Empire: Total War

 PC
  • Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: Mar 3, 2009
User Score
7.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 3194 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,895 out of 3194
  2. Mixed: 545 out of 3194
  3. Negative: 754 out of 3194
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  1. BryanK
    May 5, 2009
    3
    Since my one month old rig (with latest drivers etc) can't run this game without frequent random crashes I will have to give this game a very low score. The game is good when it works (7+) but when you can't play it due to massive instability issues, then there is no point in even having purchased it. I still have a little hope that CA will eventually make the game stable, but I Since my one month old rig (with latest drivers etc) can't run this game without frequent random crashes I will have to give this game a very low score. The game is good when it works (7+) but when you can't play it due to massive instability issues, then there is no point in even having purchased it. I still have a little hope that CA will eventually make the game stable, but I think it will be several months before that happens.… Expand
  2. JonC
    May 7, 2009
    3
    I waited for nearly 2 months before buying my once per year game. Paying £35 for the deluxe edition. The huge number of updates ruined the first game, the last one has left the game despite re-installations and technical support, literally unplayable after 10 turns, the beautifully presented and deeply playable game (when it works) just crashes and dies. When it worked, it was I waited for nearly 2 months before buying my once per year game. Paying £35 for the deluxe edition. The huge number of updates ruined the first game, the last one has left the game despite re-installations and technical support, literally unplayable after 10 turns, the beautifully presented and deeply playable game (when it works) just crashes and dies. When it worked, it was fabulous, the battles are fantastic, truly like nothing I have ever seen, but the campaign strategy game is simply awful. The look and feel is great but the AI is mad and inconsistent, utterly random and the economics seem to change unpredictably, you never know what's going on. Just as it all starts to get really involving the troops enter a city (not all cities, just regional capitals, the key to ownership) and bang, down it goes, goodbye game. I really do think Creative Assembly and Sega were insane to ruin this brand with a totally commercially unviable product that is leaving thousands seething. They simply cannot work hard or fast enough to put it right, if it ever can be.… Expand
  3. DylanJ
    Dec 8, 2009
    3
    Poorly scripted, poorly thought out, poor to play. Its a wretched game.
  4. Bob
    Oct 9, 2009
    3
    Would have been a wonderful game if it wasn't for the bugs. Even the new patch 1.4 doesn't resolve the glaring bugs and massive unresolved instabilities that still are very much present in the game. The game would be worthwhile if the only issue was AI. After all, all the Total War games have AI issues and Empire is no different in this respect. The AI seriously counters my Would have been a wonderful game if it wasn't for the bugs. Even the new patch 1.4 doesn't resolve the glaring bugs and massive unresolved instabilities that still are very much present in the game. The game would be worthwhile if the only issue was AI. After all, all the Total War games have AI issues and Empire is no different in this respect. The AI seriously counters my moves on the battlefield like a massive retard- allowing itself to get flanked and then letting it's melee units sit there for target practice. But the main issue is that it CTDs constantly. I can play about 5-10 moves before the computer simply freezes and program becomes unresponsive. Granted, this is on a monster rig with a GTX 275.… Expand
  5. ArthurW
    Mar 11, 2009
    3
    A Fantastic White elephant, CA have done it again all right. A beautiful addictive game with serious, Major AI flaws. No AI seaborne invasions? In an empire game? Pathfinding Issues, Factions building entire Milita Armies. I don't know why I'm surprised exact same issues were had with every other of their releases. Once again it will be left to the mods to fix. and for ruining A Fantastic White elephant, CA have done it again all right. A beautiful addictive game with serious, Major AI flaws. No AI seaborne invasions? In an empire game? Pathfinding Issues, Factions building entire Milita Armies. I don't know why I'm surprised exact same issues were had with every other of their releases. Once again it will be left to the mods to fix. and for ruining the game with a Steam update I give 3/10 I'm off to play Catan again - forget this techology rubbish for a while.… Expand
  6. SidM
    Mar 12, 2009
    3
    I have been a Total War fan since shogun and enjoyed every release of the series until this one, which is a shame as I was very ,very keen to play this era. I hate Steam. It is irritating to have to play through it. I hate it with a passion and it has ruined any positives the game held for me. Get rid of it. Then there's the game itself, which looks great but plays very clumsily, sea I have been a Total War fan since shogun and enjoyed every release of the series until this one, which is a shame as I was very ,very keen to play this era. I hate Steam. It is irritating to have to play through it. I hate it with a passion and it has ruined any positives the game held for me. Get rid of it. Then there's the game itself, which looks great but plays very clumsily, sea battles being a nice addition but with a tendency to get messy very quickly, with lots of micro management. Not to mention the bugs with certain ship types.... Land battles just lack excitement, particularly sieges. There's just no tension whatsoever. Then there's poor AI path finding, annoying formation movement, and a severe lack of diversity of land divisions. Also, is it just me or is shooting accuracy generally useless. And what happened to volley fire? Why don't those Cherokee's turn tail and flee when they get hit in the face with a wall of lead? It just gets boring after a while. You just don't get a sense of guns being decisive in battle. Oh but wait, then it just gets plain irritating - constant crashes, slow downs and infinitely long times waiting for turns to cylce through! Diplomatic relations are almost not worth pursuing, although at least allies don't tend to turn on you at the drop of a hat. Historical Accuracy is poor, but thats not that big a deal because we'll get some modders to create an empire total realism later on right? oh no wait !we can't anymore because of ... Steam. I really, really, hate steam. It just ruins the game for me. On the plus side, the research/tech tree idea is very positive, national politics are a little more developed which is a nice touch, and yes the feeling of ripping through an enemy ship with a broadside of a 1st rate is exhilarating... but its not enough to make me stay up all night playing as I used to with Rome or MTW. Really guys, there are so few great games out there and you managed to completely ruin what promised to be the best.… Expand
  7. NeilHart
    Mar 10, 2009
    3
    Great game, but if you cant play a campaign to conclusion due to the many bugs in the game, you have to wonder if perhaps a little more testing was in order before release. Will try and go back to it if and when they patch the errors, until then, unplayable
  8. dirk0815
    Mar 28, 2009
    3
    Sorry for my poor English first (I come from Germany): After installation (almost 30 minutes), I've waited again about 40 minutes (because of the steam updates and fixes) until to start the game first. After 1-2 minutes it crashed. It is stressful to play it and my computer is not the oldest one. So I think this game is released to the market although the producer knows the gaps and Sorry for my poor English first (I come from Germany): After installation (almost 30 minutes), I've waited again about 40 minutes (because of the steam updates and fixes) until to start the game first. After 1-2 minutes it crashed. It is stressful to play it and my computer is not the oldest one. So I think this game is released to the market although the producer knows the gaps and errors. On the other hand I don't know what datasets of me and my computer are sent throught the internet with this steam account. I'll never accept in future this kind of software installation again. Sorry, but I can't comprehend this business model.… Expand
  9. OliverV.
    Mar 4, 2009
    3
    I CAN'T BELIF' THAT SWEDEN IS A PLAYABLE COUNTRY .... Sweden was a Major power in Scandinavia... But Denmark had atleast the same power and ideas of making Colonies around the world... Sweden did not they just ... did Swedish things... they should have picked Denmark and not Sweden i am realy ... i cannot belif' it
  10. JenLovering
    Mar 5, 2009
    3
    You would think this is a multi-platform console release judging by all the dumbing down they did across the board. Also, loading times are way too long. If you're not obsessed with graphics, stick with Medieval: Total War (yes the first one). It's still the best and most fun of the TW games.
  11. mikec
    Mar 8, 2009
    3
    All the great attrbutes are there sat on the screen, but constant crashes and a stupidly large amount of bugs have made the game unplayable until CA start pumping out some patches. The game looks amazing and the bits that work are great but, with all the problems id question whether CA were so rushed by sega to get the game out its not actually being finished. In short a major All the great attrbutes are there sat on the screen, but constant crashes and a stupidly large amount of bugs have made the game unplayable until CA start pumping out some patches. The game looks amazing and the bits that work are great but, with all the problems id question whether CA were so rushed by sega to get the game out its not actually being finished. In short a major disappointment and falls well short of the expectations after the classic and truely brilliant Rome TW.… Expand
  12. LarsE
    Apr 1, 2009
    3
    Complicated installation Steam-sh... Wonder why is it necessary to provide Steam with user id - password an email just to install a purchased game. Could not start after closing. Graphics ok 10000 units is fine. Waiting time between losing or winning battles are killingly long... Camera is difficult to control and mini map are useless. Have been playing better turn-real time games before. Complicated installation Steam-sh... Wonder why is it necessary to provide Steam with user id - password an email just to install a purchased game. Could not start after closing. Graphics ok 10000 units is fine. Waiting time between losing or winning battles are killingly long... Camera is difficult to control and mini map are useless. Have been playing better turn-real time games before. Sorry nothing new under the sun.… Expand
  13. AMC
    Apr 29, 2009
    3
    2 months in this game is as unstable as it was at launch. It has the potential to be the game of the year, if not the decade. Essentially it is a bug ridden mess that should ahve been tested for another 6 months. Looks like SEGA stuffed up the TW series by shoving this down our throats. Also...WHY DOES IT NEED STEAM? 90% of customers will buy this for the single player Grand Campaign.
