Possible Buyer: Is it worth it?

[leftovas17]

With all the bugs that have obviously been encountered, I am wondering if the game is worth buying. I have seen someone else play the game and I really liked it and want it, but I am unclear on how buggy it really is. Have the new patches fixed anything? Have they fixed enough? Do you think it will ever be fixed to satisfaction?

Please let me know your thoughts and recommendations. I posted here because you seem to be the users who have encountered problems and can tell me both sides of the story.

[Kip]

It very much depends on your computer. Players have reported performance ranging from unplayable to highly buggy to smooth as silk. The new patch has a TON of people excited... its seeming to improve gameplay a ton, and I haven't gotten wind of any new bugs or complaints about unsolved bugs (the ones they promised to fix at least). I would certainly pay the money for the game at this point, it just all depends on your computer.

[leftovas17]

Well, i dont have a very good computer, but hopefully it will suffice. Thank you very much for your 2 cents as it was what i have been looking for.

[Kip]

No problem, happy to offer my opinion. I really think that (assuming your computer can run the game) you will be pleased with your purchase. For every person who comes to the forum to vent their frustrations, there are probably ten casual users out there who are pleased with the game and having quite a lot of fun. Even the naysayer's here really do enjoy the game; I bet they log hours a day on the game. They just expect the best, because the TW series IS the best; Empire just isn't quite smoothed out yet, and so they get angry (I personally think they need to calm down, and just be patient, but they do have a right to be upset). Anyways, it won't be as pretty as advertised, but I really hope your rig can run the game; I really think you'll enjoy

[richardg]

No.

I have custom built gaming rig, quad core, DX10.1, 9800gtx, 4G Ram, etc..

This game will not run. Its crap. Wait 6 months and see if they can fix it.

I've been playing PC games for over 25 years, and this is the worst piece of software I've ever tried to run.

[Vladskywolf]

No.

I have custom built gaming rig, quad core, DX10.1, 9800gtx, 4G Ram, etc..

This game will not run. Its crap. Wait 6 months and see if they can fix it.

I've been playing PC games for over 25 years, and this is the worst piece of software I've ever tried to run.

Quad core is irrelevant since (at least pre-patch) it was shown to only run on a single core anyway.

I'm running on a home built dual core 3.24GHz, 8800GT, 4GB Ram, Vista x64 and it runs great, performance-wise. Seems many bugs have been quashed but there's still a ways to go before it's a true gem. In the meantime, I'm having a blast with it.

I'll assume you're an old dog like myself since I've been playing computer games since the ol' Apple II, but in my experience there's been a lot worse than this.

[Kip]

Like I said, depends on the computer. The game isn't crap. On richardg's computer, it runs like crap. I can't guarantee you that the game will run on your computer, but if it does, you'll be satisfied.

[Skeleton Of The West]

KippyK said, if your computer is good enough to run the game, so definetly YES.
The game is great, and the patch helped and fixed some bugs.

[caldwell77]

I can't even get it to launch! 30 to 40 attempts in 3 days pre and post patch - 1 successful launch. I certian it's my rig but I have no idea what to fix.

Core2Duo E8400, 4 GB Ram, 8600 GTS video, Vista 64

My problem is frame rate. I get about 1 - 6 fps. Utterly unplayable. I wouldn't recommend this game under any circumstances. Just too much of a gamble.

[rlccohen999]

I really like the game when I can play it. Unfortunately it's probably the buggiest game I've played in years. I can't even remember when I played such a buggy game. The last patch did improve things but eventually some odd circumstance will just take it to the desktop.

[Kip]

I can't even get it to launch! 30 to 40 attempts in 3 days pre and post patch - 1 successful launch. I certian it's my rig but I have no idea what to fix.

Core2Duo E8400, 4 GB Ram, 8600 GTS video, Vista 64

My problem is frame rate. I get about 1 - 6 fps. Utterly unplayable. I wouldn't recommend this game under any circumstances. Just too much of a gamble.

You can't not recommend the game unless you've played it properly. I really do feel for you mate, but you're not rating the game, you're rating your rig.

[DrunkenImmortal]

All you people complaining about the game crashing, errors etc... GET RID OF VISTA, it SUX horribly bad especially for gaming.

