Total War: Three Kingdoms

 PC
  • Publisher: Sega
  • Release Date: May 23, 2019
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 400 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 282 out of 400
  2. Mixed: 52 out of 400
  3. Negative: 66 out of 400

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  1. DukeJon
    May 23, 2019
    10
    After a few hours play I am already getting a sense of how deep this game is. Running flawlessly as well, performance is a marked improvement over previous games.
  2. Wiebe
    Feb 26, 2020
    5
    Total war has barely evolved of the years, and its concepts are showing their age. Yes the new heroes and their armies are a great addition, but overall building, campaign movement and dumb ai show the age of most of the concepts of total war.
  3. Cree26
    Aug 18, 2020
    4
    Zzzzzzzz...Cluttered poorly explained and distracting UI...discount cartoony WoW style graphics and colours, historical mode (Records Mode) seems tacked-on, poorly organized settlement building system.

    Battles are smooth, thats a pro. For the record I played on hard my first try and am winning despite not understanding or engaging with many mechanics such as generals liking each    Zzzzzzzz...Cluttered poorly explained and distracting UI...discount cartoony WoW style graphics and colours, historical mode (Records Mode) seems tacked-on, poorly organized settlement building system.

    Battles are smooth, thats a pro.

    For the record I played on hard my first try and am winning despite not understanding or engaging with many mechanics such as generals liking each other or not.

    Don't buy unless there's a big sale.    … Expand
  4. ChumaGG
    May 28, 2021
    0
    Este juego se encuentra abandonado e incompleto. Es un juego de lo 3 reinos que no cuenta la historia completa de los 3 reinos.
    La razon es que a la desarrolladora se le hizo muy facil abandonarlo y comenzar a hacer una secuela, ¿para que?, para sacarle mas dinero a la gente.
    Ni siquiera han podido arreglar algunos bugs de salida. Por no decir que cancelaron las ultimas expansiones para    Este juego se encuentra abandonado e incompleto. Es un juego de lo 3 reinos que no cuenta la historia completa de los 3 reinos.
    La razon es que a la desarrolladora se le hizo muy facil abandonarlo y comenzar a hacer una secuela, ¿para que?, para sacarle mas dinero a la gente.

    Ni siquiera han podido arreglar algunos bugs de salida.

    Por no decir que cancelaron las ultimas expansiones para hacer esto.    … Expand
  5. GabFire
    Aug 9, 2020
    5
    Olha, eu sempre fui fã de jogos de estratégia de todos os gêneros, desde ''Starcraft'' até RPGs de turno como ''Final Fantasy VII'', mas esse jogo aí não me agradou, realmente eu não gostei dele.
  6. g014n
    Sep 13, 2020
    6
    It's an anambitious project and a mediocre score is more than it deserves. I was a fan of the TW series since I was a kid and, because RTW offered me so much replayability, I wanted to support the company, but they're taking advantage of their fanbase and the series is becoming like the Assassin Creed franchise instead of staying true to their roots. When they started out, they addedIt's an anambitious project and a mediocre score is more than it deserves. I was a fan of the TW series since I was a kid and, because RTW offered me so much replayability, I wanted to support the company, but they're taking advantage of their fanbase and the series is becoming like the Assassin Creed franchise instead of staying true to their roots. When they started out, they added something revolutionary to the mix of strategy games available. But that was a long time ago, many releases ago.

    The combat system has pretty much remained the same since the era of Rome2 Emperor Edition. Not a bad starting point, not without obvious flaws and limitations that I hoped they'd try to iterate on (way too many to list than their effort deserves the effort). But this is how a mediocre score is more justified than a higher one. It would be 2 points higher if this system wasn't as repetitive within the game itself and if the AI was at least slightly better.

    Every other component has a similar faith.

    The campaign map playmode is barebones in terms of diversity and content. This is soemthing that I avoided criticising in the past because other historically inspired strategy games get away with it (Civ fans, I'm looking at you with nothing but contempt). However, when you're releasing the same thing every couple of years and then sell so many cosmetic expansions, it's something that could have easily been taken care of. The main reason it's shallow remains the extremely shallow diplomacy system (it's so stupid to see people praising it when there actual games doing a good job in this regard) and almost inexistent political or actual governance system. They have espionage now, but it's also barebones... it's legwork, not interesting, doesn't really add much to your playthrough. This aspect, the SP campaign mode, is mediocre for its own reasons.

    Why not go lower with the score then? Because it's fairly well polished. When I jumped in (some time after release) it was well optimized and this permited me to do a few speedruns alongside my usual playstyle. Also, the flavour art is good. We've seen it done beofre, but this is genuine content. All in all, unlike multiple Creative Assembly releases, this one was ok, doesn't deserve a truly bad mark, tbh.    … Expand
  7. Fattimus
    May 28, 2019
    5
    As an avid Total War fan since TW:Rome in 2004 (it's one of my favorite series!), I was somewhat let down by this one. It has some charm but as you dig a bit deeper it's actually fairly bland / generic imho.