  14. Revived
    May 14, 2009
    3
    I want to say that the developer is seriously lost its credibility is releasing crude product. I think that if it will continue to pursue a bold company can change the course of action is to think about the shareholders of the company.
  15. AnonymousMC
    Jun 23, 2009
    3
    The Naval battles are good, land battles less so. I enjoyed Rome Total War land battles more. The major problem that I have is that it crashes in campaign mode, otherwise I would give it 8 - good but could do better. Was enjoyig it, but now moving on because of the crashes.
  16. ChristopheF.
    Jul 6, 2009
    3
    Though the game has a tremendous scope, its strategical value is quite limited by its whole gameplay value. Game will be slow even with high end computers, but this would not be the main problem if it were not for : - Units pathfinding is buggy, and units are almost always messing up when it comes to being in formation. This creates unpleasant situations where it is impossible to set up Though the game has a tremendous scope, its strategical value is quite limited by its whole gameplay value. Game will be slow even with high end computers, but this would not be the main problem if it were not for : - Units pathfinding is buggy, and units are almost always messing up when it comes to being in formation. This creates unpleasant situations where it is impossible to set up your units as they would be in real battles. - Naval battles are, quite unfortunately, not as interesting to play, as they need constant micromanagement for little gameplay effect. - Strategic map is almost impossible to use. Rome Total War 3D map was fine because it was new, but you see what I mean when speaking about Medieval Total War 2 using same technology. Medeival Total War 1 used a 2D map, and it was great, accessible, fast and strategic. - Hard to see game pieces on strategic map - And of course, so many bugs and slow-things (I am talking with a last generation ultra-expensive card and 4GB RAM) you would ask whether reviewing online magazines get paid by the game company itself, to give ultimate scores to something this buggy.… Expand
  17. PeterS
    Aug 5, 2009
    3
    A good idee and great graphics, but it is not playable do to ever occuring crashes in various places. Wait at least a year to purchase this game.
  18. MikeR.
    Oct 19, 2009
    3
    Don't believe the Hype! ETW is the worst Total War game. It was released in an unfinished state, loaded with bugs and glitches. As of October 2009, most of these issues have not been resolved. Also, CA has announced that patch 1.5 will be the last major patch for this game, despite the fact that many bugs are unfixed and the AI is horrible. CA has stopped supporting this game, a Don't believe the Hype! ETW is the worst Total War game. It was released in an unfinished state, loaded with bugs and glitches. As of October 2009, most of these issues have not been resolved. Also, CA has announced that patch 1.5 will be the last major patch for this game, despite the fact that many bugs are unfixed and the AI is horrible. CA has stopped supporting this game, a clear admission that ETW is a failed product. If you buy ETW you are paying your money to CA for the dubious "privilege" of acting as a beta tester for garbage quality software. This game is an unplayable mess, and should never have been released. Don't reward CA for producing junk. Do not buy this game, or it's related expantion packs or DLC, including Napoleon Total War. Do not get ripped off as I was. Consider yourself warned!… Expand
  19. brad
    Dec 1, 2009
    3
    ca you should be fighting lawsuits right now! you sold a game that was not finished?! further more the bugs have not been fixed at all and if you happen to pick up the wrong unit at the wrong time the game crashes! although i like many of the new features of this gamelike the naval battles and new countries around the world it would help if i could play them. smooth move you retards every ca you should be fighting lawsuits right now! you sold a game that was not finished?! further more the bugs have not been fixed at all and if you happen to pick up the wrong unit at the wrong time the game crashes! although i like many of the new features of this gamelike the naval battles and new countries around the world it would help if i could play them. smooth move you retards every one of you should be taken out behind your ofice building and shot! you obviously did not learn work ethics when you went to college.… Expand
  20. ArthurNeddyS
    Dec 22, 2009
    3
    If I was just rating the gameplay and concept (of a fully working game), then this would have scored much higher. As it is though, with a high-spec system, this game is very hard to enjoy due to the constant crashes. Even after finally setting it up at much lower than required settings and getting it working, the developers brought out another patch to introduce some new units and ... If I was just rating the gameplay and concept (of a fully working game), then this would have scored much higher. As it is though, with a high-spec system, this game is very hard to enjoy due to the constant crashes. Even after finally setting it up at much lower than required settings and getting it working, the developers brought out another patch to introduce some new units and ... that required a whole lot more adjustments and fixes before I could play the game again. That said, it's still not smooth sailing here. Even with a powerful PC, this game cannot be played smoothly. Anyone attesting otherwise is simply not being honest. It's a real pity to come across Empire after enjoying other games in the Total War series. It's also a pity that after the poor level of committment to making this game playable by Sega and Co, I will not be trusting them with any future purchases. Adios, Total War. It was fun while it lasted.… Expand
  21. stavrosa
    Dec 3, 2009
    3
    very difficult game for someone who want to learn the game!!i buy it but i play only for one hour!!sorry...
  22. MatthewG.
    Oct 6, 2009
    3
    A flash in the pan. Looks nice. But the competition provided by the AI makes me feel like I'm playing my 6 month old nephew in Chess.
  23. RandallSimpson
    Mar 17, 2009
    3
    Laggy, buggy, crash-prone ... don't take my word for it: Look at the developer's own tech support forum. Minimum system specs are a joke.
    Sadly, the little bits that do run on my (well over minimum spec) system look great. Wait until it's patched at least twice before you buy. Not a retail-ready product at release.
