Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

[McLite]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I finally finished the RTI campaign and loved it. Hopefully they will get some patches out to clean up the main campaign ASAP.

[Jistic]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I am enjoying the game I think more than a lot of people. However I will say the CPU A.I. is still kinda brain dead. In fact there's times when I think it's actually worse than previous Total Wars. They aren't good at assaulting a fort I can tell you that much.

Also I'm underwhelmed with the naval battles. I've played a few and it just doesn't lend itself well to playing. I don't feel like I have much influence as to what's gonna happen. I just autoplay them now.

I give them credit for trying it, but in retrospect I kinda wish they focused more on other areas.

Still enjoying the game however, and looking forward to some serious mods.

[davin]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I am enjoying the game I think more than a lot of people. However I will say the CPU A.I. is still kinda brain dead. In fact there's times when I think it's actually worse than previous Total Wars. They aren't good at assaulting a fort I can tell you that much.

Also I'm underwhelmed with the naval battles. I've played a few and it just doesn't lend itself well to playing. I don't feel like I have much influence as to what's gonna happen. I just autoplay them now.

I give them credit for trying it, but in retrospect I kinda wish they focused more on other areas.

Still enjoying the game however, and looking forward to some serious mods.

I was enjoying the game a lot, but the frequent crashes I got kind of ruined it. I think naval battles can be fun, but sometimes I know I am not supposed to win despite every advantage. The CPU had a large advantage in reload time (which at turn one, they shouldn't), giving them the ability to destroy my ships much faster than I can take down theirs. Also, the CPU fleets hardly ever rout, while mine will go away as quick as possible. Naval battles are really frustrating. I am doing everything right, getting the shots, but the AI's ships can withstand more (despite being lesser ships) and can fire faster.

The lack of naval invasions by the AI is kind of stupid though. Britain essentially just sits around building a navy, advancing nowhere. Nobody will ever take your colonial possessions if they are islands.

I don't understand star forts. They are way too big for even a full stack to defend, and even when I did, my guys were completely ineffective at it. The fort AI for both the cpu and my guys is pretty bad. I just saw an entire unit stand there, allowing the enemy to go up the walls without even taking a shot.
I loved the game, but some crashes and the lack of naval invasions has me waiting for the patch (along with a crazy finals schedule).

[Coug00]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

Yeah, Star Forts are pretty worthless and the canons on them even more so. They do so little damage that they are pointless.

My biggest battle issues with the game are Dragoons and cannons. Dragoons need patched badly. They're controllable at the beginning of the battle, but eventually turn into statues and are completely uncontrollable. They stand there and do nothing. Kind of takes away from them being quick infantry.

For the most part cannons are fine, but they severely need to fix how cannonballs do zero damage, even with a direct hit, if its outside of the little range icon. During the chaos of a battle it can be difficult to figure out where the range ends by trying to find a little opaque white line.

Even with these issues, the passive campaign AI, lack of naval invasions, trade route issues still occurring, etc. I'm having a blast with the game. Using a mod and playing as a smaller country/state that doesn't have the same resources and unit types is fun and difficult. I'll keep playing as these countries until Steam patches to make the game more difficult as one of the original 12.

[Jistic]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I'm just gonna go mod crazy for awhile and see what works.

Gonna try this one tonight.

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=237171

[MachoMyers]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

Huge geek out moment:
During my France campaign I got an announcment after a turn that there had been a death in the Bastille. The report didn't total identify the deceased but said that was rumored to be the King's twin brother who had long been confined. It concluded saying how the possible next King could have been killed.

This is, I referring to Louis XIV's possible brother - aka The Man in the Iron Mask. I just love though that the game doesn't just flat out tell you what happened but implies it with sketchy details or from 'eye witnesses' who can't be 100% accurate.

[Jistic]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I'm a little concerned about the CTD's.

I got completely stuck in a campaign. I was doing Long British, I wanna say about 1736 and the game won't advance.

If I load the game, it gets about a third loaded, then crashes.

I can play the regular battles fine. I see the tread over at twcenter and seems very common.

This is really starting to feel like more and more a rush job. May have to shelf this for a few months.

All these publishers are really doing a bad job lately putting out excessively buggy software.

[fistofrage]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I'm a little concerned about the CTD's.

I got completely stuck in a campaign. I was doing Long British, I wanna say about 1736 and the game won't advance.

If I load the game, it gets about a third loaded, then crashes.