    PROS: - Unique / "Pretty" UI - Interesting setting (don't see much AAA games about China!). Very unique in the way that I don't have a clue what the names mean and it's    As an avid Total War fan since TW:Rome in 2004 (it's one of my favorite series!), I was somewhat let down by this one. It has some charm but as you dig a bit deeper it's actually fairly bland / generic imho.

    PROS:

    - Unique / "Pretty" UI
    - Interesting setting (don't see much AAA games about China!). Very unique in the way that I don't have a clue what the names mean and it's interesting to hear a foreign language + learn their culture
    - Very well-optimized, esp. compared with previous releases (holy cow it works out of the box!)
    - Historical-ish
    - Not overloaded with Day 1 DLC (Yellow Turbins is only one I know of atm)
    - Interesting leaders, *they* look and sound unique (but sadly the actual gameplay + the armies + the cities aren't as varied)
    - For a Three Kingdoms setting game, it's got to be one of the best ones
    - I like the focus on narrative
    - Potential for *giant* armies clashing

    CONS:

    - Not much variety, like at all. All factions look / feel / play very similar if not the exact same
    - UI is confusing and hard to navigate. Lot's of hidden menus or bad / missing descriptions
    - Lack of a "good" tutorial
    - Cartoony / generic look. I'd argue they almost took a step *back* on the graphics dept. It's not mindblowing like previous releases would have been
    - Multiplayer is subpar. Because all factions are so similar, not much variety to MP play (esp. compared to TW:WH2 or the like)
    - Map is kinda meh. It's basically one giant continent (they're obv. restricted by real life geography)
    - I can't stress enough how boring the units are imo. They're all the same and it feels like the units you start with will still be the main types you use in the endgame
    - Gameplay ends up feeling samesy. Changing factions pretty much just changed which direction of the map you're headed (ie: one faction leader will head south to the coast whereas the other will head north - otherwise they feel the same)
    - Seems like they couldn't decide whether to go fully historical or to go fully romanticized. Gives a somewhat half-assed approach in the end (leaders seem to be the main "romatic" thing)
    - Leaders are both OP and underwhelming on the battlefield. They don't die but at the same time they hit like a wet noodle (at least early; I imagine they become straight OP later game)
    - Battles go WAY too fast. Typical battle is over in ~5-10min
    - It's weird, on one hand they're dumbing down the game for "casuals" (battles, army management) and on the other they've overcomplicated bits (economy, building, navigating the UI, understanding stats, etc)
    - Again, graphics are "meh". Looks cartoony which kills the vibe.

    FINAL OPINION:

    I ended up refunding this as I have a lot more fun playing TW:Warhammer 2. Until / unless they add some interesting DLC I will probably avoid this one for the moment. I'm torn because on one hand I wanted historical again, but on the other hand it lacks the charm previous entries have had. This is by far the least variety I've seem in a TW game (I mean even Rome had "War Dogs" and interesting mercenaries you could use).

    I think if they add some spice this could be fun. Add some unit variety, embrace the "Romance" period you advertise! I'm sure they had like, cool ass flame-using-weapon troops, or Sword Breaker units, or multipurpose cavalry with short bows + short spears, etc - It may not be 100% historical but stuff like this would still fit the setting and could be restricted to Romance Mode.

    Either way, it's so-so imo. If I'm being completely honest I think a lot of the hype is coming from Chinese gamers who aren't used to western AAA titles that focus on their history (which is awesome and I encourage). It's NOT AT ALL A BAD GAME FYI. If I didn't have other Total War's to compare with I'd bump the score up a bit. That said I don't think its 9/10

    It might be one day though. Total War has always been damn good at improving their games over time so I expect a year or so from now I might want to take another look. Sadly TW:Warhammer 3 will be out by then lol    … Expand
  8. jukadojensen797
    May 25, 2019
    6
    This game suffers all the problems of previous TW games Brain dead battle AI, boring unit models and a map that is needlessly huge with armies barely moving each turn. Characters all seem to have a personality disorder, constantly making pointless proposals and disagreeing to anything reasonable. On a lesser note the UI looks terrible, color and effects galore without much usefulThis game suffers all the problems of previous TW games Brain dead battle AI, boring unit models and a map that is needlessly huge with armies barely moving each turn. Characters all seem to have a personality disorder, constantly making pointless proposals and disagreeing to anything reasonable. On a lesser note the UI looks terrible, color and effects galore without much useful information. Anyone that hasn't shelled out 60 dollars wait until a sale, this game offers nothing new.… Expand
  9. G4MR
    May 23, 2019
    10
    Amazing game, definitely my favorite Total War! The epic setting, the character focus and most engaging campaign gameplay to date -highly recommend it!
  10. Hugothester
    May 23, 2019
    10
    Praised be CA for listening to the community.
    This game does not only have the most deep and complex dillomatic system ever in a total war game, with a capable AI that does work, but also looks beautiful as hell, with changes to the graphic engine that make this one of the most amazing pieces of art of gaming map design.
    Cities look amazing, battles feel more reponsive than ever,    Praised be CA for listening to the community.
    This game does not only have the most deep and complex dillomatic system ever in a total war game, with a capable AI that does work, but also looks beautiful as hell, with changes to the graphic engine that make this one of the most amazing pieces of art of gaming map design.
    Cities look amazing, battles feel more reponsive than ever, characters feel alive and, most importantly, stuttering is gone and the game runs better than any other total war game.
    This is without a doubt the best total war title by far, so even if you do not like the tine setting give it a chance if you like total war.    … Expand
  11. alex_dragon
    May 23, 2019
    10
    I would like to thank Creative Assembly on listening to the Community's Feedbacks and Suggestions.

