What improvements does the M2TW engine actually deliver?

[QuintusSertorius]

I've been reading some of the threads here and comments from the team about various bits and pieces. And it strikes me that the "improvements" of the M2TW engine are rather...underwhelming.

As in the only real change seems to be graphics. While I can appreciate something looking a bit better, to be honest gameplay and versimilitude matter a hell of a lot more to me. On the gameplay point it sounds like there's worryingly little change. They might have tidied a few bits up and made the AI a little better, but nothing major.

Are there any significant additions/improvements in the functionality delivered by the M2TW engine, or is it all just cosmetic stuff?

[thelord]

AI can be modded a hell of a lot more. 10 more faction slots than RTW, better graphics as you said. Im sure there are a lot more things but I'm not a modder and wouldn't know

[Hellenes]

I've been reading some of the threads here and comments from the team about various bits and pieces. And it strikes me that the "improvements" of the M2TW engine are rather...underwhelming.

As in the only real change seems to be graphics. While I can appreciate something looking a bit better, to be honest gameplay and versimilitude matter a hell of a lot more to me. On the gameplay point it sounds like there's worryingly little change. They might have tidied a few bits up and made the AI a little better, but nothing major.

Are there any significant additions/improvements in the functionality delivered by the M2TW engine, or is it all just cosmetic stuff?

M2TW has the SAME engine as RTW with graphical changes mostly....

[beatoangelico]

the engine is basically the same, but there's a lot of thing that have been inproved or introduced (and sadly something was removed too... )

[Lebre]

let me use this thread to ask the team
have you managed to port the slingers anims to med2?

[Gaias]

let me use this thread to ask the team
have you managed to port the slingers anims to med2?

I couldn't see why not, considering what NIKO_TWOW.RU and others have accomplished with animations.

[DarkLegacy]

The AI in M2TW is far superior to that of any of the previous games. Pathfinding is greatly improved, unit cohesion is much better, as well as overall gameplay fluidity is highly improved (horse riders bounce while riding on their horses, switch to lances, to maces in close range combat, and etc.)

M2TW is a solid engine for a solid mod.

[cta]

The AI in M2TW is far superior to that of any of the previous games. Pathfinding is greatly improved, unit cohesion is much better, as well as overall gameplay fluidity is highly improved (horse riders bounce while riding on their horses, switch to lances, to maces in close range combat, and etc.)

M2TW is a solid engine for a solid mod.

My experience playing German version of MTW2 and German faction (holy roman empire):
- cohesion of cavalry: lost after charge- following routing units worse than RTW/RTWBI
- route finding of cavalry. worse than RTW when following routing enemy units
- rivers: AI cross over bridges - no river crossings seen so far- AI units queue up and gets butchered (thought CA sorted with patch RTW 1.2 and 1.3).
- attacked 1 army supported by 2 AI armies of my faction. Both of my support (AI controlled armies) moved to battle field in good formation and walking (no running resulting in tiredness as I have seen such in RTWBI). AI support units stopped in front of enemy and shot all arrows and I had to start the battle by attacking - my AI controlled armies as well as enemy army did not move.

- guess it has good politics options , but I do not use this much (prefer battle)

- good fortresses.
- defense of towns by AI is very good. AI does not retreat to town square even if infererior - only if attacker units approach town square and gain control over city. In one siege the AI units run on the wall to my city wall climbing units , fought them and returned to help their comrades. In an other siege the AI unit left the wall to fight one of my units in the streets and returned on the wall to recapture the gate.


System requirements to high for such minor battle improvements but nice graphics of fire arrows.

[Lebre]

I couldn't see why not, considering what NIKO_TWOW.RU and others have accomplished with animations.

so i assume you'll have chariots?

[Gaias]

so i assume you'll have chariots?

I am in no way affiliated with EBII, just an avid fan like the rest. If modders are able to create custom animations for MTWII, than one could conclude that slinger animation (or chariots) could be included/created. I never ceases to amaze me what people of modding societies are able to do with games.

[beatoangelico]

chariots seem unlikely to me...too many things are required I fear

[beatoangelico]

better unit cohesion? oO wth? m2tw cohesion really sucks compared to rome

[spanish_emperor]

well in my experience m2tw was worse than rtw but unlike rtw the ai (which is the most important element in the game imo) can be modded much more than rtw.
This has allowed mods to be completely different to the vanilla m2tw and imho has overcome rtw.
rtw vanilla vs m2tw vanilla = wins rtw
rtw mods vs m2tw mods = wins m2tw mods

Edit: a big problem m2tw has compared to rtw is that settlement path finding is very annoying. but with people like these then that problem will not only be solved but made incredible....i can't wait to be able to go where the keep is or go on the walls in the castles that they didn't let you before

http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=148717

[cta]

Hope spanish emperor is right- would love to play something like gathering storm/EB2 if the engine works well.

Add-on: had to defend a city with some weak 7 units (total of 453 men) against 830 men (6 cav and others peasants). It happened the enemy conquered the wall between 2 towers with 4 peasant units and after I routed every other unit these guys did nothing at all. Just stood there. My units were down to a few man but with my cav I would have won. After several attempts I won. BUT: When the enemy guys stood on my wall and every other unit from their army was routed frame rate was going down to nearly 1 frame/10! seconds. (cpu workload was 80(cpu1)+50(cpu2).). The game nearly locked completely. After I lured the peasents out of the walls the frame rate increased to previous speed and game was fluent again. That s*cks. BTW - my impression is that for infantry the wall seize/attack/defens behavoir has been made similar to that of town squares.

[Kennylz]

M2TW brings a lot of stuff to the table. The AI modding is seems to of been a lot more successful in M2TW, and there are other things.

No reason not to bring EBII to the next generation of total war. Especially since they will have a hell of a lot of time to perfect it, due to E:TW not being as friendly to antiquity due to it being set so far into the future.

[Hellenes]

M2TW brings a lot of stuff to the table. The AI modding is seems to of been a lot more successful in M2TW, and there are other things.

No reason not to bring EBII to the next generation of total war. Especially since they will have a hell of a lot of time to perfect it, due to E:TW not being as friendly to antiquity due to it being set so far into the future.

Exactly and for CA to do R2TW without spending hugeloads of money on rewriting the ETW engine from scratch we wont see R2TW up until AFTER the game that comes after ETW so it will be like 2012....
Up until then EBII will be the ONLY Antique TW....

[born2dive67]

yeah but he asked that 4 months ago, I would have forgotten by now myself lol

[BeastG33]

Well, let's face it. EB is an incredible mod that completely overhauls the Rome: Total War experience. M2TW Vanilla is an overhaul of Vanilla Rome, so when you put something fabulous like EB II into the already improved M2TW, well... it's just going to be a win for everyone.

CTA: Wow, quad post! Use the edit button and add something to your post if you're the last one to post in a topic.

[MCDS2]

just to clear things up to something mentioned earlier in this thread RTW and M2TW were made by two different teams; RTW was made by the english team and M2TW was made by the Oz team, so that is why there is substaincial differences in the games and what can be fixed!

[roy34543]

The diplomatic sector has some interesting diferences. The fact that you can determine global reputation and reputation with other factions is interesting .
And they made reputation a lot more important then it seems. and some modders use it to great effect.