Another Holistically Critial Thread On Total War

[derf]

This time, explained in a mere graph. This is my personal experience with the Total War series.



Shogun: Ground breaker. Bread & butter.
Medieval: Expansion of the original. Bread & butter + marmalade.
Rome: New engine, new joys. But new problems and gripes.
Medieval 2: Expansion of the new engine. Still fun, but bigger gripes and bigger pains.
Empire: Countless problems. All good things come to an end?

What are your thoughts?

[Halie Satanus]

When a TW game is released wait at least a year and then install mods.

[derf]

Oh, i'm including my experience with mods too.

[Halie Satanus]

Then I guess TW games are just not for you, you're just really bad at playing TW games or you're simply expecting too much.

I can recommend mods that I've worked on that I know are stable, End of Days I & II, Sicilia, Warlords of Sparta, Gods and Fighting men, Viking Invasion II, Norman Invasion. All for RTW/BI/Alex.

[derf]

Mmm, I was looking for peoples own opinion of their personal experience with TW, not their opinion of my experience with TW. Seems like you misread my amazingly simple message.

[Halie Satanus]

Mmm, I was looking for peoples own opinion of their personal experience with TW, not their opinion of my experience with TW. Seems like you misread my amazingly simple message.

Obviously the amount of mods I've worked on wasn't a big enough hint as to MY experience with TW games.


Next time I'll use pointy arrows, flashing lights, type in CAPITALS AND BOLD IT FOR YOU.

[derf]

Oh, it was obvious. It seems however that your attitude is the problem. You've failed three times in this thread already. It's ok, you don't need to post anymore.

[Aradan]

TW games are in a decline atm, true. ETW especially was a disappointment for me; I spent 4 hours on it, including the 2.5 it took me to install.

It might be a good idea if CA took a break, didn't release anything for the next 2-3 years and focused on redesigning the areas that are most in need: AI and gameplay. Doubt it's gonna happen though.

[Halie Satanus]

You said, in another thread.

As a Long Road Mod refugee, I would say ... wow. I'm playing the non-Kingdoms version and the mod has surprisingly restructured my gameplay style towards something more realistic. It is definitely NOT easy. I love it.

Thanks guys.

Lots of love,

derf.

That doesn't seem to be factored into your little graph at all.

So this thread serves what purpose exactly?. No matter it's a fail all over really.

[derf]

You said, in another thread.



That doesn't seem to be factored into your little graph at all.

So this thread serves what purpose exactly?. No matter it's a fail all over really.

That quote hardly factors anything at all in relation to this thread.



The purpose of this thread? Well, you're doing very well to de-rail it. I applaud you for that:

"When a TW game is released wait at least a year and then install mods." - incorrect assumption. i have played mods.
"Then I guess TW games are just not for you, you're just really bad at playing TW games or you're simply expecting too much. " - incorrect assumptions
"Obviously the amount of mods I've worked on wasn't a big enough hint as to MY experience with TW games. " - incorrect assumption
"That doesn't seem to be factored into your little graph at all. " - senseless.

Again, all of this is due to your attitude. Thanks again for derailing my thread so effectively.

[Halie Satanus]

Oh, i'm including my experience with mods too.

O'RLY.

Fail again.

[derf]

... Eh? ... again why? You have some slight neurological disorder don't you?

[Rt. Hon. Gentleman]

Before this thread devolves into even more of a mindless mud-slinging contest and is therefore locked, I'd just like to say that, whilst for me fun peaked at Rome, the OP is correct in his assertion that, in terms of vanilla, ETW is by far the worst of the bunch. However, I also agree with Halie Satanus in that it is a little early to judge Empire's mods. The flipside of that, in turn, is that Warscape is a far more obtuse platform to do a total conversion for than the Rome Engine.

Swings and roundabouts, but I would definitely say that Empire is the worst of the bunch at a vanilla and engine level.

Slightly OT, I really think it might be a good idea if everyone were to just chill regarding this (and especially not cast aspersions on another member's mental health, not mentioning any names...)

[Killerbee]

By Saint-George, this thread is epic fail ! Why? There are at least 3 gazillion threads like this . Don't like TW ? Then go play some Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed or Uncharted 2 mang.

[Aradan]

Hey, people still have a right to complain about TW. If it wasn't a favourite game of ours we wouldn't bother complaining, we simply wouldn't be bothered at all. True there are a gazillion threads about this, I will have to merge some probably.

Mods do indeed do great things for a game. BUT Empire is unmoddable, so all modding projects are just variations of vanilla, because there simply is just so much modders can do; compare that with -say- RTW and its mods, where you have a ridiculously different experience going from vanilla to some major mods.

[D.B. Cooper]

I am with Aradan on the mods, there won't be any total conversions or anything close.

It's a shame.

By Saint-George, this thread is epic fail ! Why? There are at least 3 gazillion threads like this . Don't like TW ? Then go play some Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed or Uncharted 2 mang.

You think TW is better than those series?

[Killerbee]

You think TW is better than those series?