I can play the regular battles fine. I see the tread over at twcenter and seems very common.

This is really starting to feel like more and more a rush job. May have to shelf this for a few months.

All these publishers are really doing a bad job lately putting out excessively buggy software.

Posts like this are exactly why I am hesitant to pull the trigger on a new system. I think it will take at minimum a few months to get this game where it needs to be. Possibly a year to get everything that needs to be addressed. I'll get significantly more system for my $ in the fall too.

It sounds like there is alot of good gaming engine under the hood though so the wait will be worth it.

[Jistic]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

For sure, save your money. This is looking more and more like a beta.

[fistofrage]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

For sure, save your money. This is looking more and more like a beta.

Yeah, and its almost golf season . No chance of me playing this game on a sunny day or staying up until the wee hours of the morning playing it and ruining the next day. And I know Total War is one of those games you just can't put down once you start playing it.

I imagine I'll be able to get an i7 for around $300 less in 6 months.

[Coug00]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I tried a new Spain campaign on VH/VH. I got fricken Blitzkrieged! Lombardy was lost to Venice, UP took Belgium, and I'm hanging onto Florida by a thread against the Cherokees. The Pueblos have taken Mexico from New Spain and there's nothing I can do to stop it because I don't have the funds to send any units. The cool thing is that there's a revolt in Mexico City and there's a unit of Mexican rebels with the Mexican flag tromping around. All of this by turn 10.

For some reason the AI is being much more aggressive against me. This should be an entertaining campaign.

[mgoblue]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I tried a new Spain campaign on VH/VH. I got fricken Blitzkrieged! Lombardy was lost to Venice, UP took Belgium, and I'm hanging onto Florida by a thread against the Cherokees. The Pueblos have taken Mexico from New Spain and there's nothing I can do to stop it because I don't have the funds to send any units. The cool thing is that there's a revolt in Mexico City and there's a unit of Mexican rebels with the Mexican flag tromping around. All of this by turn 10.

For some reason the AI is being much more aggressive against me. This should be an entertaining campaign.

I don't have enough time to devote to this during the week, but this weekend I want to finish my Sweden campaign, up the difficulty (I'm going to have the Long one done in half the time or so...) and try somewhere like Spain with different challenges! So much fun!

[Coug00]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I don't have enough time to devote to this during the week, but this weekend I want to finish my Sweden campaign, up the difficulty (I'm going to have the Long one done in half the time or so...) and try somewhere like Spain with different challenges! So much fun!

Spain is really fun because your King is a moron and has zero respect worldwide, you have historical grievances against most of the world and they hate you for it, you have a ton of small isolated regions you must defend against your hated neighbors, you must decide between tech/financial upgrades or recruiting for defense, and New Spain is your protectorate who constantly gets raided by the Pueblos. Oh, and you have to deal with Pirates constantly harassing your trade lanes and ports in the Caribbean. I can't imagine how hard their campaign would be on VH if naval invasions worked.

Once you've stabilized things you should acquire Mexico either through the mission you're given or letting it be captured by the Pueblos and they you capture it from them. The Mexico region is a huge money maker that is pretty isolated so you have plenty of time to prepare for invading armies.

[mgoblue]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

Spain is really fun because your King is a moron and has zero respect worldwide, you have historical grievances against most of the world and they hate you for it, you have a ton of small isolated regions you must defend against your hated neighbors, you must decide between tech/financial upgrades or recruiting for defense, and New Spain is your protectorate who constantly gets raided by the Pueblos. Oh, and you have to deal with Pirates constantly harassing your trade lanes and ports in the Caribbean. I can't imagine how hard their campaign would be on VH if naval invasions worked.

Once you've stabilized things you should acquire Mexico either through the mission you're given or letting it be captured by the Pueblos and they you capture it from them. The Mexico region is a huge money maker that is pretty isolated so you have plenty of time to prepare for invading armies.

Sweer! I may keep my difficulty at default and try fighting battles more myself, I dunno...I just auto result most of them now (I enjoy campaign mode too much, and am not strong at battle management). I haven't messed with the New World yet (Russia, Poland-Lithuania keep me pretty busy as Sweden).

[Jistic]

Re: Empire Total War: WOW!!!! Feb, 3 2009

I started a new campaign, going for the short campaign, British, I have view CPU turn off on VH difficulty. Wanna see if I can make it without crashing. Did about 40 turns, so far so good.