  24. Arnold
    Mar 24, 2009
    3
    Empire Total DISAPOINTMENT....the King IS dead, long live the King! A very buggy and poorly finished release. Very, VERY buggy, slow and .....STEAM....CA must have expected the backlash and were obviously willing to risk it....shame on you guys and the poor excuses you give to justify STEAM.....give me DRM any day, YES STEAM is that bad. It's going to take something pretty special to Empire Total DISAPOINTMENT....the King IS dead, long live the King! A very buggy and poorly finished release. Very, VERY buggy, slow and .....STEAM....CA must have expected the backlash and were obviously willing to risk it....shame on you guys and the poor excuses you give to justify STEAM.....give me DRM any day, YES STEAM is that bad. It's going to take something pretty special to get me back into the TW series.....and I won't be buying a TW game until it's been out and seriously reviewed for some time (ignoring those reviewers who are obviously kidding themselves, 8's, 9's and 10's.....you know who you are....or you simply do not know what makes a good game (and ETW aint it!). Oh, did I mention how buggy it is...it makes Windows Vista look GOOD!!!… Expand
  25. AaronJ
    Mar 29, 2009
    3
    I have bought every previous TW game since Shogun came out. One of the reasons why I'm such a loyal TW fan is because I knew my money was buying a game ready to play and that the guys at TW didn't realease games early and unready like the other chumps. I bought my computer for 2k last year and belive me when I say it's well past min requirements. Still this is the laggiest I have bought every previous TW game since Shogun came out. One of the reasons why I'm such a loyal TW fan is because I knew my money was buying a game ready to play and that the guys at TW didn't realease games early and unready like the other chumps. I bought my computer for 2k last year and belive me when I say it's well past min requirements. Still this is the laggiest game ever.. Unplayable!!! And I haven't even run into the crashing bugs that everyone is talking about. Why would someone want to buy anything thats not ready? It's like buying a car with no wheels yet. I'm not old but I do remember days when you bought a game it was playable and finished when you spent your $70!!!!! I'm taking this back to EB games today and getting back my money one way or the other... Then I'll buy the game when these bastards decide to finish it. Unbelievable.… Expand
  26. ChimpeeW
    Mar 6, 2009
    3
    Am I the only one who thinks this game feels completely unfinished. The AI is horrible, the path finding sucks. When I have units group and tell them to walk 100 yds straight ahead, why do they all decide to crisscross each other. Why does my cavalry chase the enemy cavalry then stop once they are within 10 feet of them? Why is it nearly impossible to form a straight line on anything but Am I the only one who thinks this game feels completely unfinished. The AI is horrible, the path finding sucks. When I have units group and tell them to walk 100 yds straight ahead, why do they all decide to crisscross each other. Why does my cavalry chase the enemy cavalry then stop once they are within 10 feet of them? Why is it nearly impossible to form a straight line on anything but an empty mile wide field? Why does my army constantly lift sieges on their own? If I'm besieging someone and they try to break the siege but fail, why does my army break off the siege? Also in the American campaign when I'm assaulting a fort, why is my advisor telling me how best to defend my fort? And yes the whole steam thing sucks. Guess what, people will still pirate this game, you're only hurting honest consumer. I guess if my internet goes down and I want to play I'm SOL. I haven't played around with the naval combat yet to know if it works or not, maybe that's where they put all their effort. We'll see. Where's the patch? I'm bleeding here.… Expand
  27. ManuelH
    Apr 11, 2009
    3
    In spite of the serious AI related flaws (which ho-pefully will be addressed in future official patches and/or mods) ETW could have had been a strong candidate for becoming a landmark in the genre had a later-dated version been released allowing for more time to fix all the technical problems, bugs and glitches that plague the game. The visuals are great ; the tactical land & sea battles In spite of the serious AI related flaws (which ho-pefully will be addressed in future official patches and/or mods) ETW could have had been a strong candidate for becoming a landmark in the genre had a later-dated version been released allowing for more time to fix all the technical problems, bugs and glitches that plague the game. The visuals are great ; the tactical land & sea battles are jaw-dropping and punche a high re-playability value ; the move to the 18th century warfare enhances both the strategic and tactical portions of the game with the failful introduction of the epoch weaponry and tactics. I give youl that. But then again, what good would that dov those problems render it almost unplayable. (Completely unplayable in my case: after 2 weeks of intermittent - though frecuent - crashes the game just dedided to "Totally" crashed even b4 getting to the main menu screen. I reported this today and I'm hoping to hear from CA some time soon) Being a long-standing fan of the TW series and the high expectations I had about this particular game it is sad for me to say that all in all Empire Total War feels more like a rushed-out Beta than a well polished and finished product. (Also the hight retail price effectively adds to my sadness!) Perhaps it is hight time for SEGA/CA to be reminded of this simple formula: A Happy Gamer Is A Dumb Buyer, regardless of any marketing and sale strategy. So I think I'm going to unhook my bayonet and unsaddle my horse and wait for the game to live up to its name because right now I can't say I owe "Empire Total War" but "Empire Total CRASH"! ---- A Very Unhappy Gamer… Expand
  28. BryanS
    Apr 10, 2009
    3
    Great game... except the crash to desktop bugs. And the lock up just before you finish the grand campaign bugs... And the units getting stuck on the edge of towns and/or islands bugs... And the 10 to 30 seconds of lag each time you select a naval unit bug.. Oh, and the AI is incapable of actually loading ground units onto ships, so you cannot lose if you are an island nation bug Great game... except the crash to desktop bugs. And the lock up just before you finish the grand campaign bugs... And the units getting stuck on the edge of towns and/or islands bugs... And the 10 to 30 seconds of lag each time you select a naval unit bug.. Oh, and the AI is incapable of actually loading ground units onto ships, so you cannot lose if you are an island nation bug (excepting you cannot actually finish to win, perhaps this is the developer's idea of game balance?)... Plus you get the joy of installing Steam, and the darn "achievements" are even bugged!!! Otherwise, lots of fun. As far as I can tell, this game was shipped unfinished and the game review sites that give this dog high ratings are most likely getting kick backs from the developer!… Expand
  29. JohnT.
    Apr 12, 2009
    3
    The developer Creative Assembly should try to actually test their software before releasing it. This game has a great concept, but the limited and buggy implementation really ruins it once you play for more than an hour. The computer AI on the campaign is really horrible (no naval invasions? are you serious?), and for a game campaign conquests I am shocked this did not come up earlier in The developer Creative Assembly should try to actually test their software before releasing it. This game has a great concept, but the limited and buggy implementation really ruins it once you play for more than an hour. The computer AI on the campaign is really horrible (no naval invasions? are you serious?), and for a game campaign conquests I am shocked this did not come up earlier in their development process.… Expand
  30. AnonymousMC
    Apr 18, 2009
    3
    AI is awful. Units tend to get stuck and not move. Units have to actually rotate formation to fire another direction. Did I say AI is awful. The game is slow and turn based (not mentioned in the description). I spent 50 and 5 hours downloading this pile of code. Thanks for all the faulty payed off reviews to whom ever is responsible. No way it deserves these scores. To all you that seeAI is awful. Units tend to get stuck and not move. Units have to actually rotate formation to fire another direction. Did I say AI is awful. The game is slow and turn based (not mentioned in the description). I spent 50 and 5 hours downloading this pile of code. Thanks for all the faulty payed off reviews to whom ever is responsible. No way it deserves these scores. To all you that see after you purchase it and click the metascore like I did. Sorry. In a time like this we really don't need the, what we assume is a, honest industry to start acting corporate and providing bias reviews.… Expand
  31. KimSandberg
    Apr 25, 2009
    3
    This would be a great game, but eventhough it is on its 3rd or 4th patch it still is unplayable. It crashes to desktop all the time, nomatter if i play it on vista, or my 2 other XP installations.

    This is definately the last time i buy a game from this company
  32. EamonA
    Apr 27, 2009
    3
    Very disappointing game to actually play. Crashes all the time for me as I get into the middle stages of the campaign game and I have the most expensive notebook Gateway makes. The AI is silly. Why would very weak countries attack very strong countries? If the AI never puts troops on ships, does that not mean that playing England is rather safe? But, in the end, the crashes just drove me Very disappointing game to actually play. Crashes all the time for me as I get into the middle stages of the campaign game and I have the most expensive notebook Gateway makes. The AI is silly. Why would very weak countries attack very strong countries? If the AI never puts troops on ships, does that not mean that playing England is rather safe? But, in the end, the crashes just drove me out of every game.… Expand
  33. Hale
    Apr 8, 2009
    3
    This game is way too buggy to be good. Constant crashing, bugs all over the place on the campaign map and in the battles. Patches have just made it worse. I still play Rome:Total War and bought this game with high expectations and am profoundly disappointed. Do I need to put Sega on my publishers to avoid list?
  34. OlivierJacquemard
    Jun 12, 2009
    3
    Too slow to load campagne, battle, etc., even with 4 GBytes of RAM and bicore 2.4 GHz.
    Not realist, if you are turk, russian, spanish, etc. Too easy if you are british, austrian, prussian, suedish, etc. Is SEGA doesn't like south or east european people ?
    Why is it not possible to play all the faction ?
  35. JakeB
    Jun 22, 2009
    3
    Ok I bought a new computer about a year ago its a Vista. Vista has lots of problems with downloading stuff but i trust the community and plenty of Vista people play this. I've downloaded Rome: Total War and set all the settings to high except the unit amounts, and its always worked fine except the crash probably every two hours after a turn, heck maybe 5 if im wrong. I'd say 4 Ok I bought a new computer about a year ago its a Vista. Vista has lots of problems with downloading stuff but i trust the community and plenty of Vista people play this. I've downloaded Rome: Total War and set all the settings to high except the unit amounts, and its always worked fine except the crash probably every two hours after a turn, heck maybe 5 if im wrong. I'd say 4 crashes in a day on average. Not a big deal because i just load it back up and pick up were I left off, mabe restart a battle that i just auto win or lose depending on the first outcome (before it crashed). I've looked all over and tried different methods to get Empire: Total War working, but can't. When i try to load the game, it's a white screen and when the cursor loads, the game crashes. I've tried downloading on admin, but no luck. Im currently waiting for the game to update on my third reinstall. Once again I trust the community and I know RTW enough to understand the glitches people talk about and I absolutely hate the fact that you have to have internet access plus Steam to get it working. It's understandable that the customer is guided away from the glitches because steam automatically gives updates, but why not finish the dang game, give it another freakin year and maybe Steam wouldn't be necessary. I love how my updates been starting for the past 10 minutes and a most likely 60$ game tricks it's customer due to the internet access being vital. I love how I go out and get ripped off by the once great Creative Assembly. I'm sure many people will agree with me that the next Total War isn't going to be a must. I can't wait until I finally get ETW working and realize it's horrible becuase of crashes and crappy AI. A lot of the gaming community is most definitely poor or cant afford a bunch of different computers to see whats compatable with the game. Nice job, Sega or whoever did a good job ripping us off this time but next time they put all their bets on another Total War the're goin down for good even if it's compatable and not glitchy... because what average guy wants to spend another 60$ on a game series thats ripped them off in the past? Well I hope I didn't write a bad review considering I'm putting a good deal of my trust into the community, but I know how a company likes to curve your thoughts to get you to buy the game. They clearly put "Hey you gotta have internet access for it to work!" in small print, and not nearly as exciting as i stated it, for a reason. I would've been happy with less graphics and just better AI and a nice 1700 theme. Like that one guy said "Shogun: Total War is still my favorite in the series". Well STW is the first and crappiest and doesnt have nearly as good visual as TW has today. To end this ill just say "Hey, I'll go out and buy a better graphics and video card and see if this games worth playing!"… Expand
  36. Duff
    Jul 21, 2009
    3
    Between all the problems such as the crashes, the glitches, and just the gameplay in general, it deserves no better than a 4 if that. besides that theres basically no objectives besides the new world owning european powers and when will this game ever be taken to having the map play on multi player?! i thought that was part of the game when i bought it =/ major step down from rome and medi II.
