The Diffrence of Rome total war and Medieval 2

[SavageSS]

Well I know their in different times but is their some big diffrences...Well I havn't played total war for a while except shogun total war(demo) back in the day and it was great so I won't be dispointed if Medieval 2 isn't a big revolutionary game from Rome as I have read in reviews.So basically I know sort of the diffrence of the games from reviews but I want more details.

One thing I want to know is the AI difference of the 2 because I have heard that Medieval 2 AI is horrible so how does it compare to rome...

Other thing I want to know is about the diplomatic system..how big of an improvement it is from rome.

Also what specs do you guys recommend since I been hearing,you should put double of what they list.

Also is the improvement so big that is way funner or is just slightly better because I prefer roman war times than medieval times so I would like to know is,if the improvement is really good that I will have more fun with Medieval 2 than Rome total war...or should I just go with roman times since I like them and the improvement isn't that much.

Lastly is which game last longer....or they about the same.

Thanks for the reply's and sorry for being such a n00b.

Sorry for posting this on this section of the forum aswell but I want people's who play medeval 2 view aswell.

Also I need a answer fast because my brother's birthdate is tomorrow and I need to know which one to get lol

[JonR]

The AI in Medieval 2 is considerably better, especially if you get the expansion aswell and then download the retrofit mod (bringing over features from Kingdoms to the main game).
The diplomacy in Medieval 2 is considerably better aswell.

Most other improvements are made in graphics.

Still, if you prefer roman times then I'd suggest you go for Rome: Total War.

[pwijnands]

The main improvement in diplomacy is done by being able to see how balanced your proposal is to the other faction. You can also tell how another faction feels about you. Along with your global reputation these are the two major things that affect wether the AI will accept your proposal.
Despite this diplomacy can still be messed up with factions preferring destruction over vassalship (the new protectorate) or even peace.
When a war between two mutual allies breaks out, AI factions tend to break alliance with the aggressor. So you no longer have to worry about your alliances all being destroyed because an ally decided to blockade a port.

[SavageSS]

How about graphics wise?

My computer can run Battlefiled 2 and Black and white 2 at medium settings(acutally bf2 is probably at high settings),and also company of heroes and I have 9800 video card....Do you think I could run Medieval 2.

Also do the patches fix the AI issues at a considerable ammount?

[NobleNick]

...One thing I want to know is the AI difference of the 2 because I have heard that Medieval 2 AI is horrible so how does it compare to rome...

The battle AI in both RTW 1.5 and M2TW 1.2 is anywhere from horrible to acceptable, depending on who you listen to. I think M2TW is a bit better than RTW.

...Other thing I want to know is about the diplomatic system..how big of an improvement it is from rome...

In my opinion, M2TW diplomacy system is a big improvement over RTW.

......Also what specs do you guys recommend since I been hearing,you should put double of what they list...

Dunno. Any non-bottom-of the-line system put together in the last year should work. Any gaming system put together in the last four years should work at some level. IIRC, I ran M2TW on a 9600 Pro at one time. If you are O.K. with medium to large unit size (instead of huge) and low details, you should get by. If you are into shadows and high grass detail, etc., you need bucks.

...Also is the improvement so big that is way funner or is just slightly better because I prefer roman war times than medieval times so I would like to know is,if the improvement is really good that I will have more fun with Medieval 2 than Rome total war...or should I just go with roman times since I like them and the improvement isn't that much...

Slightly better in M2TW. There is more eye candy in M2TW (e.g., actual videos of assassination and spy attempts. The diplomacy system is much improved. And there is more 'depth' (some would say 'clutter') in the game with the priests and merchants.) However, for sheer variety of units, and the tactical options available with the rock-paper-scissors nature of units, M2TW improves little, if any, on RTW. Some claim RTW is still superior to M2TW in this respect. And RTW has a higher variety of mods available, many of which address RTW's mediocre battle AI.

Both games are very, VERY fun and absorbing. If I had not played either, then I would definitely go for the now very much cheaper RTW.

...Lastly is which game last longer....or they about the same...

About the same. I seem to be finishing M2TW games slightly faster than I did RTW; but I think that is due to the knowledge gained from RTW.

[Imperator_Maximus]

Lastly is which game last longer....or they about the same.

The vanilla game goes at 2 years per turn, which makes good sense since its from 1080 AD to 1530 AD (in other words 450 years), which makes it about half as many turns as RTW. It feels more like RTW:BI, where you have to be a bit quick when you play the barbarian factions. Anyways, 225 turns is good duration and it all depends on how fast or slow you want to go.

[Vision1984]

The vanilla game goes at 2 years per turn, which makes good sense since its from 1080 AD to 1530 AD (in other words 450 years), which makes it about half as many turns as RTW. It feels more like RTW:BI, where you have to be a bit quick when you play the barbarian factions. Anyways, 225 turns is good duration and it all depends on how fast or slow you want to go.

Never really played RTW but in MTW2 you can adjust the number of turns per years. It is a rather simple change in the stat file.