with Wizards, Dolphin Cavalry, and the like.
One of the few TW content creators who I can even stand anymore, appreciate your honesty in both praise and criticism
Aww thank you :) ❤️
I'm just waiting to see all the big TW channels get free early access and praise the game to high heaven then when it releases that's when their coverage stops !
@@IceniTotalWarhope that’s not me 😂
@@MedjayofFaiyum Hahaha no, I'm sure you'll be making TW Pharaoh content for a very long time.
If you want to be disappointed, you will be. Nothing will ever be good enough to make you happy. And you will die, years from now, wreathed in luxury, propped by trinkets and marvels beyond imagining, but above all: you will die in despair.
Would love Crusader Kings 3 politics, intrigues and legacy building mixed with the battles and the military systems of Total War.
at least we've got a mod for that
@@Stratega_Digitalis wait what mod? Also thanks for your instillation tutorials
Absolutely! The Total War series could learn a lot from CK3.
@@scsports7281 "Crusader Wars Alpha" for CK3. Uses Atilla TW for the battles.
Maybe and just maybe, they'll release a third game focused on Mesopotamia and then a big update merging all 3 games in an Immortal Empires style map
I just want a Lord of the Rings Total War please!! Or a Medieval 3 😩
They will just make lord of the rings be like Warhammer
There’s an Attila mod for that
@@artv.9989that’s fine, lord of the rings is actually good fantasy
Its the little details as square gate tunnels.
Is that just a strait slab of stone on top of the gatehouse?
How does it supports itself?
Where is the arch?
I'm actually interested about this game, so i can't wait how it actually goes.
Happy that they didn't made something like Truth behind the Myth.
I still expect CA to add in a "Mythology" mode later on with magic and single entity units. They just aren't marketing that until after release.
@@IceniTotalWari disagree. There’s not even enough mythology known from this period to do that kind off stuff. That just doesn’t make any sense and it’s sounds like your coping.
@@skrimply3415 No.
@@skrimply3415 You're the only one coping here.
@@chico9805 that might be true
Wonder if the Bronze Age mod for Rome2 will be any better... probably will since Mesopotamia will be in said mod.
That's supposed to have a full release this month and i'm keeping an upload slot free just for that !
@@IceniTotalWar I can't wait been waiting sooooo long
mesopotamia will be in this game as well; what else you think tose "campaign packs" are supposed to be?
@@captainnyet9855 lol good point
Great review.
I had no big expectations, yet I feel disappointed about battle mechanics.
As for the campaign, I must watch more, as I did not buy Troy.
On + side: epic Khemet (Egypt) settings in its gold age alone is worth to be happy about the Pharaoh.
Although reluctantly, I'm happy for this game.
We can all agree, we wanted a Medieval 3 or Empire 2. But we got a Troy 2
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks there are to many icons and buttons on in battle gameplay, but i mostly agree with you, on one hand it's like "yay, a historical title finally without magic" but as you said even it can be not such a bad game, the focus on Egypt mostly will take a lot from wanting to replay the game, for me even Shogun 2 even though is a good game created, i didn't really played many campaign cause for me it was not a great sense of diversity in factions, so even though I will play Pharaoh someday on a sale, i will continue with Rome 2 and Attila until a "proper" historical title, if, will be released
yeah, it's kind of ridiculous that back in the day we got enough info with just one banner over the unit but now we need 3 different markers per guy.
Weren't the hanging gardens build much later, like 6 century BC though?
Excellent synopsis. Spot on. This title would be exciting if it was a Saga and not considered a full TW game title, and if it was'nt so similar to Troy. Troy & Pharaoh remind me more of mobile type games.
Indeed it's Troy and Saga in all but name. I was actually hoping for a tentpole historical title from CA's main team in Horsham, what have they been doing since 3k released ???
@IceniTotalWar most likely they were drafted on to fix the mess that was/is warhammer. But pretty sure they have been working on Medieval 3. When the announcement will happen though I wouldn't think till next year now
I think the mytical powers are player based, the player can also induce those divine influences in the battle on command, that's what i read in some previews and it is similar to troy.
Yet another banger of a video.
Thank you sir :) ❤️❤️
I find the campaign customization feature for Pharoah quite interesting
I really really hope that they go more in the direction of making the game look like one of the historical titles in the combat in the way the units looks and the campaign map looks. I just really hope that they really try to make it historical title and not lean at all in the direction of the fantasy total wars.