  37. JesseS.
    Aug 27, 2009
    3
    This game makes me furious. I've been waiting for a good 4 hours for it to install and it still says it will take another 5 hours. The most retarded thing i have seen out of any computer game !!! Just installing the game is a huge piss off ! I'm already disappointed with it, and I haven't even started playing it yet !
  38. WimpieM
    Sep 13, 2009
    3
    Empires unfortunately falls short of a complete product as too many bugs plague this once amazing title. However, without all the bugs, graphical glitches, AI problems and incessant crash to desktop issues this could have been the best strategy game to date. There might be too many issues to sort out with patch releases so let's hope Napoleon Totalwar can deliver what Empires should have.
  39. danh
    Dec 8, 2009
    3
    Purchased ETW special forces on release for £50 retail. Over 12months since release or so, the game still has epic gameplay issues and have not been fixed. Graphical glitches and crashes naming a few. I rate my personal computer as a high spec with upto date drivers. CA is also adding new content to the game which you have to purchase to play. Issues should be dealt with before Purchased ETW special forces on release for £50 retail. Over 12months since release or so, the game still has epic gameplay issues and have not been fixed. Graphical glitches and crashes naming a few. I rate my personal computer as a high spec with upto date drivers. CA is also adding new content to the game which you have to purchase to play. Issues should be dealt with before expansions get released. Support is also disapointing. 90 Meta score is majorly overrated. ETW is the worst total war franchise ever played dispite the fantastic concept, set within 17th and 18th century.… Expand
  40. EricD.
    Mar 18, 2009
    3
    Like many others said this game had the potential to blow the competetion out of the water, but with the addition of steam and the unprecedented number of bugs its just another dissapointment, oh and to all the dumb people that hail steam i just spent 15 months in iraq with no internet connection i cant express the level of anger i had when i couldnt play even once a week with missions, Like many others said this game had the potential to blow the competetion out of the water, but with the addition of steam and the unprecedented number of bugs its just another dissapointment, oh and to all the dumb people that hail steam i just spent 15 months in iraq with no internet connection i cant express the level of anger i had when i couldnt play even once a week with missions, because you had to use steam that is rediculas, if they want to use steam to patch cool and even sell downloadable copies more power to them but to force me to get on steam to play a game i have a hard copy of is too much, as for the game i love it when it will work which isnt much if more patches dont come out and soon this will be the last ca sega game i and many friends ever buy.… Expand
  41. JimW
    Mar 27, 2009
    3
    This game is nothing more then a black-eye on the superb Total War franchise. In a nut-shell: 1) Runs poorly and slow even on high-end computers 2) The AI is Terrible 3) More bugs then most Alphas that I have played 4) Few words in the English language can adequately describe how bad STEAM sucks In conclusion, This game is a train wreck. No amount of last minute patching can save it This game is nothing more then a black-eye on the superb Total War franchise. In a nut-shell: 1) Runs poorly and slow even on high-end computers 2) The AI is Terrible 3) More bugs then most Alphas that I have played 4) Few words in the English language can adequately describe how bad STEAM sucks In conclusion, This game is a train wreck. No amount of last minute patching can save it because of STEAM.… Expand
  42. JacobB
    Mar 31, 2009
    3
    Looks to be a great game, though I would agree that Rome and Medieval 2 had a better "feel" right out of the box. However, the numerous issues and problems with this game, causing graphical errors and CTD's like no other game I have ever bought, give this game it's current low score. Fans of the Total War series hear me! Do not buy this game yet! They have many patches to go Looks to be a great game, though I would agree that Rome and Medieval 2 had a better "feel" right out of the box. However, the numerous issues and problems with this game, causing graphical errors and CTD's like no other game I have ever bought, give this game it's current low score. Fans of the Total War series hear me! Do not buy this game yet! They have many patches to go before it isn't sinking from hull damage!… Expand
  43. Jeff
    Aug 29, 2009
    3
    Almost the perfect total war game. The size of the map, the naval battles, the new tech tree and the detail are superb. Just watching bayonet duals can be very engrossing. But there is a is a VERY big downside to this game. The fact that you have to load and run STEAM, a 3rd party software is a bit of a nuisance, but even worse is the client stability, or rather lack there of. Even with a Almost the perfect total war game. The size of the map, the naval battles, the new tech tree and the detail are superb. Just watching bayonet duals can be very engrossing. But there is a is a VERY big downside to this game. The fact that you have to load and run STEAM, a 3rd party software is a bit of a nuisance, but even worse is the client stability, or rather lack there of. Even with a computer twice as powerful as the box says is required the game still crashes constantly. In my current campaign I have had to repeat the same year over and over for the last two days because of client crashes. These problems are expected in a beta, but not half a year after release. for this reason alone I am dropping the rating from a 9 to a 3.… Expand
  44. Skyjumper
    Sep 16, 2010
    3
    I have been an Empire total war fan since Shogun. I am throughly disappointed with this buggy pile of crap. 7 months out and I still get crashes and the AI is out right retarded. I will never again buy anything out of CA on relase date.
  45. stoneysilence
    Mar 27, 2012
    3
    The graphics are beautiful, there is no doubting that. However everything else was a huge step backwards from TW:M2.

    Rather than going to one place in every region now you have to click on a bunch of different areas. Haven't been able to figure out how to speed up the enemy or my own troop movement on the world map. In general I just can't stand this new version.
  46. CarlB.
    Jan 30, 2010
    2
    The game could have been one of the greatest, but for some reason it was botched. The AI is useless, and there is absolutely no diplomacy in the game. Both ingredients that are vital to a strategy game. The following questions sum up my experience: Why release an unfinished game in the first place? Why after 6 patches is it still unfinished? Why after 6 patches do CA decide not to support The game could have been one of the greatest, but for some reason it was botched. The AI is useless, and there is absolutely no diplomacy in the game. Both ingredients that are vital to a strategy game. The following questions sum up my experience: Why release an unfinished game in the first place? Why after 6 patches is it still unfinished? Why after 6 patches do CA decide not to support their unfinihes game anymore? Why after the unfinished game being out for 6 months do CA decide to announce the next game in their franchise?… Expand
  47. robosoftrob
    Apr 7, 2009
    2
    I rate this good game so low because i always get stuck in the middle of a campaign when the game crashes at a certain point. i can´t continue and would have to start a new campaign - this does not make sense. i will return the game to the shop, where i bought it. sorry, could be a good game.