    I have been following CA and following all 3K's content since launch, and also have written feedback and suggestions for the game, most of the issues and concerns were fixed during the delays of the game, and the game is in a much more polished state compared to Rome 2 The Developers    I would like to thank Creative Assembly on listening to the Community's Feedbacks and Suggestions.

    I have been following CA and following all 3K's content since launch, and also have written feedback and suggestions for the game, most of the issues and concerns were fixed during the delays of the game, and the game is in a much more polished state compared to Rome 2

    The Developers also have streams over 30+ hours of content on their Total War Live Channel, as well as hours and hours of gameplay available from content creators. Unlike in Rome 2 where we only saw a trailer and some battle that's it

    The delayed have proved to have done the game justice, thank you so much to CA for listening to the fans    … Expand
  12. stgreylv
    May 23, 2019
    10
    God bless CA for creating this amazing game. Total War forever in my heart.
  13. Black-Templar
    May 26, 2019
    10
    I started from Rome (the first one, not the disaster that is Rome 2). I played every single Total War from then (perhaps over 8 thousands hour of gameplay accumulated).

    I was extremely sceptical about 3 kingdoms. I still remeber the sore deception of Rome 2 and was wondering how it was possible to go from a polished and well refined game such as Shogun 2 to the sorry sh*t that is Rome    I started from Rome (the first one, not the disaster that is Rome 2). I played every single Total War from then (perhaps over 8 thousands hour of gameplay accumulated).

    I was extremely sceptical about 3 kingdoms. I still remeber the sore deception of Rome 2 and was wondering how it was possible to go from a polished and well refined game such as Shogun 2 to the sorry sh*t that is Rome 2.

    Seeing many gameplay of 3 kingdoms, I had Rome 2 ptsd flashbacks all over again. The graphics looked cartoonish, the Combat IA looked horrible. I though it was a way for creative Assembly to test the terrain for the mobile game industry.

    Well, Ive seen released content gameplay of the game ans decided to give it a chance.. Turns out, it was a good decision. Three kingdoms is the best Total war game Ive played since Shogun 2. While the combat IA can be exploited in siege battles and can make the mistakes of puting some of its unit in questionnable situation, it is not as drastic as I feared for. And is even somewhat better than Shogun 2 (land battle,not sieges wise).

    But... it comes at no one surprise to know that the game shines at the campaign part. Even the greatest Total war veteran will have to spend dozens of hours to learn every single features. I am extremely satisfied with how the game turned out to be. With its Romance and Record mode, the game should satisfy both the historical and the Dynasty warrirors' fans.

    I've seen a bunch of review criticizing the game about its campaign complexity.. I will never understand this kind complains. Isnt it good when a game turns out to be both complexe and rewarding instead of being casual? The player has the choice to set the difficulty of the campaign to easy or medium if they just want a straightforward campaign. But please, let the gamers enjoy a game that finally takes minimal time of investment to master the game instead of just being spoonfed by simplistics features. A lot of works has been made by the devs and you can just feel it by experiencing the best campaign game since Rome 1 or Shogun 2.    … Expand
  14. Denerion
    May 23, 2019
    10
    Thanks to CA for listenning community's feedbacks.
    It proves the delay is a true success.
    This game is by far the better and the most appreciated by the fans. I really enjoy the new gameplay's mechanics, the diplomatic system is really improved and deeper, the possibility to play as Romance or Historic Mode is a nice idea to let players choose the way they like to play and live this    Thanks to CA for listenning community's feedbacks.
    It proves the delay is a true success.

    This game is by far the better and the most appreciated by the fans.

    I really enjoy the new gameplay's mechanics, the diplomatic system is really improved and deeper, the possibility to play as Romance or Historic Mode is a nice idea to let players choose the way they like to play and live this story.

