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PSA: Free Baktrian faction invades Total War: Rome 2
Creative Assembly's Total War: Rome 2 has again added another historical group. This time around it's the Baktrians, and they're available as a free download. For those who nodded off in history class, the Baktrians were a group living on the Eastern fringes of the Hellenistic states founded by those lesser rulers who followed Alexander the Great. As a result, the region quickly became an invaluable trade route between Europe and the Middle East, and Asian nations more closely located to the Pacific and Indian Oceans. This constant influx of economy (and thus culture) lead to an amazingly varied population, and the new Total War: Rome 2 DLC reportedly reflects this by offering "players a diverse battle experience ... blending units from the Greek rosters with those of Eastern cultures." Being free, grabbing this DLC is simple. Fire up Steam and Valve's distribution platform should pull down the update automatically. While you wait, why not bone up on your history? Creative Assembly has crafted a solid background page on the Baktrians, and let's be honest, how many of you had ever heard the term before this article?
The Gaul of this new Total War: Rome 2 expansion
Total War: Rome 2 will add its first paid expansion, Caesar in Gaul, next week. The expanded map includes "Gaul and Southern Britannia," which for those of us in the modern era is known as southern UK-dia and Franceland. "We've released a number of DLC packs and free content updates for Rome 2, but this is our most substantial so far," said Total War Creative Director Mike Simpson. "We've also improved the game considerably since launch, and that process continues as we move onto substantial feature and gameplay improvements." Caesar will march upon Gaul on December 12 for $14.99 (£9.99/€14.99). The game also includes Vercingetorix, chieftain of the Arverni, which is just the coolest name you'll get outside of a Warhammer 40K game.
Total War: Rome 2 will scratch SteamOS strategy gaming itch
Fans of historical, real-time strategy now have more reasons to be excited for Valve's upcoming SteamOS: Developer Creative Assembly has announced plans to bring Total War: Rome 2 to the platform. "We've always wanted the Total War franchise to be enjoyed by living room gamers, but the limitations of traditional hardware made our style of game play impossible," reads an announcement on the game's Steam community page. "Last month, when Valve invited us to test out the new Steam Controller and unveiled their plans for SteamOS - we were impressed." "We believe it will provide us with the control fidelity and platform we need to make a living room experience for [Total War: Rome 2] that could be a more compelling experience than playing with keyboard and mouse." There is no official launch date for the SteamOS version of Total War: Rome 2, though Creative Assembly claims it will debut "early next year." For now however, Steam is currently hosting a sale that reduces the price of the game by 25 percent. Purchase it now, and once the SteamOS version has launched, it will automatically be added to your list of Steam games.
New DLC adds buckets of blood to Total War: Rome 2
If Total War: Rome 2 proves a bit tame for your desensitized palate, we've got good news: Sega has released a new downloadable addition for the strategy game that will cause its battlefields to literally run red with blood. Appropriately titled "Blood and Gore," this DLC addition focuses on improving the brutality of combat in Total War: Rome 2. New sound and particle effects have been added alongside "hundreds of gruesome animations." According to Sega, both soldiers and the ground they fight on will now become increasingly spattered with blood and pieces of former people as combat rages on. As you'd expect, this bloody deluge earns the DLC an "M for Mature" rating. If that doesn't turn you off, you can feed your sadistic desires by purchasing the Blood and Gore DLC from Steam for $3.
Nomadic tribes join Total War: Rome II in new, free DLC
Total War: Rome II has added three new nomadic tribes, all of which can be yours totally gratis if you act fast. Dubbed the "Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack," this latest downloadable content adds a new, nomadic culture to the game, which includes three playable factions: the Roxolani, the Massagetae and the Royal Scythians. As in reality, these nomadic cultures are master horsemen who use surprise raids to wear down more entrenched, sedentary opponents, but lack the strong economic foundation provided by contemporary agriculture. Owing to this unique lifestyle, the three nomadic factions also bring with them new units, buildings and objectives, all of which can be used in any of the game's single- or multiplayer modes. As of now this DLC is available as a free download, but only until October 29. After that, the nomads once again take to wandering and the addition jumps to its standard price point of $8.
Aliens: Isolation trademarked
As long as there's a single facehugger left in the universe, there's going to be another Aliens game, no matter how big of a debacle Aliens: Colonial Marines was, is and ever shall be. Titled Aliens: Isolation, an intent to use trademark filed with the US Patent and Trademark office means another game is going to jump out of whatever dark corner hasn't been checked. The trademark has been designation specifically for "computer game and video game software." Then again, it also covers "decorative magnets," but its key purpose is for a software product. Meaning this isn't an Aliens film, book or TV series. The trademark was filed by Twentieth Century Fox Film, but don't let that confuse the issue, so was Aliens: Colonial Marines. Speculation would mark this as the Creative Assembly game that's been in production for a couple years. However, we're always up for a chest-bursting surprise. Just, not at dinner, please. [Thanks, Dennis M.]