I would like to point out that there is 3 confirmed dlc faction pack, assuming 3 factions each dlc then that means 9 plus playable factions and 3 more cultures possibly with unique mechanics and an expanded map. Also one campaign dlc pack is confirmed so it means a new timeline and possibly a different map.
Great vid. I feel the same way. I hope it's good, but disappointed Assyria and Babylon aren't included. Huge missed opportunity. I hope they'll reveal what the dlcs are exactly prior to release. Def not blind buying content
Fingers crossed I get to play Assyria. How will this compare with the mod Bronze Age in terms of gameplay I wonder...
Good luck with that. I think BA mod will hold up well considering it's on an old game and made by modders.
+ Looks nice aesthetically.
+I think it will have a good soundtrack, not a fan of Troy but it did have good music.
+population mechanic ???
+actual siege equipment that doesn't appear by magic and units can't assault immediately.
+matched combat ?????
-MP seems less than in previous games
- matched combat but from a studio that doesn't have a good record in this department
- no naval battles ? at least i haven't seen any, if the Sea People's are going to be a threat can we only engage with them once they land ?
- too much use of Troy assets a lot of this game looks like it was meant to be a Campaign DLC for Troy.
- "this is the next big historical Total War" quote by a developer. Now for those of you who are familiar with CA you know CA have stated for a long time, when 1 game is released we're already working on the next.
- very little unit diversity, no Cav, not many Chariot units, expect them to need lots of resources
- population mechanic ? honestly I just expect an abstract number as a resource, i don't think it will feel like other games where you actually feel like your cities are growing
- limited map not just the fact it covers only 3 cultures but it will mostly be centered along the east Med coastline, i don't expect to see many internal settlements.
- yes the footage with pyramids in background looks nice but we're not exactly going to be getting that in every battle are we, CA can be very stingy in the # of maps we get.
- BUGS ! It's all about the Bugs, CA are great at making buggy games and leaving it in an unfinished state. Stop rewarding them for doing this
- "this is the next big historical Total War" quote by a developer. Now for those of you who are familiar with CA you know CA have stated for a long time, when 1 game is released we're already working on the next.
So where is the main Historical team from Horsham HQ and what have they been working on since 3k released ?
If this is the next big Historical title and it already has multiple DLC including a Campaign pack then it will be a very long ( or possibly very short ) time before we see another Tentpole title.
I still expect to see a "Mythology" mode added in later with magic and single entity units.
- We know little about the MP, but definitely going to be limited in faction choices with only 3 factions (plus the DLC factions coming later, of course); they will probably compensate by bloating every faction's roster with ten types of slightly differently statteed melee infantry
- matched combat can be fine; the ones in Troy worked well enough; the big problem I have is the general "unhistorical" fighting styles these games seem to be going for. (i know Shogun 2 also overdid it on the animations but soldiers weren't wildly swinging their weapons around like we're seeing here, it looked like quality movie fight choreography and not guys swinging sledgehammers at each other)
- I am guessing no naval battles, it is a lost art at this point.
- this game re-uses the Troy engine, but Troy was a Saga gam and this is (supposedly) the big title; Usually CA does it the other way around and releases the new big title with the new engine version, then re-uses for the Saga game; this method feels a lot less impessive for a "tentpole" title.
- I don't care about that so long as the unit types e do get are well-differentiated; Troy was a step in the right directin in this regard by making Infantry weight types very important to their combat role; Shogun 2 had the most limited roster ever but the game still ended up fine because every unit type had it's unique role and excelled at something. What worries me about Troy is they might bloat the rosters with so many different units of the same type that they all just end up feeling generic. (the Rome 2 legionaire problem, which Troy also somewhat suffered from); I theory I am fine with no cavalry; Chariots work as a stand-in and Troy already showed that this approach can work; just have more differentiated infantry and chariots as specialist units.
- I agree about population, though I am interested to see how the "fall of civilisation" thing the devs are going for might affect it; maybe settlements can get in trouble if the population stat drops. (as opposed to other nw TW's where your city just stops growing) We will have to wait and see.
- CA's unwilingness to add more maps (as well as the generally tiny size of those maps) is a big problem with new TW's.
- BUGS !
- this game re-uses the Troy engine, but Troy was a Saga gam and this is (supposedly) the big title; Usually CA does it the other way around and releases the new big title with the new engine version, then re-uses for the Saga game; this method feels a lot less impessive for a "tentpole" title.
Mythology mode probably isn't happening unless CA gets really desperate; they tried with Troy Mythos and i don't think it was a great success.