    A tons of hours in view.    … Expand
  15. Haveaseatson
    Jul 18, 2019
    4
    I cant understand why these games get such high ratings, where do i start? Boring campaign gameplay, (if youve ever played a paradox 4x game total war games are extremely simple and boring on the map) repetitive battles that all play out the same way if they arent just auto resolved, long loading times, bad graphics, bad performance, bad interface. Just in general this series entireI cant understand why these games get such high ratings, where do i start? Boring campaign gameplay, (if youve ever played a paradox 4x game total war games are extremely simple and boring on the map) repetitive battles that all play out the same way if they arent just auto resolved, long loading times, bad graphics, bad performance, bad interface. Just in general this series entire premise of meshing a watered down 4x experience with the real time battles is just dated, it needs an overhaul, the battles are not fun.. they arent even interesting and your actual tactics are extremely limited, youll end up auto resolving them all rather than sit through the 60 second load screen and spending 10minutes doing the usual flank/ cavalry charge routine just to save 100 casualities.

    This series has not evolved very much for the time its been going, the developers seem content in reskinning the same game and releasing it as a new $60 game every couple of years.

    I hope someone swoops in and takes this concept and makes it actually fun because it is a good concept, its just executed poorly by todays standards.    … Expand
  16. Kskas
    Jun 26, 2019
    5
    Game is overhyped and still needs tons of work,. AI is still stupid, diplomacy at first feels improved but after playing for awhile you'll begin to notice things like signing peace treaties only to have your peace treaty broken the next turn beacuse they for some reason chose to attack your vassal FORCING YOU to choose between renewing the war after just 1 turn, causing yourGame is overhyped and still needs tons of work,. AI is still stupid, diplomacy at first feels improved but after playing for awhile you'll begin to notice things like signing peace treaties only to have your peace treaty broken the next turn beacuse they for some reason chose to attack your vassal FORCING YOU to choose between renewing the war after just 1 turn, causing your "trustworthiness" to suffer immensely. Or you could decline which will make you lose your vassal and also suffer a penalty to your trustworthiness. Then we also have generals in records mode being stronger than their romance counterparts, General's bodyguard being able to take on several units of spearmen, also the general always being the last person alive tanking several hits. Records mode generals also rack up more kills more easily which also is contradictory to what it was supposed to be. Then we have the lategame problem with corruption, after reaching the rank of kingdom corruption is probably gonna be around 60% in most of cities just removing almost all of your income. And with focus on reducing it trough reforms or assignments is almost futile beacuse you'll need around 10-15 nobles being able to do the "reduced corruption assignment" to even put a dent in it. So lategame always leads to inferior economic power compared even to the smallest factions still in the game. And lastly with all these things going on trying to win the campaign is a drag, with literally everyone teaming up against you and diplomacy is completely useless.

    Then we have some minors things like armies being able to adopt march stance and retreat from battles making them next to impossible to catch, so you'll see enemy armies just marching around everywhere becuse their is no risk involved. In earlier titles geeting caught in march stance meant either geeting ambushed or having to fight to the death with no retreat option. And also cities with millions in pop having incredibly weak and small garrisons while small farming towns have alot larger ones. and lastly some wierd bugg with trebuchets were they keep repositioning indefinatly even tho they have a clear view of attack.    … Expand
  17. Legendofmind
    May 30, 2019
    4
    I bought this game based on the glowing reviews. After seeing all the mechanics added, I thought 'why not?'. This is one of the worst Total War games. I've been playing Total War since Shogun 1. The mechanics introduced in this game should have been released with the Empire. Alas, most of what is introduced is too little too late.

    The creators of Total War have a tendency of taking 1    I bought this game based on the glowing reviews. After seeing all the mechanics added, I thought 'why not?'. This is one of the worst Total War games. I've been playing Total War since Shogun 1. The mechanics introduced in this game should have been released with the Empire. Alas, most of what is introduced is too little too late.

    The creators of Total War have a tendency of taking 1 step forward, 1 step backward for every Total War release. This is no different. They somehow managed to make the battles more streamlined. It is like playing Rome 2 at launch; Except less crashes. All the battles are over with quick. The average was 4 minutes for 1vs1. I THINK they are doing this to make Total War more presentable for the Esports. If you do not like the way a certain unit/building works? Pick another -Ad infinitum.

    The 3 hero armies are a nice addition. They can be devasting. One hero can take on 3 units at once. +Plus the drama they can add to the overall campaign.

    The game begs to be modded. It seems like CA thought of a bunch of half-baked ideas and said: "Allow the players to decide on where to take it".

    The biggest deal killer for me is the lack of Artifical intelligence. CA has been given a pass for far too long regarding bad AI. Total War is unique, but I am tired of playing the same battle but with different units.

    If you're new to Total War, give it a try. Based on the majority of the reviews, I am in the minority for disliking this iteration.

    As of May 29, 2019, this game has an 8.9 user score.

    Pros:
    -Optimized
    -It has Great music/Voice acting.
    -Good Story.
    -A step in the right direction for duels.
    -New Mechanics regarding the strategic map. IE, the population for cities, resources, gravitas expanded, diplomacy.
    -Welcomed addition of 3 heroes per army.

