With absolutely no knowledge of the previous installment other than the basic concept, I wasn’t sure what to expect when viewing about a ten minute demonstration of Shogun 2: Total War.
At the onset, two giant Japanese feudal armies faced off on a battlefield that was ridiculously massive in scale. Rain poured down, creating mud puddles that actually affected the properties of the terrain. Everything happens in real time. Castles were scattered throughout the background; the presenters were quick to note that these castles are not merely scenery – battles can take place within and around. The sheer scale of the battle was a bit overwhelming, but once play began it quickly started to make sense.
As two large infantry units began to clash, it was apparent each individual character sought another to fight. This wasn’t two individual units poking thin air and draining life bars – this was several hundred infantrymen engaged in a battle to the death. Spearmen formed walls to prevent others from breaking the line. The amount of detail and various degrees of motion capture was impressive. Crippled units with depleted morale retreat to home base, as cavalry moves in to crush an advancing archer unit. Little do they know, a team of archers hides in the forest, raining fire arrows down and essentially rendering the unit completely worthless.
More and more begins to transpire on the battlefield, and the pace becomes stunningly frantic. As fire arrows continue to rain down, another unit of cavalry wraps behind the forest acting as the source of the ambush. As the offenders are smashed, the units engaging in the middle of the battlefield sense that their cover fire is gone, their morale drops, and they are swiftly trampled as the tide of battle changes.
With battle scenarios such as this developing dynamically, the possibilities are endless. The change of seasons, weather effects, naval battles, siege battles, and more – Shogun 2: Total War looks to deliver a unique experience.