About Babylon:
-The Hanging Gardens (if they ever existed) had not been built yet, and if they did exist they were not in Babylon but in Nineveh.
- This period was not a a good one for Babylon. The periode prior to the Collapse is considered a Dark Age in Babylonian history, as they were under control of the Kassites. And after the fall of the Kassites Babylonia was basically the Belgium of Mesopotamia, trapped between Assyria and Elam, until it was conqured by the Assyrians.
-Babylons next period as a power came 500-600 years after the Bronze Age Collapse, with the decline and eventual fall of Assyria.
Copy Paste Troy total war I will keep waiting for the Bronze age mod looks way way better please Terminator check with the mod dev what they did with the campaign
I'll pick this game when it is heavily on sale.
I adored 3k and they killed it before implementing all of the contents needed to make the game truly great.
Burned my hand once and never again.
I guess, guys, all we have now is living in the past and enjoying the old games and great mods for them because, it seems, CA isn't interested in creating proper games as much as they are interested is making money.
I pretty much agree but i am just gonna wait and see.
Can’t wait to see an empire 2 looking like this!
So the evidence about the Sea People(s) seems to show it was more like wave after wave, probably of snowball effect; people from Sardinia and Corsica raided Italy and Sicily, and now being in desperation, Italians and Siciliotes join the rolling tide of Sea Peoples, which then got some Greeks, then Anatolians, then Cypriotes, and on and on and it was just like wave after wave of sometimes small, sometimes massive invasions. This is how the Hun and Mongol mechanics should have worked. Would be neat if they got it right. They probably won't.
Don't worry, they'll make some of the other civilizations playable in $30 dlcs.
Oh i'm not worried about that 😉
its looking good, but lets wait for more gameplay and information
Oh yeah CA are great at marketing and Trailers. Wait for reviews by players and not those who get free early access and then don'y play the game themselves after release.
Everyone: how about Medieval 3?
CA: how about Troy but it's 70 bucks.
I am from cyprus so the prospect of roleplaying as Cypriot bronze age kingdoms reaaaallly gets me going , but yea I hope they do understand what we want from a historical game
I want a remaster of Empire and Empire 2: Victorian age. Imagine all the powers of the 19th century clashing on a global map.
Where are the times when CA left its comfort zone and made different, unique games. Take Empire as an example. They were not afraid of a new era, a new system of provinces and towns. They didn't cut coupons based on the success of previous titles. They showed some courage in Warhammer too. It's a pity that in historical games they forgot about it and made an improved version of Troy
Your point of other cultures, I wouldn't be surprised if CA gave it piece meal, like with Warhammer TW. Simply extend the map. And make the game bronze age TW from the initial Pharaoh TW.
When I first heard when the game was taking place I was exited to play as Babylon. Now I couldn’t be bothered playing it
have you tried to get in contact with CA for an early access?
I’ll be getting early access around September
Aesthetics look good. Additional mechanics to the strategic layer are great.
Limited factions are a problem. Especially considering this is the size of the smaller SAGA titles BUT, are triple A price.
Worse is the fact that additional factions are ready to go but, you have to pay an upgrade cost, at launch, to receive them. Seems a bit dodgy.
I'm not even gonna lie, I've seen all these polls left and right leading up to the announcement of this game. Folks would ask something along the lines of "which time period/sequel are you most interested in?" and always, ALWAYS, it was Medieval 3 or, hell, even Empire 2. I don't remember seeing a single person wanting a Bronze Age Total War game. And yet here we are. I swear CA just hates making money or something.
I liked Troy, even with its base Truth behind the Myth theme. I like the aesthetics of it and it does help the Bronze Age is my favorite time period. Really hyped for this game and its good to hear a balanced take that isn't just "oh it looks so bad its so shit its just Troy".
I think the lack of at least Mycenae is a bit rough considering they had close relations with the Hittites and were also affected by the Sea Peoples. I think it'd be pretty rude of them to include them as DLC considering we'd basically just be buying a Troy faction (I wouldn't be upset if the Myceneans literally were, to be honest). Because of the specific East Mediterranean setting, I would be ok with Assyria appearing as a horde faction like the Mongols or Timurids in Med2. I personally suspect the DLC factions will be Kush, the Sea People, Mycenae (sadly), and maybe a more "minor" faction like Phrygians or Libyans.
DLC faction, probably; it's a shame TW has sunk to the level where key factions are now locked out of the base game but it's where we're at.
i just looked at the active players over the last 24 hours.