Total War: Rome 2 gets free Seleucid Empire, Steam Workshop support
A free update for Creative Assembly's PC strategy game Total War: Rome 2 dropped today, introducing a number of balance fixes and a new playable faction, among other additions. Today's update also enables mod management via Steam Workshop, adding support for player-created gameplay tweaks, texture packs, and cheats. A full run-down of the latest patch improvements is available at the Total War: Rome 2 wiki. If you want to become better acquainted with the newly playable Seleucid Empire, this article should catch you up.
Total War: Rome 2 patch includes 'over 140' improvements
Creative Assembly has unleashed the third planned update for Total War: Rome 2, a patch the developer believes will improve the game's performance, online multiplayer functionality and overall usability. The full list of changes included in the patch is massive, but most crucially, Creative Assembly has included a "significant" boost to multiplayer game speed. Online games will now automatically adjust their pace to match the speed of the slowest participant's gaming machine. Don't fret if you've got a weak computer however, as the patch also includes optimizations which should improve framerates for all players across the board. Updating your copy of Total War: Rome 2 is as simple as firing up your game and waiting while it automatically pulls down and installs the update. Creative Assembly has now turned its sights toward the fourth update for Total War: Rome 2, a patch which should enter beta testing shortly.
Learn history from Brian Blessed in the latest Total War: Rome 2 trailer
Legendary actor Brian Blessed is joined by an expert on Roman warfare to narrate a look at the various "throwing" weapons found in Creative Assembly's newly released Total War: Rome II. These include slings, pilum and the one weapon more impressive than Blessed's magnificent beard, the ballista. Total War: Rome II (which earned a 3.5/5 in our review) is now available on Windows for $60.
Total War Rome 2 developers striving to catch critical bugs
Total War Rome 2 launched earlier this month and suffered a strategic blow when some players reported game-breaking bugs – and this was "totally unacceptable," Creative Director Mike Simpson said. In the Total War forums, Simpson outlined Creative Assembly's approach to fixing these issues, including the plan to release a patch a week until every bug is obliterated. One patch is already live. Simpson said 2 percent of players reported technical issues and that was "too many." "We just wanted to reassure you that we do know it's an extremely annoying and frustrating time for some of you at the moment and we are working around the clock to sort out those issues that you are having .... To these people we are really very sorry that you are having problems, we really want to get you enjoying our game, please do take the time to post your issue in the Support Forum if there isn't a fix for you available in there already," Simpson said. Simpson urged players encountering problems to hit up the support forums.
Total War: Rome 2 review: The condiments of war
I once watched a reenactment of the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge – a Revolutionary War battle in Wilmington, NC – and one of the colonist militia used ketchup packets to simulate fatal blood loss. Upon recoiling from the impact of the invisible half-inch musket ball, he fell to the ground, reached into the pocket of his homespun colonial breeches, clenched his fist, and pulled out a handful of Heinz to smear on the open wound. His body was not buried; the corpse slid into his Corolla and went back to Wendy's to restock. There's something inherently silly about historical fiction that the Total War series will never shake, though Total War: Rome 2, the eighth in the series, comes as close as any reenactment can to escaping it. A passion for historic detail is more convincing than any graphical leap or streamlined troop management system could be, and the staggering obsession over political intrigue in 280 B.C. is a fascinating study in itself. And, as the first Total War game to support thousands of independently animated hoplites, the technical feat is (usually) a marvel too. Developer Creative Assembly put me in charge – now Caesar's dead and there's ketchup everywhere.
Total War: Rome 2 gets multiplayer trailer now, additional content by October
Creative Assembly recently announced its post-launch support plans for Total War: Rome 2, the developer's newest war strategy game. Beyond the game's day-one Greek States Culture Pack, the developer said the Nomadic Tribes Culture Pack will arrive by October. That pack, for which Creative Assembly did not list a price but noted it will be paid DLC, will include Royal Scythians, Roxolani and Massagetae groups. Additionally, players will get to add the Seleucid Empire to their factions free of charge by October. The developer also recently unveiled a multiplayer "Let's Play" video, which pits two members of its team against one another in the game. Total War: Rome 2 launches September 3 on PC, and those pre-ordering the game receive the Greek States Culture Pack for free.