  48. RussT
    Mar 6, 2009
    2
    I have not even been able to play the game yet. Steam is such a pile and keeps giving messages like, "game is not available at this time, please try again in a few minutes". I don't even want to use steam. I just want to play this game on my computer by myself. I'm sure the game is pretty awesome, but steam is just ruining it. Shame on total war for attaching this game to steam
  49. AJ
    Apr 12, 2009
    2
    The 2 is for creating the greatest strategy game ever made. Then knowing its incompleat and unfinished selling it to thousands of people expecting a finished game. Why would anyone ever assume that someone would want a game that isn't ready? As far as I'm concerned these pricks stole from me. The Total War games was something that if you liked strategy games you knew your 60 The 2 is for creating the greatest strategy game ever made. Then knowing its incompleat and unfinished selling it to thousands of people expecting a finished game. Why would anyone ever assume that someone would want a game that isn't ready? As far as I'm concerned these pricks stole from me. The Total War games was something that if you liked strategy games you knew your 60 bucks were well spent. Now their name means nothing. Imagine if you bought a 2000 computer, brought it home and it worked for 2 days then wouldn't start again... Then they told you that it's buggy and there is a patch that will come out in 6 months so you can use your new $2000 computer. That computer store would be sued and bombed. This is what Creative Assembly has done. Sold a product that wasn't finished and after you have spent your hard earned money then you have to wait till they get around to compleating it over the next while(if they do). It's a slap in the face. If I spend 70 bucks on an x box or playstaion game at least I know it will work. If they sold games that didn't work they would go out of business. I hope everyone that bought this game holds the creative assembly responisble for there theft of our money and never buys another product from them again... Theres a big market out there for good strategy games and someone will take there place once there banko. We have to show these guys and other game makers this is unacceptable!!!!!!!!!!!… Expand
  50. PerryR
    Apr 17, 2009
    2
    Unbelievable....and totally unacceptable. I have been an avid Total War fan since its inception and been looking forward to playing Empire for many a long month. I am fed up with the game crashing and am totally bemused with the link up with Steam, what an awful partner to share such a great title product. I have shelved the game on a number of occasions but my love of its predecessors Unbelievable....and totally unacceptable. I have been an avid Total War fan since its inception and been looking forward to playing Empire for many a long month. I am fed up with the game crashing and am totally bemused with the link up with Steam, what an awful partner to share such a great title product. I have shelved the game on a number of occasions but my love of its predecessors has always brought me back but only to disappoint time after time. The final product is not fit for purpose, the two is given out of loyalty, my advice, BEWARE this product is below the quality of its fore fathers. My message to the magazine critics, 'shame on you', rate the gameplay, not the concept. To CA/SEGA - give me back my money, and I went for the Special Forces Edition.… Expand
  51. RichH.
    Aug 10, 2009
    2
    I have been a big fan of the Total War Series but this game is a disappointment. Do not waste your money until they fix the bugs. As soon as you build up a large empire and decide to take over the world, the game keeps crashing. It's frustrating as you invested so much time. Also Steam sucks. Why do I have to pay $50.00 and cant own the game! I will never buy a game that is Steam I have been a big fan of the Total War Series but this game is a disappointment. Do not waste your money until they fix the bugs. As soon as you build up a large empire and decide to take over the world, the game keeps crashing. It's frustrating as you invested so much time. Also Steam sucks. Why do I have to pay $50.00 and cant own the game! I will never buy a game that is Steam only again. Doubt I will ever buy a total war game again.… Expand
  52. JoD
    Mar 24, 2010
    2
    This game SUKS because of the stupid Steam program slowing it down all the time and the stupid patches. I am having so many errors trying to log on because I don't have the best internet connection where I live and if I lost my connection then the game craps out. I WILL NOT BUY any more total war games with STEAM, I F'N bought the game and when I have work that takes me out of This game SUKS because of the stupid Steam program slowing it down all the time and the stupid patches. I am having so many errors trying to log on because I don't have the best internet connection where I live and if I lost my connection then the game craps out. I WILL NOT BUY any more total war games with STEAM, I F'N bought the game and when I have work that takes me out of town I can't play without internet...I think I have it bad but I could only imagine how pissed it would make me if I were in the military and had to put up with this BS in a war zone, I am a VET, and had to put up with this crap. I F'N paid money for this crap and now I have to log in to play, through a STY service "STEAM" which SUKS and if I loose connection the game stops working...its just reminds me of asking my mother if I could play a vidio game. DROP the steam login because I know I will not play/buy any more games that require a third party to play. AND I would never recomend this game to anyone that has to travel and likes to play.… Expand
  53. MickN
    Oct 1, 2009
    2
    I decided to hold off on reviewing Empire even though I bought it off Steam on release day. It was broken and nearly unplayable on release due to the near total absence of AI opposition. The AI was so bad that it couldn't even land armies off ships. In short, this meant that island nations like the UK were unbeatable when played by the gamer, and worthless when acting as an AII decided to hold off on reviewing Empire even though I bought it off Steam on release day. It was broken and nearly unplayable on release due to the near total absence of AI opposition. The AI was so bad that it couldn't even land armies off ships. In short, this meant that island nations like the UK were unbeatable when played by the gamer, and worthless when acting as an AI opponent.

    Patch 1.4 FINALLY came out after six months, promising to fix the AI. Well, it's still crap. Not as crap on release, but still so utterly useless that it robs any enjoyment the player might have had were the AI even remotely competent.
    It's a slap in the face to the consumer that the game was shipped in such a terrible state, a further slap in the face that the slowly released patches have done little to ameliorate the many problems, and a final slap that CA has decided to devote their efforts into wringing more money out of dupes like me via questionable DLC and worthless expansions like Napoleon.

    Why would I care about Napoleon:TW when the base game is in such a crap state?    … Expand
  54. MikeE
    Oct 10, 2009
    2
    What sham this game turned out to be. Poor performance, bugs out the wazoo, horrific AI and the developer has already given up on to make their next killing with Napolean Total War.
  55. Melter
    Oct 14, 2009
    2
    Full price for a beta game? My god i really hope that software law is changed so stuff like this stops happening because if it was the case i would have returned this game within the first day it was terrible. It was worse than a beta game, atleast beta testers dont have to pay to play a game they end up having to tell the devs to fix. I Gave it a 5 due to its sort of turn around since Full price for a beta game? My god i really hope that software law is changed so stuff like this stops happening because if it was the case i would have returned this game within the first day it was terrible. It was worse than a beta game, atleast beta testers dont have to pay to play a game they end up having to tell the devs to fix. I Gave it a 5 due to its sort of turn around since 1.5 but as CA have said themselfs no more major patches coming which is definatly not what this game needs as 1.5 fixed alot of problems but brought new ones to the table as did every other patch they released, you know what im dropping it to a 2 due to CA's pathetic attempt at ''not fixing'' covering up their mistakes. Just to note, If you want a better Meta score CA, make a better bloody game you con-artists.… Expand
  56. DaniS
    Dec 23, 2009
    2
    This Game is not an improvement of the old game. Do not buy it
  57. WalterB.
    Oct 6, 2009
    2
    The game has been entirely unplayable for months due to a crash bug introduced in a patch. The AI was extremely weak when it was playable and instead of fixing the game, they decided to go on and make their next one. I would not recommend this for purchase.
  58. JennyS.
    Mar 22, 2009
    2
    Ok, so this game is unfinished crap basically. Not just the bugs and performance issues but other more serious gameplay issues as well. Pathfinding for one, it probably features some of the worst pathfinding in a game ever. What's the deal with not being able to place formations next to objects in battles? And fort combat is simply hilarious, you're actually in a disadvantage as Ok, so this game is unfinished crap basically. Not just the bugs and performance issues but other more serious gameplay issues as well. Pathfinding for one, it probably features some of the worst pathfinding in a game ever. What's the deal with not being able to place formations next to objects in battles? And fort combat is simply hilarious, you're actually in a disadvantage as a defender since your buggy tropps CANT FIRE OVER THE WALLS EFFICIENTLY!… Expand
  59. KevinN
    Mar 31, 2009
    2
    The official review score is a total shame. The gamer's review score is closer to reality and it should even be a much lower score. Same old philosoply coming from Sega is a real disappointment. Selling an unfinished product is totally unacceptable. The game is a bug in itself. It will mess up your computer and slow down anything you do with it. Looking at the so called "reviews" The official review score is a total shame. The gamer's review score is closer to reality and it should even be a much lower score. Same old philosoply coming from Sega is a real disappointment. Selling an unfinished product is totally unacceptable. The game is a bug in itself. It will mess up your computer and slow down anything you do with it. Looking at the so called "reviews" from the official reviewers like gamespy makes me want to throw up on them. I'm proud to say that I never supported gamespy and will ONLY support them when they stop this nonsense "review". DO NOT buy this and support only publishers who deliver a product that works. Boycotting should be the name of gamer's game from this point on.… Expand