    Cons:
    -Horrible AI.
    -Graphics look worse than Warhammer.
    -UI needs more time in the oven.
    -Battles are streamlined.    … Expand
  18. StrykeI
    May 24, 2019
    10
    After an hour or two of getting familiar with things, this game has totally hooked me in. I didn't think Three Kingdoms would be able to match Warhammer 2, but it has. The world feels far more alive than any recent title, the depth of diplomacy is a joy, the character-driven nature of the game feels great. At first it's hard to relate to all these Chinese characters you've likely not heardAfter an hour or two of getting familiar with things, this game has totally hooked me in. I didn't think Three Kingdoms would be able to match Warhammer 2, but it has. The world feels far more alive than any recent title, the depth of diplomacy is a joy, the character-driven nature of the game feels great. At first it's hard to relate to all these Chinese characters you've likely not heard of, but after a few hours you get a feel for your faction's place in the world, find friends and rivals, and see all sorts of dynamic events. Like I said, it's a living world - in my campaign the "big bad guy" Dong Zuo actually died to Lu Bu within the first 15 turns, leaving a significantly weakened faction that never became a threat. I was worried the battles would be a let down, but these are also top-notch; I've fought a number of tough battles already. At first the retinue system feels strange, but once you get used to it it works incredibly well, and you find yourself using your heroes in a complimentary fashion; Champions diving in to snipe generals; Vanguards helping to smash the enemy lines, and so forth.

    In almost every way, 3 Kingdoms has improved upon the series. I wrote this review because I want CA to know that what they've done is fantastic, and the vocal minority who complain it's too complicated can bugger off. Most of us want a deep game. The only criticism I do have is the campaign map UI; every city has quite a large name tag, and this overwhelms the screen a little unless you zoom out. There doesn't seem to be an option to change this at all. I'm getting used to it, but it does feel a bit much to have a dozen or so tags getting in the way of the beautiful scenery.    … Expand
  19. Ruairi
    May 24, 2019
    10
    Definitely one of the better total war games out there, and I've been playing them for years, a surprising amount of detail, runs like a charm, and has a lot of little nice touches that add up to a great game. One example having the option to have all the game's dialogue in Chinese or English, or the other having the game have more historically accurate battles or more romanticisedDefinitely one of the better total war games out there, and I've been playing them for years, a surprising amount of detail, runs like a charm, and has a lot of little nice touches that add up to a great game. One example having the option to have all the game's dialogue in Chinese or English, or the other having the game have more historically accurate battles or more romanticised battles, where your generals behave like they did in Total War Warhammer.

    Would definitely recommend!    … Expand
  20. TotalWarrior
    May 24, 2019
    10
    its great buy it. I have had 0 bugs so far 0, its amazing, and runs so buttery smooth, It looks and runs better than rome 2 does right now, its good to see CA in a return to form.
  21. Viranto
    May 23, 2019
    10
    Best total war so far. Amazing new features and runs smoother than any total war. It's a big success
  22. bryce_lx
    May 27, 2019
    10
    Positive:
    Basicaly,
    good understanding of the novel 'three kingdom'
    good map for old china
    good simulation for war and generals
    good view for chineses cutule

    Negative:
    random crash.
    obscure view sometimes.
    lack of guide for economic system
  23. northernlad
    May 28, 2019
    6
    real review on steam needless to say 22 hours played it's not a bad game but doesn't feel like a total war game battles are very poor and way to fast
  24. peterk426
    May 31, 2019
    6
    I played Total War:Warhammer 2 a few times. It was kind of like heroes of might and magic, but a lot worse.
    Total War:Three kingdoms is the second total war game I played. I played a lot of the romance of the three kingdoms games, loved RoTK 3 4 and 11. Those games were actually very in depth and the fighting was really good. Heres what I like and dont like about this game:
    The Good: The    I played Total War:Warhammer 2 a few times. It was kind of like heroes of might and magic, but a lot worse.
    Total War:Three kingdoms is the second total war game I played. I played a lot of the romance of the three kingdoms games, loved RoTK 3 4 and 11. Those games were actually very in depth and the fighting was really good. Heres what I like and dont like about this game:
    The Good: The battles are ok, im not in awe of it in any way. I like that it tries to be as historically accurate as possible.
    The bad: Each turn takes a long time, averaging 1-2 minutes. almost every turn, you will get someone asking you for a super 1 sided trade. This happens every turn. Big army battles get super laggy. The game has crashed on me twice as well. I hate the building system, and the "Technology tree" is horrible. you have to wait 5 turns to get 1 technology upgrade, which I hope gets fixed because thats really slow and bad. I had times where I went to attack a general whos army was on the map, and he ran away. It took me 5 turns and still couldnt catch this general because they kept fleeing. Finally I went for their city and they ran back. i still have no idea how to build trebuchets, and getting upgraded units is a huge chore and has pre-requisites and if you dont have them, you miss out.

    I feel like this game has potential but theres so much wrong with it for me to fully enjoy a game. It takes hours to get things done and I prefer playing single player. I'm playing on easy mode and even then the game is really hard.

