Total War: Shogun 2

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Total War: Shogun 2 is the next Total War title that is scheduled to be released by Sega and the Creative Assembly exclusively for PC via Steam on March 15, 2011. As in the original Shogun: Total War, the game will take place in feudal Japan during the Sengoku Jidai, or Warring States era, when various clans competed for control of Japan. The game is currently in a Pre-Alpha stage, and as such there is not much definite information about the game. However, it is already known that pre-battle speeches will return, as will naval battles, ninja and geisha units, and the game will feature a smaller amount of units than recent total war games (About 30-40). On Thursday, June 3, 2010, Shogun 2: Total War was announced, and the following day, Totalwar.com was redone and a new page for Total War: Shogun 2 was added.

Overview

It is the middle of the 16th century in Medieval Japan. The country, once ruled by a unified government, is now split into many warring clans. The player takes on the role of one Daimyo – the clan leader – and will use military engagements, economics and diplomacy to achieve the ultimate goal: re-unite Japan under his supreme command and become the new Shogun – the undisputed ruler of Japan.

Choose from 9 different clans and compete on and offline for the undisputed supremacy of Medieval Japan. Gain experience to level up your own character-warlord as well as your generals and agents.

Play through the Main Campaign in single player or invite a friend online to play competitively or cooperatively in Campaign Multiplayer mode. Join 8-player multiplayer battles with your own upgradable avatar and climb the online Leaderboard to show the world who reigns supreme. Also including exciting new modes of team play for clans, a first in the Total War series.

A streamlined User Interface makes management of your kingdom much easier. Build and govern cities, recruit and train troops, conduct diplomacy and manage your agents – each feature is now introduced with comprehensive tutorials, gradually revealing the depth of the Shogun 2 campaign map – the heart and soul of the Total War experience.

Features

Battle Mechanics and AI

Just like in Empire: Total War and its follow-up Napoleon: Total War, Total War: Shogun 2 will feature full-scale naval engagements. This time around, however, the battlemaps will supposedly include land islands for player orientation, though this cannot be confirmed due to the pre-alpha state of Shogun 2. What the naval units of the Japanese clans remains to be seen; they will most likely consist of Chinese junks, Red Seal ships, and early japanese ironclads.

Also, the siege mechanics of Shogun 2: Total War have supposedly improved greatly. Instead of simply surrounding the enemy and waiting for a hole to appear in the defences, attackers will fight through new, multi-level forts and castles. The Creative Assembly has announced that there will be castles with 5 levels of construction, just like in Medieval 2: Total War. Siege battles will also be fought in 5 stages.

The Creative Assembly has claimed to have redone Total War: Shogun 2's artificial intelligence. The game's AI, like the original total Shogun: Total War, is supposedly programmed according to Sun Tzu's The Art of War. This is fitting, as the game mechanics demand an AI capable of both ranged and melee warfare. Battle AI in sieges is also supposedly have improved, though this cannot be confirmed because of the pre-alpha state of Shogun 2.

Confirmed to be returning to Shogun 2 are Pre-battle speeches. There will be over 100,000 possible speeches based on the character, their location, and their relationship to the enemy, etc.[1]

The Hero System

A new Hero System has been announced, whereupon each faction shall have a Hero that can sway the tide of battle, and are supposedly almost unstoppable. IGN reports that 'hero units are a nearly unstoppable force on the battlefield, capable of holding bridge crossings against entire armies, or smashing through a battle line to engage the enemy general'. Some may think that this seems overpowered; however The Creative Assembly has reported that they are simply 'Highly ranked elite units' and 'available at the top of the tech tree'. Creative Assembly employees have also posted in the official total war forums that they will not be able to take on an entire army. This new system is receiving mixed reactions and mixed reports from IGN and The Creative Assembly.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer in Shogun 2: Total War will be implemented through Valve's Steam service. There are rumours that the new multiplayer will have a lobby, and it has already been confirmed that there will be 8-player online campaigns akin to Napoleon: Total War and for the first time, new modes of team play for clans. Multiplayer will also feature an online leaderboard to show player rankings and presumably an honor system not unlike that of the original Shogun: Total War. Like every game run through Steam, players will be able to access the Steam online community while ingame.

There will be a number of pre-order bonuses. People who pre-order at Gamestop will be able to play the historical Battle of Kowagoe, which was a siege battle fought between the Hojo and Uesugi factions. Pre-ordering from other online retailers will give you one upgrade from the start in multiplayer as well as special armor for the player's avatar.

Campaign

The singleplayer campaign mode in Shogun 2 will have 9 playable Japanese clans, each headed by an RPG-like character-warlord. Players will be able to gain experience to level up these warlords as well as their own generals and agents. A new agent system will feature rock-paper-scissors mechanics, and players will be able to build special buildings which will boost their soldiers' morale in a siege battle. However, these buildings can be destroyed or captured, which will lower morale.

As in the original Shogun, there will be 4 seasons as opposed to the 2 half-year system of Rome, Medieval 1 and 2, and Empire, and the Month/Week system of Napoleon. A streamlined user interface in campaign will supposedly help management of the player(s)'s faction and each new feature of campaign will be introduced with extensive tutorials. [2]

Music

Jeff Van Dyke will be returning to compose the music for Total War: Shogun 2. He was the original composer of the music for Rome: Total War, Medieval 2: Total War, Medieval: Total War, and Shogun: Total War. Many senior total war fans have embraced this news as the best hope for Shogun 2: Total War, as Jeff Van Dyke has received many awards for his music scores, including BAFTA awards for the music of Rome: Total War and the original Shogun: Total War. However, some people want to keep the composer of the Napoleon: Total War score for this new title.

Score recording sessions involving Australian taiko group, TaikOz, have occurred in Sydney, Australia as of October 2010.

External Links

For further information please visit the following links:

• The Shogun II: Total War forum
• IGN's First Look report on S2TW
• Shogun 2: Total War Official Site
• Shogun 2: Total War Forum at the .org
• Dojo II at the .org

References

[3] Totalwar Returns to Samurai Warfare

[4] Shogun 2 begins Grand Strategy Loop