  60. JohnR.
    Mar 3, 2009
    2
    Steam is a steaming great t**d. All the effort at making a game that could sprint of into the halls of fame and they go and chain it to a wall of useless! Steam crashes, it irritates, it dictates and makes you wonder if Empire: Totalwar is worth the hell. Some say yes, I say I can live without it as cons outway the benefits of playing an otherwise polished game with only minor faults to Steam is a steaming great t**d. All the effort at making a game that could sprint of into the halls of fame and they go and chain it to a wall of useless! Steam crashes, it irritates, it dictates and makes you wonder if Empire: Totalwar is worth the hell. Some say yes, I say I can live without it as cons outway the benefits of playing an otherwise polished game with only minor faults to gameplay. Steam has left me fuming.… Expand
  61. StuartHayes
    Mar 6, 2009
    2
    Buggy, Buggy, Buggy, has crashed 20-30 times in my first 8 hours of playing. Now stuck at one point in the game, crashing after each battle before I can save. Game should never have been released with such stability issues. When it was working it seemed like a great game. Don't waste your time starting it until the patches have been rolled out
  62. GerryHughes
    Mar 7, 2009
    2
    Install instructions are non-existant. Steam is absolutely ********* Had to discover for myself that I needed to be connected to he nent just to install the game and that I had to create a steam account before the game would install. Once that had been done had to search the net to discover game could not be run offline until it had first been run once online which it would not do untillInstall instructions are non-existant. Steam is absolutely ********* Had to discover for myself that I needed to be connected to he nent just to install the game and that I had to create a steam account before the game would install. Once that had been done had to search the net to discover game could not be run offline until it had first been run once online which it would not do untill it had been updated. So far I have been unable to update and run the game because the steam servers are too busy. Need I say more ?… Expand
  63. AlV
    Apr 1, 2009
    2
    I am truly sorry I have to rate the game so low; I wore out my Rome-TW and Medieval-TW CD
  64. MarkW
    Apr 1, 2009
    2
    Well it seems the customers and the 'game' reviewers have a big difference of opinion about this game. As a customer from day 1 that is still unable to play this game without CTD or white screen crash I can honestly say that this game is nothing more than a Beta. Dont beleive me? On C.A's official forum http://shoguntotalwar.yuku.com/topic/52508 they are asking theWell it seems the customers and the 'game' reviewers have a big difference of opinion about this game. As a customer from day 1 that is still unable to play this game without CTD or white screen crash I can honestly say that this game is nothing more than a Beta. Dont beleive me? On C.A's official forum http://shoguntotalwar.yuku.com/topic/52508 they are asking the customers if they want to become part of a Beta Group to help get their game properly tested. Never thought I would see the mighty C.A fall from grace like this.… Expand
  65. VladM
    Apr 21, 2009
    2
    I have been a fan of the series since Shogun. So far the each new release was a triumph. While being rather sceptic towards changes introduced in "Rome", I had finally started liking the new campaign map. Unfortunatelly the newest game is not what I expected to get for my 30 quid. AI sucks big time. I have single handedly kicked around all the countries in Europe on the highest level I have been a fan of the series since Shogun. So far the each new release was a triumph. While being rather sceptic towards changes introduced in "Rome", I had finally started liking the new campaign map. Unfortunatelly the newest game is not what I expected to get for my 30 quid. AI sucks big time. I have single handedly kicked around all the countries in Europe on the highest level without even ONE putting up a decent fight. Campaign map is very difficult to read. And the "steam"... well I was not impressed by the instalation process. I am depressed now. I was SO looking forward to this game... Luckily I still have MTW2 installed. Back to the real game.… Expand
  66. TChips
    Apr 3, 2009
    2
    Waited a few months to buy the game as suggested by other users, but its been a huge dissapointment, I installed the game and tried to load it but the annoyin windows messag came up saying that the game had stopped working. Ive been a huge fan since shogun came out and i feel let down so far by empire. im gonna write another review when the game decides it wants to work and then ill see ifWaited a few months to buy the game as suggested by other users, but its been a huge dissapointment, I installed the game and tried to load it but the annoyin windows messag came up saying that the game had stopped working. Ive been a huge fan since shogun came out and i feel let down so far by empire. im gonna write another review when the game decides it wants to work and then ill see if it lives up to game spys reivew… Expand
  67. DannyC
    May 22, 2009
    2
    Well 3 months down the line and despite never having a crash since day one the fact remains this game is just a totally broken mess.. CA must be the first company to issue patches that actually cause more problems than they fix so well done.. The patronising updates are now also getting beyond a joke.. I cant see CA ever releasing another TW PC game after this sham. Those who are giving Well 3 months down the line and despite never having a crash since day one the fact remains this game is just a totally broken mess.. CA must be the first company to issue patches that actually cause more problems than they fix so well done.. The patronising updates are now also getting beyond a joke.. I cant see CA ever releasing another TW PC game after this sham. Those who are giving it a 10 really must have there heads in cloud cuckoo land along with the critics or like a game with zero challenge, broken AI and pretty graphics.… Expand
  68. SteveQ
    May 6, 2009
    2
    The AI is about the worst in any game I've ever played. The AI can't invade by sea, thus leaving England impotent as an AI nation and invincible as a Player nation. It removes the point of having different continents and the whole point of the naval battles dissapear. The AI is not aggressive, does not use armies on the field properly (it can't figure out how to use The AI is about the worst in any game I've ever played. The AI can't invade by sea, thus leaving England impotent as an AI nation and invincible as a Player nation. It removes the point of having different continents and the whole point of the naval battles dissapear. The AI is not aggressive, does not use armies on the field properly (it can't figure out how to use artillery, cavalry and infantry TOGETHER) and after about 10 hours I realized the AI NEVER attacked my cities. This was a disgraceful release.… Expand
  69. JuergenK
    Jun 20, 2009
    2
    To much crash downs. It's a problem of the game. My PC is high performed - no problems with the requirements.
  70. Matthew
    Sep 30, 2009
    2
    I really really like this game. The total war series has always been one of my faves, and empire has been the best so far. It, for me, has the perfect balance of all the elements needed in a good stratagy game, and the introduction of navel combat was awsome. It lets me down on one cruical issue tho, bugs. I have not yet been able to complete a proper long campaign due to the fact that I really really like this game. The total war series has always been one of my faves, and empire has been the best so far. It, for me, has the perfect balance of all the elements needed in a good stratagy game, and the introduction of navel combat was awsome. It lets me down on one cruical issue tho, bugs. I have not yet been able to complete a proper long campaign due to the fact that each time i get so far throught the game for various reasons i encounter a fatal error. like taking a city causes a crash each time i try, or ending a turn causes a crash and wont work even after a re-load, due to corrupted save files, i have had the same problem on multiple computers. Without being able to play a campaign through it makes it infuriating and pointless to start a new one. This would be a 10/10 rating, if not for that factor.… Expand
  71. NikitaM
    Dec 13, 2009
    2
    I like the campaign and the sea battles, but the ground battles(which i prefere more not good enough)
  72. Agentsmith
    Dec 13, 2009
    2
    The game is a great concept...but is also a downgrade from previous titles. for example, the assassination and spying vids were removed. performance is horrid even on a GTX295 and an INTEL i7 920. They should be fixing game play problems and the crashes instead of releasing expansion. I do not know what kind of PC it needs to run decently. Do not Buy it, my pc is high end and still lags. The game is a great concept...but is also a downgrade from previous titles. for example, the assassination and spying vids were removed. performance is horrid even on a GTX295 and an INTEL i7 920. They should be fixing game play problems and the crashes instead of releasing expansion. I do not know what kind of PC it needs to run decently. Do not Buy it, my pc is high end and still lags. Interface is very hard to grasp and there are so many things to do, the simplicity of previous titles was lost too. keep your money or just play medieval 2, its a lot better.… Expand
  73. gointomexico
    Oct 5, 2009
    2
    Very buggy, spotty customer support. I cant play some of my saves because it crashes every time. I emailed customer support,and they close my tickets after 48 hrs. The first ticket I opened got closed even after I provided the info they requested. I opened another ticket asking why that ticket was closed, and that ticket got closed too. My life is too important to waste on buggy software, Very buggy, spotty customer support. I cant play some of my saves because it crashes every time. I emailed customer support,and they close my tickets after 48 hrs. The first ticket I opened got closed even after I provided the info they requested. I opened another ticket asking why that ticket was closed, and that ticket got closed too. My life is too important to waste on buggy software, and jerky CS.… Expand
  74. DanL
    Mar 16, 2009
    2
    I was looking forward to this game. Just recieved it delivered to find i have to load STEAM in order to play it. I hate Steam, I hate it with a passion. And for it to be added into a single player game is pathetic. Poor show for the Total War team
  75. Alex
    Mar 17, 2009
    2
    If you liked M2TW you will like this.. on paper at least. The use of rifles cause the player to use amazing diffrenct tactics, the addition of a large number of very small countries and the increase in trade abilities make this a welcome addition to the series. However was clearly rushed out, the game crashes repeatedly in various parts of the game for many of the users, the campain AI isIf you liked M2TW you will like this.. on paper at least. The use of rifles cause the player to use amazing diffrenct tactics, the addition of a large number of very small countries and the increase in trade abilities make this a welcome addition to the series. However was clearly rushed out, the game crashes repeatedly in various parts of the game for many of the users, the campain AI is laughable, even when at war nations (or shall i say EMPIRES) will rarely attack in land battles, only attacking fleets causing very dull gameplay. Couped with the extreme lag faced during unit selection and turns and the all over feel of unreadiness makes this game nearly unplayable. If you are new to total war get any of the previous ones, if you aren't then go play M2TW. Clearly the 'professional' reviewers once again haven't actually played the game.… Expand
  76. GuyGordon
    Mar 20, 2009
    2
    The game simply does not work. I am a QA analyst for a graphics production firm. I have a PC that is so far and above the industry standard that it isn't funny. It's very well optimized...but the code in E:TW is completely flawed. This game is unplayable. I rated it a 2 because the intro movie looks nice. The game, can't play it...even with a quad core, 4 video GPUs and 12 The game simply does not work. I am a QA analyst for a graphics production firm. I have a PC that is so far and above the industry standard that it isn't funny. It's very well optimized...but the code in E:TW is completely flawed. This game is unplayable. I rated it a 2 because the intro movie looks nice. The game, can't play it...even with a quad core, 4 video GPUs and 12 GB of DDR3.… Expand
