Okay, this isn’t exactly a new game. Total War: Rome was released in October 2004 and has been around for more than 15 years. Nor is it a title that leaves much room for doubt with its name, as it is, as it suggests, focused on the Roman Empire, with a campaign that began in 270 BC. Begins.
So far so good, but what people often forget is that there was the total war of today almost 17 years ago. Some functions and features, like exchanging settlements with your allies, aren’t even present in modern strategy games, and the complexities of diplomacy, trade, and even the processes of developing armies are much more advanced in this IP than in current games. Even so, the diplomacy interface has been improved and updated with this Total War: Rome Remastered.
Creative Assembly has always been generous to its fans and community, and this remastering is no exception. It’s fully compatible with mods, and even if you don’t have both the Barbarian Invasion and Alexander expansions, it doesn’t matter as they are provided to you for free. Oh, and it’s half the final price for the first month after launching on Steam if you own the original game. Ah, we also forgot that as a Linux or Mac user you can finally try the honeys of a game that only Windows users could try in 2004.
Even so, and despite the fact that this is a remaster rather than a remake, the team made a number of important changes, particularly in terms of the overview and camera controls, which is especially useful in battles. They also introduced a minimap, which of course is absolutely necessary. Along with this, it is possible to enjoy cross-multiplayer (it must also be said that the original only came out on Windows) and 16 new factions have been added for a total of 38 pages to choose from. This may be a bit of an exaggeration as there is little difference between almost identical factions. It’s not the latest novelty either, as a new type of agent has been added, the dealer, which has its own hub system to make it all more fun.
I want to emphasize that the updates are mostly made on a visual level. This means we have new resources, 4K resolution (which looks surprisingly good), new 3D models, support for modern monitors, and improved combat environments and maps. It doesn’t reach the level of exuberance and level of detail we can see in the Total War: Warhammer environments, but the improvement is more than palpable.
From my point of view, the new interface with icons and scaling makes the biggest difference and music that sounds clearer and more modern. However, it also makes you realize that the difference between this game and Total War Saga: Troy isn’t that big. Of course, both the campaign and the battles are smoother and faster, but the old version of this game is almost as beautiful (I emphasize the “almost”) and the gameplay is much more complex. That said, you’ll also notice how refined the game’s mechanics and pace have become, especially when it comes to general settlement management and army movement.
There are lots of little tweaks that aren’t as noticeable, like the effects of dust and heat, and others that make me wonder how it was possible to live without a more modern view of the units, especially for the distance markers. What I appreciate most about this relaunch by far is the free movement of the camera and the rotation of the map, things that we already take for granted in games like this.
I also wonder how Creative Assembly went from having that clean and simple but comprehensive interface to the overly complicated and confusing interface of Three Kingdoms. I see a much clearer influence from Warhammer games than modern historical titles, and I wonder why not all historical games have the ability to simply play historical events and battles like this old champion does. The number of unit type variations is still impressive, making you think again of CA and how creative, yet historically correct, the studio is able to add variety to its units. At the same time, on other occasions hardly any differences are found between different units.
On its Steam page, the game states that 4K resolution is entirely dependent on downloading an upgraded graphics pack, which was not required when playing, although the version used for this analysis may have been a special version for review.
The game has done very well over the years, but it’s also difficult not to take into account the influence of time. Although I find it difficult to understand why newer games have been deprived of a more advanced approach such as: B. What contributes to it or what affects public order in a region, Total War: Rome Remastered is a bit clunky and annoying, especially when you see an army.It takes a lifetime to turn around to go in a different direction (at least it can this can be skipped). But there are so many small quality of life improvements in recent installments that I can’t recommend it as a game at first. The gameplay is solid and the graphics quality has improved tremendously.
While I love to thoroughly manage an empire, modern games still offer a better, smoother, and more polished experience. They are still the most suitable places to put on your armor, pick up your spear, and orphan another barbarian child. That doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy killing uncivilized pagans on the battlefield because I do. What it means is that this game is intended more for those who miss the mechanics of the original, not new players. As a remaster, the studio did a really good job showing that it’s not so much about making money as it is about giving fans a show of love.