    Note: If you like RoTK but not total war, dont buy the game. If you are a fan of Total war then buy the game.    … Expand
  25. 4xGamer
    May 27, 2019
    10
    I've been playing TW3Kingdoms for the past two days straight since its release, and I figured I'd let people know what I've found. I'll start by telling you the end... this is by far the best total war game CA has ever made (IMHO), and I've played all of them, with the exception of the first shogun game. Let me explain why this is the best, first off and most critically, the game is veryI've been playing TW3Kingdoms for the past two days straight since its release, and I figured I'd let people know what I've found. I'll start by telling you the end... this is by far the best total war game CA has ever made (IMHO), and I've played all of them, with the exception of the first shogun game. Let me explain why this is the best, first off and most critically, the game is very stable, it actually works after you download it which means CA didn't force the development team to birth an unfinished Turd into the world just because some executive wrote a date on the calendar with the word RELEASE on it (several prior TW titles had this problem), so THANK YOU CA.

    Second, this game has exceptional depth, which translates not only into intriguing game-play but also an exceptional amount of re-playability. Although the game is deep, CA did an excellent job with the campaign UI to make it so the game isn't excruciatingly confusing or just a boring list of stats. They have artfully used a color scheme to help gamers easily identify what items pair best together. For instance, Blue background colored Generals pair best (due to their buffs) with Blue background colored units. Also, the campaign has much, much, much greater depth than any other TW game. For instance, when you build-out a town or city you now should look at the entire province (called commanderies) in order to maximize gains since the regions all work together. The regions also use a color-coded system for ease as well so you don't follow the same simple pattern of prior TW games where every province was nearly identical with its build-out -- #1) Build farm, #2) build up town, #3) build squalor reducing building, #4) repeat. There is much more variability in province building in TW3K, which is a very welcome addition and makes the game much more interesting.

    Additionally, generals now interact with one another so some of your generals will like or dislike other generals dependent on their personality stats, which really adds some character and complexity to the game since an unhappy general may leave or start a rebellion. There are also unattached wandering generals who will wander through your provinces looking for work. Again, this is a great mechanic that adds variability and depth to the game. To go along with that, your generals can be used as Spies, so you can push one of your generals into the "Wandering Generals" pool in the hope that he becomes employed by an enemy faction, which will give you great incite into the enemies machinations. This is a brilliant mechanic that fixes the old, sometimes OP mechanic of spies from prior TW games.

    Also, for all you TW game fans, CA finally made great improvements to AI diplomacy so now campaign faction diplomacy has many more options and the AI behaves in a reasonable manner. I'm sure it's incredibly difficult to program a desktop computer to behave like a person, so a big thumbs up to CA & Sega on this one.

    As usual, the campaign map and battles are amazing in regards to how they look, which was always a big selling point for prior TW games and CA came through again in this regard. Unit pathing and the battle AI are very good, where the AI will perform quite well and function in a reasonable manner in most battle situations. It's good to see the battle AI improving along with the campaign AI.

    Ship and Sea battles have been removed from this TW. This is mostly a good thing. Live-action sea battles in prior TW games were beautifully rendered, like looking at a work of art, but often the ships were slow moving, difficult to path and control, and, because of that, I used to auto-resolve nearly every sea battle, which means that developers probably wasted years of development time making a function that hardly anyone used. I think it's a good thing that CA used that valuable development time to make a complete and outstanding land battle based game. I like the idea of sea battles, and maybe they can come back in a future TW game, but only if someone can figure out how to make them interesting... a difficult task, so I commend CA on making a difficult yet good call with the no-sea-battle in TW3K.

    There's so much more I could say that is good about this game but I'll stop here. There are a few (minor) things that would be nice to fix in this game. CA changed the layout of how unit stats are read, using icons to denote battle stats, for instance, a gold sword indicates armor-piercing damage, so you're constantly having to scroll over the icon to see what the stat is since there are about 15 of them. The method from TW Warhammer 2 was better with the actual wording of the stat so you could see what it was. This is a minor problem considering the game just released.

    Overall, this is an outstanding 4x game. CA actually listened to their fan-base and made the game changes requested by gamers. If you like 4x, go buy this game.    … Expand
  26. Joseve
    Jun 5, 2019
    3
    hello, I have played the total war series since rome total war. while not all the games are on my steam account it is because I have purchased them on disks... back when those were a thing.

    This game isn't as good as warhammer 2 total war overall. While its campaign is marginally superior, its battles are Extremely boring as it is always mirror matches, due to this historical nature of    hello, I have played the total war series since rome total war. while not all the games are on my steam account it is because I have purchased them on disks... back when those were a thing.