  77. RobertM.
    Mar 20, 2009
    2
    Let's get things straight; this has the potential to be a brilliant game. Pity it doesn't work and here's why: - 1) steam - an unnecessary complication that is just unnecessary. Why should I have steam running if I bought the dvd? 2) in game crashes - after about 20 turns of my campaign I got to a point where the game crashes at the end of the current turn and nothing for Let's get things straight; this has the potential to be a brilliant game. Pity it doesn't work and here's why: - 1) steam - an unnecessary complication that is just unnecessary. Why should I have steam running if I bought the dvd? 2) in game crashes - after about 20 turns of my campaign I got to a point where the game crashes at the end of the current turn and nothing for me to do except restart campaign. 3) battle AI - the much heralded in game AI is not half as good as it's made out to be. The game is full of quirks which are both annoying and ridiculous. 4) load times - load times are plain ridiculous. I find my self planning what to do after the end of the current turn...make tea, get crisps, phone mates etc. 5) NPC turns - in agame of this scale there are loads of NPCs. In this my first campaign there are over 20 factions. End of turn is PAINFUL because even though I've disabled the display of NPC moves, it still takes ages to go through all of them. This game is in dire need of patching and should have never been released in its current state but unfortunately that is the trend these days. Release over hyped rubbish and make people buy it and then patch it later. I was a pc gamers for over 10 years before I switched over to the 360 and this has been my return to PC gaming. Not a good comeback to say the least. My advice is wait till the 2nd or 3rd patch and buy it then...probably at half the price!!… Expand
  78. HagenR.
    Mar 4, 2009
    2
    thr game might be good... i dont know cos i cant play it, cos this f...ing steam doesnt update. I´ve got two dvd´s in my box, but they are not needed. I have to instal over steam... what the... steam sucks, it is slow and not worth the price, the game has cost.
    Maybe it is a good game but how knows without the ability to play it
  79. Dane.
    Mar 5, 2009
    2
    I agree with the above post. Plus you obviously need a int connection. I know this may seem like a strange complaint, but a developer shouldn't be forcing things on you. To be honest its not really a total war game anyway. The map is far too big(this would not be bad if it was done well) but it isnt. France is one region, and Britain is two, its seems to me like they've just I agree with the above post. Plus you obviously need a int connection. I know this may seem like a strange complaint, but a developer shouldn't be forcing things on you. To be honest its not really a total war game anyway. The map is far too big(this would not be bad if it was done well) but it isnt. France is one region, and Britain is two, its seems to me like they've just taken some provinces out of Europe and labelled them America @ India. Half of it isn't even provinces just "wilderness". It goes on . . .The game certainly does not deserve the credit its getting. Its still solid but i expected more from CA, thus the 2 stars. (Oh, and they've reverted back to clone armies).… Expand
  80. XenophonXenophon
    Apr 12, 2009
    2
    I could live with the bugs--knowing that someday they'll probably get fixed--but the bottom line is that the AI sucks badly--especially the campaign AI. Why can't CA just take some hints from Civilization or Europa Universalis? Even the battle AI still pales when compared to Sid Meier's Gettysburg--and that was over 10 years ago. Not to mention the sheer idiocy of seeing I could live with the bugs--knowing that someday they'll probably get fixed--but the bottom line is that the AI sucks badly--especially the campaign AI. Why can't CA just take some hints from Civilization or Europa Universalis? Even the battle AI still pales when compared to Sid Meier's Gettysburg--and that was over 10 years ago. Not to mention the sheer idiocy of seeing troops attack massive forts with grappling hooks without any casulties!! ---just a huge step backwards from the enjoyable castle battles in MTW. Rakes, gentlemen, and clergy are unbelievably boring and a pain to deal with--nowhere near the fun of spys and assasins. The graphics are better and naval battles are fun but predictable, but basically this is the proverbial lipstick on the pig. Unless the AI is fixed this series is doomed.… Expand
  81. BlakeM
    Apr 14, 2009
    2
    I think it is funny because every where else people only complain how bad this game is The magazines are just promotional tools those reveiws are a little more than just biased. This is a sorry incomplete product and has no right to be out on the market yet, it's hardly playable. Steam could not even provide a manual when I bought the game through them. Shame on all the gaming I think it is funny because every where else people only complain how bad this game is The magazines are just promotional tools those reveiws are a little more than just biased. This is a sorry incomplete product and has no right to be out on the market yet, it's hardly playable. Steam could not even provide a manual when I bought the game through them. Shame on all the gaming magazine shills, I knew there was a good reason I don't read that garbage.… Expand
  82. AnonymousMC
    Apr 22, 2009
    2
    Bugs, bugs, bugs; bugs everywhere. How sad is it that you actually hope that the game will just crash quickly, instead of hanging your system, before you can try again.
    Please give me a copy of the game the official reviewers had, so I can also wax lyrical about it.
  83. DisAllusioned
    Apr 5, 2009
    2
    Ok who lets this game out of beta? Seriously this thing crashes more that a blindfolded drunk driver! The graphics on low and medium settings are horrible I keep seeing units made of stick figures. Note to CA some of us need to buy food and housing we don't have a pile of cash to blow on hi-end graphics cards. And linking this to steam wtf now I can't even try to sell this Ok who lets this game out of beta? Seriously this thing crashes more that a blindfolded drunk driver! The graphics on low and medium settings are horrible I keep seeing units made of stick figures. Note to CA some of us need to buy food and housing we don't have a pile of cash to blow on hi-end graphics cards. And linking this to steam wtf now I can't even try to sell this disaster and recoup some of my money!! And I'm not even going to start with the game play issues I just don't have that kind of time. Good job CA you managed to kill the total war franchise and make sure I never buy another product of yours again.… Expand
  84. RobK.
    Apr 9, 2009
    2
    Tragically, this is an outstanding game plagued by a 1st rate battleship full of bugs, CTD errors and in my opinion unforgiveable game playweaknesses which could all have been ironed out with a proper Beta. The game frequently (every hour or so) crashes to desktop during naval or land battles, and after about 20-30 turns the game will reach a point where it crashes during the AI turn on Tragically, this is an outstanding game plagued by a 1st rate battleship full of bugs, CTD errors and in my opinion unforgiveable game playweaknesses which could all have been ironed out with a proper Beta. The game frequently (every hour or so) crashes to desktop during naval or land battles, and after about 20-30 turns the game will reach a point where it crashes during the AI turn on the campaign map, and when you reload the saved game it crashes in the same place...with no work around. This leaves your campaign dead in the water, and you have the choice of starting a fresh campaign or just not playing it any more. Really dissappointing, as I've been playing this series since Shogun and bought a new PC just to enjoy this game - wish now I'd spent a week on a beach instead!… Expand
  85. joem
    May 10, 2009
    2
    This game had the possibility of being awesome, but it crashes every 10 mins, it's slow as can be (even on a quad core 6600, 8GB of RAM, GeForce 285, 3.5 TB of hard drive space). There is no way this game should receive the praise it's been getting. This is utterly unstable and unplayable.