Total War: Rome 2 picks up (Mark) Strong celebrity voice work
Mark Strong, known for his villainous work in Sherlock Holmes (the Robert Downey Jr. one) and Kick-Ass, will switch gears to play the protagonist of Total War: Rome 2's prologue. Let's hope he lasts longer than Patrick Stewart did in Oblivion. Given our knowledge of Roman leaders, we're not placing any bets.
Total War: Rome 2 available this September
Sega has just announced that Total War: Rome 2 will engage all territories across physical and digital fronts on September 3, 2013. The publisher also announced that patricians pre-ordering the game will receive the game's first piece of downloadable content – the Greek States Culture Pack, which adds three additional playable factions to the game; Epirus, Athens and Sparta – on release day. There will also be a limited run of 22,000 numbered collector's editions of the game. It includes "Roman-themed games and items" and comes in a "leather-effect" box. It also includes a catapult. A mini catapult, but it's a catapult.%Gallery-187895%
Try not to lose the Battle of Teutoberg Forest again in Total War: Rome 2
The Battle of the Teutoberg Forest is an epic historical Roman defeat against Germanic tribes, in which about 20,000 Romans died, including suicidal officers tormented by their failure and soldiers who had their remains desecrated by the barbarians. And now you can play it as a game!
Rome 2 looks to continue building Total War's empire
Showing off a strategy game like Total War: Rome 2 at a convention can't be easy. With only so much time to show off to the awaiting journalists, games have to rely on spectacle. Yet the greatness of Total War derives from longer play sessions. There, the series' two halves – tactical battlefields and grand strategic decisions – work in harmony. Those moments are impossible to achieve in a single gameplay demonstration, but developer Creative Assembly still has to make that attempt, which it did, with the historical Battle of Teutoburg Forest. The most notable part of the demonstration was that the game's graphics are fantastic, but that's also the least surprising aspect of a new Total War game. After all, the Total War series has taken major leaps forward in graphics ever since its inception over a decade ago. 2011's Shogun 2 may still look great, but Rome 2 appears to surpass it. The background geography, like the trees, cliffs, and marshes look particularly detailed, while the soldiers had a slightly grittier, less cartoonish look than their samurai counterparts. It was left to a question and answer session after the demo with three of Rome 2's developers to understand what might make this installment particularly interesting. Much of what they said indicated that they understood the series' flaws and were actively working to fix them. Although not directly stated, many of their statements implied a move away from micromanagement, the bane of Total War and many other strategy games.%Gallery-167504%
Total War Shogun 2 gold edition coming March 5
Total War: Shogun 2 is getting the "Gold Edition" treatment, Sega recently announced. The collector's edition will feature 2011's Shogun 2 as well as its Rise of the Samurai and Fall of the Samurai expansion packs.Jump past the break to see a pack shot for the Gold Edition, which will launch March 5.
Team Fortress 2 characters join Sonic & All-Stars on PC
While the console version has been out for a number of months, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is stuck at the starting line on PC until January 31. Luckily for Sonic and friends, they will be joined by Pyro, Heavy and the Spy from Team Fortress 2 as PC-exclusive racers.As seen in the video above, the manager from Sports Interactive's Football Manager series and the Shogun from the Total War series are also playable characters in the PC version of the game. Add in the recent 10% off deal when buying the game through Steam, and we're pretty sure Sega wants you to play Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed on PC.
Total War: Rome 2 introduces tactical map
After showing off its plans for the sacking of Carthage in this trailer for Total War: Rome 2, The Creative Assembly gives a peek at the game's new tactical map. Although players won't be able to command from it, this is a feature that's been a looooong time coming to the series.
Creative Assembly gets Warhammer license in multi-title deal, first game in 2013
The Creative Assembly is going from legionaries to Lizardmen, having obtained the rights to develop Warhammer fantasy games. Sega announced today that it and subsidiary Creative Assembly have entered into a multi-title licensing deal with miniature makers Games Workshop, with a dev team already working to get the studio's first Warhammer game out for next year. Creative Assembly's license is only for the Warhammer fantasy line and not for the Warhammer 40K universe, as clarified to Eurogamer by both Sega and Warhammer 40K license holder THQ.The last decade saw THQ pump out a swathe of Warhammer 40K games, but outside of two Namco-published real-time strategies and EA's Warhammer Online, it's been all quiet on the fantasy front. That's something Creative Assembly must hope to rectify, although it's not like the studio is desperate for pies to cram its fingers into. The British developer says it's working on Total War: Rome 2, the as yet unnamed Alien game, the first Warhammer game, and two other unannounced projects.