    This game isn't as good as warhammer 2 total war overall. While its campaign is marginally superior, its battles are Extremely boring as it is always mirror matches, due to this historical nature of it. Often times battles end up being mirror matches. I have looked at previous historical total wars such as medieval 2 total war which had some unit overcross there was massive unit variation in terms of what each faction had. While I accept that it is more than probable that they all used the same units in history... there was probably slight variation in training that would result in different functions in their real life applications, which means that you can have different units and not have every unit be a copy paste. There is a faction leader that has the title "pacifict lord", you would think that this faction would have heavy defense units as it's lord is a pacifist, but its units are the exact same.

    Rebellions are nothing you have to worry about. They are no threat to you and as such I felt no reason not to crank up my taxes as soon as I could and not worry about food or public order. I never lost a fight even in auto resolve to a rebellion as assaulting a settlement filled with chokepoints and powerful towers that for if you can hold them you are almost always going to win defending against a siege. I had a garrison filled with only militia this militia had 9 ji militia 6 archers and 3 cavalry. it held against a full stack of elite "defenders of earth/heaven" that only the 3 who have put forward claims to rule china can field. I won that siege against units that I had no business beating and in any other game my units would have routed and I would have lost this little farming village but these chokepoints are a joke.

    Missiles and defensive play are the easiest way to win a campaign as the range on bows is absolutely huge. Not only that they can do insane damage. In campaign I ran 6 units of repeating crossbows and a majority of the time 1-2 whole units of medium infantry would be absolutely crushed before even reaching the front line. In history crossbows had very little arc... But in this game they can shoot like regular bows and you can proceed to shoot over the heads of your units and right into the enemy which results in very high damage from your side and minimal losses per battle. Artillery is extremely strong as well often times killing 480 men before it runs out of ammunition which all happens before they can even reach you. that is equal to 4 units in losses. with the strength of range in this campaign it is nearly impossible to lose a campaign battle if you have a good range core.

    The AI often times loves engaging in diplomacy for ancillaries which is quite annoying as they often come with a small amount of cash for something very small and this happened to me generally 3-4 times per end turn which was quite annoying. I am happy though that the ai is generally better at diplomacy than any other installment. along with the ability to see what will be necessary for them to accept a certain deal. Vassals work in this game at least in my experience.

    If you are thinking of buying this game I would highly recommend not buying this game if you prefer battles being good and not endless mirror matches go and play warhammer 2 total war. Overall I think it is a better game with more unit variation, better battles, and better unit models.

    Speaking of unit models... there is very little unit model variation. For example in warhammer 2 lizard men you could clearly tell the difference between the elite and non-elite. For the Lizardmen there is a clear difference between temple guard, the most elite infantry for them vs the skinks which are the basic infantry. The temple guard are decked in gold armor with giant weapons and are massive, the skinks have virtually no armor and a tiny weapon. The same goes for older titles as far back as rome 1 where urban cohorts were way decked out in armor compared to hastati, and cataracts were completely layered in mail when their non-elite counterparts were wearing almost no armor. almost all units have just a small bit of armor in terms of looks and the only massive difference is when you lay a claim to rule china and get the defender of heaven/earth units. those are the only elite looking units that look really and truly elite.

    all in all this game in my book is a 3/10 and I will never play this game again.    … Expand
  27. Ananisapta
    Jun 18, 2019
    7
    Tao Te Ching says, "The Wise don't covet leadership, so wind up in charge." This is NOT a tenable philosophy for any of the Total War series. The Three Kingdoms period, in particular, was an unimaginable bloodbath in which the population of east Asia was much reduced. Treachery and aggression were the norm, at least among those who came out on top. If you are comfortable being "the meanestTao Te Ching says, "The Wise don't covet leadership, so wind up in charge." This is NOT a tenable philosophy for any of the Total War series. The Three Kingdoms period, in particular, was an unimaginable bloodbath in which the population of east Asia was much reduced. Treachery and aggression were the norm, at least among those who came out on top. If you are comfortable being "the meanest SOB in the Valley" then this game's for you. It certainly has enough challenge and complexity to occupy you for as long as you can stand it.

    That said, there are flaws. It's especially hard to learn for somebody who isn't very familiar with the Total War franchise. Most instructional material assumes you already know a great deal about the game's mechanics, and the interface is a daunting maze that's not at all intuitive. There are also some bugs that await swatting. One I found was the lack of diplomatic options for the player who chooses the recommended settings for a beginner.

    To close as we began, the Tao Te Ching has this to say,
    "The best soldiers don't get violent;
    The best fighters don't get angry;
    The best winners don't take all;
    The best bosses don't throw their weight around."
    If you believe that, this game is NOT for you!    … Expand
  28. SaintJames012
    May 28, 2019
    9
    Best Total War since Shogun 2. Romance mode is a great inclusion that adds a sense of personality to each general more than any other historical Total War game. Because of the emphasis on generals as opposed to units, Romance mode is also a great starting spot for anyone new to the Total War series.