  86. JanusA
    May 14, 2009
    2
    I bought the game expecting a great follow-up to the previous TW series. MAny of the ideas in the game seem well thought-up, but the game is so bug-ridden and have so poor campaign and combat AI that it needs more than a few small patches to fix it.
  87. OliverS
    May 16, 2009
    2
    A game full of bugs. You're not able to play this game without crashes and other bugs that make the gameplay horrible! Thank you CA!!!
  88. MikeWW
    Jul 22, 2009
    2
    I actually kind of liked the game at first but I just decided after not playing for a few months to start a new game and I keep getting a message that the servers are busy!?!? I HAVE the DVDs - I PAID for the DVDs! This company owes money back to customers if this is not resolved!
  89. SheldonW
    Jul 24, 2009
    2
    Steam slows installation. Support for installation is patchy, but the game wouldn't install without it. This is not a game you can just go , out buy and play. Nine hour install on a quad-core. I missed the steam sticker on the back. Never again. The last SEGA game I'll buy.
  90. MatsB
    Jul 29, 2009
    2
    Here comes a low vote from me, because i think this is a scam! Paying about 50$ for a game, that i cant play b/c of all the bugs. Some proper patches, that makes the game DON'T crash when i try to start it, and so on.. It worked for a few hours and now i cant even start it.. I´ve read a lot on the web about this, and it aint just me who´s having these issues.
  91. HB
    Aug 18, 2009
    2
    A real step backwards in gameplay compared to Medieval II. The new features do not compensate for what was lost from the old game. However, most annoying is that you have to play from Internet/Steam especially when messages appear when you want to play "our servers are too busy". Bought the disk and still have to be connected and play (if their servers are not too busy) via Steam. I will A real step backwards in gameplay compared to Medieval II. The new features do not compensate for what was lost from the old game. However, most annoying is that you have to play from Internet/Steam especially when messages appear when you want to play "our servers are too busy". Bought the disk and still have to be connected and play (if their servers are not too busy) via Steam. I will never buy again a game from Sega if it only can be played via a server. Probably the sad end of the Total War series which used to be a delight.… Expand
  92. MarcioT.
    Aug 23, 2009
    2
    Activating the game just sucks. A bad strategy for such renowed marks as SEGA, Creative Assembly, and the Total War branch. That Steam thing idea is so weird that I never more want to see it again.
  93. JasonS
    Aug 28, 2009
    2
    If it is not broke, then don't fix it. I have been a fan of Total War since the Shogun days. I eagerly awaited the arrival of each new series, with great anticipation and for the most part receiving great satisfaction with each game. Now the arrival of Empire Total War. My anticipation has been satisfied but I am not satisfied with this game at all. 1. I do not expect to have to If it is not broke, then don't fix it. I have been a fan of Total War since the Shogun days. I eagerly awaited the arrival of each new series, with great anticipation and for the most part receiving great satisfaction with each game. Now the arrival of Empire Total War. My anticipation has been satisfied but I am not satisfied with this game at all. 1. I do not expect to have to purchase an entirely new computer to run a new game 2. I do not expect to have to deal with some on line server to make the game I purchased with two discs in my possession each time I want to play. 3. I do not want a server automatically updating my machine with a game patch without having the ability to inspect all the updates first before installing them on my computer. 4.I do not expect a game that as Medieval Total War II which runs exceptionally well to be destroyed by a new game which does not play well does not load well and does not represent the quality of game that I have come to expect from The Creative Assembly. Finally. In the old Medieval Total War days a group calling themselves the Lordz mad a mod for the old game which was called Napoleonic Total War. This game functions way better than the brand new and improved Empire Total War. To the members of the Creative Assembly. Please forget about meeting deadlines and the bottom line of how much more money you are going to make by delivering a game by the deadline. Give the gamers the kind of game they have come to expect from you in the past. A game that delivers everything and stands for quality in gaming. It is what we expect from you and what your honor and integrity demands.… Expand
  94. BrantC
    Oct 14, 2009
    2
    This game was riddled with bugs from day one. They promised features that were scrapped after a delayed release. They still have not fixed people hacking online, basically ruining any attempt at competitive play. Their staff even posted in a blog that they were not happy with the game on release, even going as far as saying they were ashamed to send copies to their friends. Creative This game was riddled with bugs from day one. They promised features that were scrapped after a delayed release. They still have not fixed people hacking online, basically ruining any attempt at competitive play. Their staff even posted in a blog that they were not happy with the game on release, even going as far as saying they were ashamed to send copies to their friends. Creative Assembly has shown that they continue to move in the wrong direction with the total war series, and are malicious towards their customers. With that said, the game is enjoyable for a campaign or so, but really lacks in any tactical depth and AI capability.… Expand
  95. peterf
    Dec 22, 2009
    2
    Disappointing land battles no tactics needed whatsoever and if you crash one ship into another nothing really happened the AI tries to slow your ships down when it thinks your going to crash as well so where is the control !!!
  96. DominikE.
    Dec 24, 2009
    2
    It's the best game, I've ever played!
  97. RussD
    Mar 16, 2009
    2
    This game is so buggy. Even after the 3/10/09 fixes mine still crashed in later years on the grand board. The in battle graphics works (on high) pretty well but has some minor quirks Command not graphics). The (what I call ) the play board or grand board is where the big bugs sit. Not only crashing (a lot in out years) but, withdrawing soldiers to places where I can move them to other This game is so buggy. Even after the 3/10/09 fixes mine still crashed in later years on the grand board. The in battle graphics works (on high) pretty well but has some minor quirks Command not graphics). The (what I call ) the play board or grand board is where the big bugs sit. Not only crashing (a lot in out years) but, withdrawing soldiers to places where I can move them to other land space or move them onto ships. This was a good one. I had a fleet which left off on army and then 2 turns later I tried to move the fleet and it would not let me. It claims that the water I am trying send them to is land. I don't think the Atlantic Ocean is land. I pray evertime after 30+ years in that it does not crash when I make moves on the grand board. I am running Phenom AM3 with 4 meg DDR2 (2 megs a chip) and a 6800 GeForce Video card. I have played and liked the previous Total War but this was a major disapointment. You needed more beta testing. As shown by how soon you had to put a patch out. Maybe you are working off the Microsoft mentality. It doesn't have to work out of the box, we can patch it. The people who wrote the articles didn't play this game for 20hrs through a campain or they would have seen the issues. Send it back. They can do better.… Expand
  98. BarryS
    Mar 26, 2009
    2
    wouldnt of minded if i had a poor computer but its 2 grands worth so for the first and hopefully last time im saying this game is so very poo,r at the moment i would even consider it to be some sort of breach of ethics or if it was a bank then conduct or something like that. putting out a product that could of been brilliant and will be but there are loads of brits on the team for christ wouldnt of minded if i had a poor computer but its 2 grands worth so for the first and hopefully last time im saying this game is so very poo,r at the moment i would even consider it to be some sort of breach of ethics or if it was a bank then conduct or something like that. putting out a product that could of been brilliant and will be but there are loads of brits on the team for christ sake. we are awesome at this stuff.… Expand
  99. williamc
    Apr 17, 2009
    2
    To many crashes when playing long campaign games,especially if you're will far along in developing technology. Also a downer is if steam decides to update you while playing your game will crash. Way to many crash bugs for the money they're asking. Compare to other Total War games this is a joke cause of the crashes.
  100. daver
    Jul 14, 2009
    2
    The game is cool, i think, as i have not been able to play for more than 1 min before crash,crash,crash..... never buy a game requiring a steam account, it's brutal. will they ever release a version that does not require it?
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Awards & Rankings

5
#5 Best PC Game of 2009
3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2009
6
#6 Most Shared PC Game of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 62 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 61 out of 62
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 62
  3. Negative: 0 out of 62
  1. PC Gamer UK
    94
    Astonishing...Immense... A strategy masterwork. [Mar 2009, p.54]
    Read full review
  2. Eurogamer
    90
    In some ways, it's the closest we've come to the enormous social novel from the period after that which Empire chronicles: it's a Tolstoy-esque War and Peace of a game. Its problems may be the inevitable problems of trying something with such sheer scope. As such, if you want the breathtaking vision of the game, you have to accept the flaws in the details - for now, at least.
    Read full review
  3. InsideGamer.nl
    93
    This is the best Total War game thanks to all the little tweaks. Sometimes little differences make a good game great. The battles ask of you that you think more about your actions and managing your empire never was easier. The sea battles are fun to watch, but are a little hard to control. Nevertheless, Empire: Total War is a game that can make you forget about the time.
    Read full review
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