Rome 2, 7000+ players
Troy, 480 players
that should tell you everything right there come on CA please give us what we want
Here's hoping this isn't just a "Total War Saga" marketed without the 'Saga' part. Seems like a reskin of Troy, like how Britannia was a reskin of Attila.
If you include Greece, Troy, Babylon, the Hittites and such from the beginning, how are you going to sell them later as DLC'S?
Aren’t they telling us exactly what to think with the opening of the trailer? The dung beetle is the perfect metaphor for the studio rolling out the latest helping of excrement
the only good thing about this is knowing that its CA Sofia doing it, maybe that leaves another part of CA to make the games we actually want like Empire 2 and Medieval 3 lol
Total War Saga: Pharoah.
There fixed the title.
As I lay out in my video, quite annoyed with the missing cultures and the sea people without sea mechanics.
CA, no naval battles for the Sea People's ! Also map focused on coastline of Eastern Mediterranean but no naval battles !
Historical accuracy no longer matters to media. All that matters is if it will increase sales or tick an acitivist box
Same as with Troy or Chinese TW, I wouldn't even play it for free.
The fans want the return of Medieval TW for years, but yet again they come with another money melking mashine no one actually asked for.
Thank god we actually have talented modders in our community doing all the good work!
As a archeology student specializing in the ancient middle east its so sad seeing the absence of Assyrians, Elamites, Kassite Babylonians and the Mitanni kingdom. Such a disappointment
The only thing I'm excited about this is that it's based on ancient Egypt, and for the mods that will come out.
Can we just have a simple game like Medieval two again please? It wasn’t perfect but it knew what it was and ran with it. These newer titles just seem to be miss after miss 🤦🏼♀️ Also, Troy was just sad. It failed, hard. I don’t understand why a dev team that made a game we didn’t like was contracted with to make another title.
Nah man, we gotta release a game with 3 factions with 10 different kinds of heavy infantry each; if we made 10 factions with 3 types of heavy infantry each we can't get sell the 7 other factions as DLC packs.
Welp pharaoh just made me say this, "Age of bronze mod for the win!"
Small map + bad animations + non existing collisions ! These are deal breakers for real ! There was a time when every unit upgrade like shields and swords would reflect on visuals like Rome ! There was a time when we upgraded everything in castles separately like gates and reflected on gameplay ! What game takes such large strides to the worse ?
You don't want those old fashioned things do you 🤔 listen to CA they know best ! 🤣🤣
@@IceniTotalWar I sometimes think they're only targeting younger gamers with the faster paced, more cartoonish style. But they're really losing loyal fans here :/
I feel like the cultures you mentioned that are missing are probably the four DLC they already have planned for the game. Im excited for this game and will probably get it bc i think it's really good-looking. But i do find it annoying that there's a crapton of DLC planned already. Like if all that content is done why is it not just in the base game. I understand saving some of it for later, but like 4 whole factions? Really?
The DLC model is pretty much set in stone now for most games. Why sell all your content up front and kill off replayability when you can piecemeal it out? I agree that the DLC will most likely cover the missing cultures and areas not yet mentioned in the game.
We can see now the huge mistake CA made going for a mythical Troy game instead of Bronze Age collapse from the get go. They split the games in two, lost goodwill with costumers and are now trying to patch it up with a new game which covers only a fraction of the map/civilizations a full BA collapse game would've covered. Remarkably bad strategic thinking.
I think they could try to remedy this by re-using the Troy map and units/factions and combining the two for ppl who own both games, similar to what they did with warhammer Mortal Empires campaign. That would increase my interest.
I have to say it has way too many Troy like aesthetics. It looks more like a Troy DLC to me than it's own title.
Troy campaign pack spun off into it's own full historical release with it's own DLC makes for increased profits and less player satisfaction.
I think the franchise needs a tactical map "in between" the campaign map and the battle map. It's frustrating starting a battle and the spot I want my army to be is out of bounds.
Another idea I had was that the number of units should be directly linked to the number of stars a commander has. A 2 star general would be able to command 4 units, and then you could combine multiple commanders to make a larger army. This would create the dynamics between commanders that 3 Kingdoms was trying to create in a more natural way.
You mean like in rome or med2 where the terrain of the battlemap was generated from your actual position on the campaign map? A return of that would be more than welcome!
@@usadefcon1 Imagine, you lose your best generals in the late game. Then you would not be able to gather a large army and you essentially get overrun by the ai.