    Definitely a must buy for any TW fan.
  29. Kadirov
    Jul 5, 2019
    0
    This is for not allowing allowing adult mods. Totalitarism must be punished.
  30. juliiouse
    Aug 1, 2019
    8
    Having been a fan of the Total War series since Medieval Total War back in 2002, I've picked up and mostly enjoyed the games, but more recent ones have shown a wide variety of issues which have impacted this enjoyment. From the horribly optimised Warhammer II with its' litany of performance problems and turn transitions which take upwards of five minutes, horribly bugged launches and theHaving been a fan of the Total War series since Medieval Total War back in 2002, I've picked up and mostly enjoyed the games, but more recent ones have shown a wide variety of issues which have impacted this enjoyment. From the horribly optimised Warhammer II with its' litany of performance problems and turn transitions which take upwards of five minutes, horribly bugged launches and the lacklustre Thrones of Britannia game, I was extremely cautious in my optimism for Three Kingdoms.

    However, upon playing it, I feel like initially this is one of the best overall package that Creative Assembly have created.

    All of the campaign features have both impact and complexity, meaning that you have ot engage with them and get great benefits for doing so. For example, instead of playing as an abstracted "faction", you take the role of an individual characters' family, and over time slowly become a Duchy, then a Kingdom, then an Empire by building up your influence, court of characters with conflicting loyalties and building the foundation of a working state with advisors and "reforms", this games' version of a tech tree. The only issue I have with the campaign is that the way to produce higher quality infantry is a little too finnicky: rather than being linked to higher quality recruitment infastructure within a settlement, it is tied to the Reforms which you have unlocked as a prerequisite, then requires a character to be at a high enough level to recruit said units into your army. This would be fine, but it can be frustrating when you are going into the late game (more on that later) and suddenly have the need to recruit a new army to face a newly declared war, but you can only recruit the trash units you had at the start of the campaign, whilst facing off against high quality armies. Another issue with the new recruitment system is how the character "classes" work. In Warhammer I & II, you would hire a "Lord" to lead the force. They could be from a variety of classes, and their development tree would provide greater benefits to specific units within their army to match their intended playstyle, but there was nothing stopping you from building any army you wanted to respond to specific threats. In Three Kingdoms, you hire three generals to lead an army-- each general can bring six units to the battle, but outside of absolute basic units they can only hire units from within their class. For example, a Strategist can only hire ranged units, whilst a Champion can only hire spearmen. This is an issue because it can lead to armies only really having three unit types in them, which severely restricts your options when it comes to battles.

    Despite the concern people had over battles during previews, battles in this game really shine through compared to other Total War games. In Warhammer I & II and some of the earlier historical titles, most battles in campaign mode were usually decided before they started-- unless you were stupid or the enemy Ai decided to stop working, a one-sided battle would usually result in a guaranteed win or loss for the player. In Three Kingdoms, there is such a wide variety of options, strategies and variables in battles that they always feel fresh. A battle which is predicted as a "decisive defeat" no longer feels like damage mitigation. You get a genuine feeling that if you play your cards right, you can either win, or go down in such a way that you'll halt the enemy army's advance. The only issue I have is that ranged units are rather overpowered at the moment. Whilst previous Total War games limited the usefulness of ranged units against shield users unless you were willing to take risks and flank the battle line, in Three Kingdoms, even a unit of basic archer militia will clock in a hundred kills before the melee has even started.

    My only real issue with the game in general at the moment the endgame. Once you've reached a sufficient strength, the game picks you and two other factions of a sufficient strength and nominates them as the "Three Kingdoms". At this point, you will be at war with these people as your sworn enemy. Diplomacy is usually a waste of time at the point. Although it's better than the Realm Divide feature of Shogun II in that you're still able to broker deals with smaller powers on the map, unless you've built up a good coalition or alliance beforehand, most the map will become your enemy very quickly. A further issue to this is that you can't raze settlements, meaning that if you find yourself having to go deep into enemy territory to defeat your rivals, you have to capture every city on the way, which can have a huge impact on your food supply and public order, leading to irritating micromanagement of settlements you have no interest in keeping for the time being.

    All in all though, the game is definitely worth picking up, even if you're not too fussed with Chinese history.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

20
#20 Best PC Game of 2019
39
#39 Most Discussed PC Game of 2019
5
#5 Most Shared PC Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 64 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 57 out of 64
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 64
  3. Negative: 0 out of 64
  1. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Aug 2, 2019
    88
    There’s a definite focus shift from tactics to strategy – which is risky, considering that tactical combat had always been a staple of Total War series. It couldn’t be avoided, though: unlike Medieval and Rome settings, China simply lacks variety in troops types. So fights end up being very predictable – while Chinese politic field is anything but! [Issue#239, p.48]
  2. The Overpowered Noobs
    Jul 24, 2019
    70
    The Total War series finally takes on land wars in Asia with this latest installment, bringing its signature RTS/TBS hybrid gameplay to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Series veterans will find a lot to love about this new iteration, and fans of the source material will find this a great jumping on point.
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  3. PLAY! Zine
    Jul 8, 2019
    90
    One of the best entries in the series yet, deep enough for veterans and approachable for the new players.
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