I bow with great humility to my readers, for it is time for the next Shogun 2 article, and my only hope, faithful readers, is to make you wet yourselves with anticipation. A great display of fantastical treats is what i have in store for you today, the sort of treats that will make your heart leap from your chest (in a rather gory exhibit of love) and have you biting on your fingernails, my good fellows, the release of Shogun 2 is less than two months away! Featuring in the article are revelations of three factions, a rather interesting possibility for dying troops, a light touch on details on the collectors edition, and much more. If by the end of this article your thirst for news has not be sated then please, my good reader, exercise this one technique that always brings forward a lightness in my chest: Look into a mirror and say to yourself, “Shogun 2, 15th of March,” and I predict you’ll feel somewhat happier. So, without further ado, Shinja, let’s get this geek-fest going!
I’m going to start off by revealing something to you that I did not reveal in my opening paragraph, for it is truly something that most addicts of Total War or enthusiasts of Shogun will want to hear as soon as is feasibly possible. The specifications for Shogun 2 have been released.
I’ll let that sink in for a moment...
If you would like to see them, follow this link:-
http://www.totalwar.com/news/4807
In the opinion of this reporter, “Oh no, I don’t think my computer can handle it,” is going to be a very real and widespread sentence uttered by most of the gaming community. However, with this huge specification requirement comes an assurance – what you are buying will no doubt be stunningly effective at making you drool. With such high specifications there is the assurance of phenomenal graphics, perhaps Easter Eggs, in-depth dynamics to the game itself and layers upon layers of gaming enjoyment. Sure, the specifications massive, and one may have to wait a year or so to be able to buy a computer that can run this game comfortably, but take this into consideration: as soon as you have in your ownership a computer that can run this game on the highest settings, there is no doubt that it is going to be fantastically beautiful to play.
Faithful Shinja, we have, in this article, three factions that have been officially revealed. One faction has been known for a little while now, but what enjoyment is there in displaying one faction when I can give you three to compare. There are also two more factions that have been shown in videos, the Takeda and the Hojo, but nothing has been revealed about these clans and so only speculation and intelligent guesses are applicable. The three that have been revealed are:
The Chosokabe
With the Chosokabe’s we see the emergence of an underdog clan make viable bids for the power of the shogunate, relying on their bonus income via the hard work of their peasants, and the mix of cheap archers and superb archers at their disposal for any battle that may occur. Players of the Chosokabe will, no doubt, vary between raining iron death onto the heads of their foes, or aiming precisely where they mean to with their archers. A dangerous clan indeed if kept at long range.
The Date
However, the Date clan have the gift of close-combat fighting, with a charging bonus with which to smash their enemy to pieces, and, if it becomes apparent that their enemy will stand and fight against them, the superior no-dachi units will soon lay waste to the units, scattering them to every corner of the field which they foolishly attempted to defend. Keep on the attack, however, for the lumbering weight of a no-dachi sword leave these units open to swift, deadly attacks which a no-dachi will be hard pressed to defend.
The Uesugi
Such an attack can be easily carried out by a warrior monk – a lightly armed priest of Buddha with such a fanaticism for his faith and a skill in the arts of death nigh on unrivalled, such troops flock to the Uesugi under a friendly banner. The Uesugi have the ability to recruit these men cheaply and build them to a greater skill than any in Japan have seen before. The sight of a screaming monk of death does certainly keep me awake at night.
Do any of these clans interest you? Are you a player who prefers to decimate an army before the main clash? Are you the type to use your heavy infantry to their best effect? Or, are you more likely to use your light infantry to implement a screeching death into the flanks of your greatest nemesis? Faithful Shinja, we now have one-third of the official factions, and with less than two months until release, it is only a matter of time until the last two-thirds are known to us all.
I do believe I mentioned something about an interesting possibility for dying troops. What could I mean? Well, have any of you noticed that in previous titles, such as Shogun, Medieval and Rome, that when a unit was killed they dropped dead to the floor instantly (creepily in the same position as the rest of his comrades) and that progress was made to put a death animation in Medieval 2, Empire and Napoleon? Well, how would you like for there to be a wounded animation in Shogun 2? It wasn’t technically revealed in an interview with Kieran, but during said interview a clip of video was shown whilst the conversation continued in the background. It required a keen eye to notice that under the feet of a group of samurai were twisting, turning, crying, injured units. Personally, it makes the battle scenarios of this game somewhat grimmer, especially if the battle one is fighting is in the middle of a bright sunny day and the army is trampling underfoot an arrow covered mass grave with clutching, gasping moaning samurai amongst the dead. Creepy eh?
Kieran Brigdan certainly does a lot of interviews because, surprise surprise, this article feature another one of his interviews.
VIDEO
Some things to take away from this which personally make me itch with anticipation. The manipulation of General traits has now been revealed unto our very eyes. It is no longer just talked about in articles and interviews, for we can actually see it happening. It seems to look like something similar to the Civilization tech tree, but what interests me the most is that Generals seem to be able to professionalise in one of two ways – a master of Bushido or a Sage of Chi. Knowing that “Bushido” means “The Way of the Warrior,” and that “Chi” can be translated as “Energy” and is the central aspect of Shintoism and Buddhism (two of the main religions in Japan at the time) one can only speculate as to what these tech tree type experience levels will yield to your ultimate power on the field. What is also revealed is something that I personally feel will add immensely to the multiplayer experience – rankings. The ranks, as far as I’m aware will show both the clan with the most victories and the player with the most victories, although, it may perhaps show the player with the highest victory to loss ratio. “Who knows,” for now, but it is certainly fun finding out about these little treats.
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LOL the system requirements are really high
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