@@AnimeFan-dl4qd You'd always be able to recruit as many units as you want no matter how bad the general, but you would take an exponential morale penalty per unit over the limit.
The invasion of the sea people gives me massive Stellaris end game crisis vibes.
This just looks like a DLC for troy...
I hope they merge both maps serving the new game , could it possibly be ?
The campaign DLC they announced in the road map
True, similar to Napoleon and Atilla.
I did not like Troy and to this day still enjoy Rome 2 with DEI mod. Probably my ideal total war experience.
Wait for the Bronze Age mod for Rome 2 later this month.
Is this easy to install? I'm dumb with this stuff. Like the sound of the above comment too
:-( We just had Troy and the Desert Kings in Warhammer fighting in the bloody desert......we needed Medieval 3!!! I feel gutted
I just downloaded the DEI mod for Rome2, im set for months anyway
A simple culture flag with a weapon icon over a unit that blinks white when wavering is sorely missed at least that gave some sort of faction differences on the field other then the horrible green and red
So far, so good. Really glad there's no mythical stuff so far. I like the role that religion is supposed to play but I also like that it doesn't come packaged with "Ra's Sun Warriors" or some nonsense like that. In a lot of ways, I fully expected another 3K, if I gotta be honest. I'm positively surprised thus far. I never pre-order games since Rome 2 (which I, to this day, still just cannot play, that game just does not feel right to me), and I'm not pre-ordering this one either. But I'll keep a close eye on it. If it has all the elements I'm looking for from an actual, historical total war, then I'll buy it. Here's hoping.
this is all for the most part equivalent to Troy's historical mode; which was in general a fun experience if not for the very lackluster battles and lack of navies. (which is a big problem when the entire center of the map is a sea that every faction can now freely move armies across at lightning speed)
Also just generally I hate the way armies are tied to the general in new TW games as it removes much of the strategic depth.
@@captainnyet9855 I never got around to trying Troy since in 3K the non-mythical mode was kind of a joke and I thought Troy might be a similar deal. If it's not too bad, I might give it a shot really. But yeah, sounds a bit odd to make a game focused around Ancient Greece but not include navies, which played a huge part in Ancient Greek warfare...
I echo all these thoughts as well. Except that I still really like Three Kingdoms.
3k has a lot of good points, i just found it quite boring though. After about 20/30 turns i would find myself in a powerful Alliance, none of my enemies could get near me. I used all my Allies to crush my enemies and i didn't even get to fight any more battles. I would set a target settlement, march towards it and my Allies would capture it long before i got close.
I am sooooo tired of another antiquity setting... we had Rome 2, Attila, Troy and 3K. Ten years of no gunpowder... The Emperor does not consent.
I was praying for an official Empire 2 or even better a victorian setting or even a "The Great Toal War" and now? Some completly the same.
So all I can do is modding Shogun and Napaleon to death and hope that CA will release an interessting TW before the endtimes come...
I won't be buying another TW until we get a new engine. The current engine has been stretched to its limits and all the Tw games are just visual fluff updates with no real innovations.
Same.
A new engine is definitely needed
I want to see what total war would be like if the campaign map was also real time instead of turn based
I welcome a historical title and ancient Egypt certainly is interesting to play (though would have much prefaded a Bronze Age game that covers Middle East and Europe). But lets be honest here, CA have been somewhat lacklustre for years. The clunky animations in this game look like something that could have been released over a decade ago. Whilst the expensive price is especially unjustified given that we know that there must be important factions locked in DLC instead of being available in the base game.
Your right and the only Reason i think we dont get Empire or MED3 is because they make a new one. CA themselves know this Engines served its Time. i really believe they dont wanna mess this up with such a long Fan Favourit waited Game dont you think ? Has to be.... i just cant believe People Screaming for this Games for over 10 Years and CA is like.... Nahhhh dont care, its insane amount of Money.
I don’t know if everyone gonna agree with me.
If Total War Pharaoh, despite using reused assets, is playable and fun. While not broken and full of bugs, I’d play it.
I dont remember anyone asking for an Egyptian total war on any of the dozens of polls and surveys the last 10 years
Saw the trailer, saw the rest.
Disappointed enough to not even bother with watching related content about it in the future.
I expected something of a leap in technology, innovation in ideas or something that we love in old titles to come back super fleshed out, or any other massive improvement after all this time since a historical title.
but no :)
(will watch your's, i like the analytics^^)