Go get Windows 7 Beta, or Windows 7 RC, its out, it's free and it's AWESOME compared to the catastrophe Vista is. Windows 7 is more reliable than XP, faster than VISTA, and more stable than MAC OSX. GO GET IT AND STOP COMPLAINING. The only crash I've had was Insufficient Video Memory twice, but that's because I was running on a 7800 gtx with 256mb. (Was waiting for my gtx 260)

Save often though, a save game corruption problem exists, and happened to me once. (Had to re-install steam and total war, and then copy over my saves.)

[DrunkenImmortal]

You're playing the game on a 8600 gts Caldwell that's why it's crashing that card doesn't meet the minimum RECOMMENDED requirements.

[Von Kickyourass]

I have a pc which can run the game with all settings on ultra and i rarely have bugs and ctd's, i would advise you to buy it. If it does not run on your computer you might consider buying a new one, if the game works then it is worth it.

[rlccohen999]

I have a pc which can run the game with all settings on ultra and i rarely have bugs and ctd's, i would advise you to buy it. If it does not run on your computer you might consider buying a new one, if the game works then it is worth it.

Rarely? This game seems to have more then their share of bugs not related to performance/hardware then I've seen in a while.

[leftovas17]

Well, i would be working with a eMachine T6522 with a 3500+ AMD Athlon 64 Processor (2.19GHz), 2GB ram, and a GeoForce 7800GTX 256MB vid card on XP. Too crappy to make it?

[EgyptianNecrophiliac]

Well, i would be working with a eMachine T6522 with a 3500+ AMD Athlon 64 Processor (2.19GHz), 2GB ram, and a GeoForce 7800GTX 256MB vid card on XP. Too crappy to make it?

Far too crappy.
And I wouldn't say the game is worth $50... get a new computer and wait for more patches to come out, and the price of the game to fall.

[craftyguy]

Have the new patches fixed anything? Have they fixed enough? Do you think it will ever be fixed to satisfaction?

Leftovas,

I registered on this forum just to answer your question. If you answer 'yes' to any of the below questions, then this game is for you:


1) Patches are frequent, but every patch has a huge possibility of corrupting save games. CA does not warn you. Does frequently re-starting campaigns sound like fun?


2) Every patch release seems to integrate more regressions than fixes. Hell even the 'fixes' are regressions in most cases. Frequent crashes, requirements for specific driver versions, and extremely poor coding plague this game. Do you like to compromise between frustrating crashes and completing the game?


3) There is no formal support system to address issues with this game. The owners manual refers you to Sega's support site, but they do not list Empire TW. The only support you get is some 'unofficial' forum, that CA claims to monitor whenever the hell they feel like it. Do you like a company who does not support their products?






I've owned this game since it was first released, I'm a huge loyal fan of the Total War series, but I believe this will be the last game I purchase from Creative Assembly. Granted I do not represent 100% of all players, and I've heard rumors that some players have no problems with the game, I think it only fair that you hear the "worst-case" scenario you could run across when owning/playing this game.*




CA, if you're listening, perhaps you bit off more than you can chew with this game. Excellent idea, very poorly implemented. If there were a way I could surrender the game for a refund, I would jump on the opportunity.*

[leftovas17]

Woo Hoo! I brought 'craftyguy' onto the forum! go me!

Although i do enjoy your trick questions, i find it hard to believe that most patches and fixes are regressions... they must be doing something right over there at CA. Hmm.. maybe instead of buying the game i should go work as a programmer for CA and fix it myself, then buy it with the money i make working there. anyways... as long as my machine can run it, i think i will give it a try. even if its buggy on me now, at least there is the hope that one day it will be fixed and when that day comes, i will be well practiced!!!

so... if anyone has any comments on my previous post with my system specs.. that would be great!

[craftyguy]

I'm a software engineer, and I would love to help CA out with debugging my situation, unfortunately it's nearly impossible with closed-source projects, especially when there's absolutely no way to get a hold of any engineers.


We typically call a situation where a patch breaks something (such as a save game) as a regression. Since when has it become acceptable practice to corrupt user data (especially without any warning or option to opt-out) with a patch?