RTW and MTW2 are, but it's all about opinion. I'm sure there's people who like action-orientated games like Call of Duty more than Strategy games.

Mods do indeed do great things for a game. BUT Empire is unmoddable, so all modding projects are just variations of vanilla, because there simply is just so much modders can do; compare that with -say- RTW and its mods, where you have a ridiculously experience going from vanilla to some major mods.

Well, it wouldn't be fair to compare RTW and ETW at this moment. ETW is still in development stage. We'll see how it progresses. Let's hope their are some major mods on E:TW within some years.

[Halie Satanus]

"When a TW game is released wait at least a year and then install mods." - incorrect assumption. i have played mods.
"Then I guess TW games are just not for you, you're just really bad at playing TW games or you're simply expecting too much. " - incorrect assumptions
"Obviously the amount of mods I've worked on wasn't a big enough hint as to MY experience with TW games. " - incorrect assumption
"That doesn't seem to be factored into your little graph at all. " - senseless.

Again, all of this is due to your attitude. Thanks again for derailing my thread so effectively.

Ah I see, what you have is that all to common affliction whereby you post without thinking and then can't back up your own BS.

A; If you really can't resist starting a thread at least have the sense to include as much information as you can, it's tedious having to spoon feed people who don't think beyond the first step. In your first post you did not mention mods. Therefore my first post is not an assumption, it's a fair response to the information provided.
B; In your second post you say you have played mods, but you fail to name any you've played, so again my next post is not assumption, I name mods I've worked on that I know are stable.
C; In your next post you end with a puerile example of sarcasm,

Seems like you misread my amazingly simple message.

Up to this point I have only responded to the information you have given. I took a quick look at you back posts and found a thread you started exclaiming

As a Long Road Mod refugee, I would say ... wow. I'm playing the non-Kingdoms version and the mod has surprisingly restructured my gameplay style towards something more realistic. It is definitely NOT easy. I love it.

Thanks guys.

Lots of love,

derf.

Now according to your little graph there should be a reflection of your love somewhere, but there is not. Instead you claim.

That quote hardly factors anything at all in relation to this thread.

Of course is does, it is evidence that your experience of the TW series and mods is not as negative as your graph claims.

So I conclude that this thread isn't even honest and is just another poor attempt at criticizing the TW series and the modding community, which if you expected not to be pulled up on on a TW fan site is incredibly naive.

This lesson is free, I hope you can go on from here and be a useful member of the boards and that you enjoy your time here. My advice is to keep your head down until you learn to post without making a show of yourself.

Take care.

HS.

oh and here are the thoughts of CA's senior designer for the TW series on such critiques as this.

To judge from some of the comments that get made (and those I read on the forums) people have very strange ideas about what it is like to work in the games industry. So, just to be clear: I threw the Porsche away because it stopped working when the petrol tank “ran dry” (well, really!) and then scrapped the Maserati (a Ferrari is so last year, my dear!) because the ashtrays were full. The Hummer was sprayed the wrong shade of Pirate Midnight Black (you just can’t get the staff these days!) and had to be crushed in a fit of creative pique. And do you know what’s the best bit? We laugh as we vomit yet another creme de menthe and absinthe cocktail topped off with a dolphin burger into a gold-plated mahogany Victorian commode and wipe the drool away with panda wool towels. But these days even excess can be a problem: I am sick of suckling pig for breakfast, cannot faced another glass of champagne, and gag at the thought of another Belgian chocolate being shoved into my overpaid gob by the company’s roller-skating (and morally slack) wait-persons. And I’m not the only one, let me tell you. Even with all this luxury, it’s a wonder we ever touch a keyboard, given that the office is a sink of slovenly vice, degrading perversity, sheer incompetence and naked greed. And that, despite what some would have you believe, is what is technically termed “utter pollocks”.

Source.

[derf]

Oh my. Again?

A; If you really can't resist starting a thread at least have the sense to include as much information as you can, it's tedious having to spoon feed people who don't think beyond the first step. In your first post you did not mention mods. Therefore my first post is not an assumption, it's a fair response to the information provided.

It's not because you risked the guess and got it wrong. Detriment to the value of a thread when people get things wrong.

B; In your second post you say you have played mods, but you fail to name any you've played, so again my next post is not assumption, I name mods I've worked on that I know are stable.

Who mentioned anything about stability? At the end of the day, TW mods are TW mods. They enhance the game but they are, principally, bound to the quality of the platform / engine.

C; In your next post you end with a puerile example of sarcasm,

I suggest you educate yourself on the definition of sarcasm.

Now according to your little graph there should be a reflection of your love [for Long Road] somewhere, but there is not. ...., it is evidence that your experience of the TW series and mods is not as negative as your graph claims...

What makes you think there isn't a reflection of that? What makes you think I didn't enjoy M:TW? You're yet again assuming several things. Read more carefully.

So I conclude that this thread isn't even honest and is just another poor attempt at criticizing the TW series and the modding community, which if you expected not to be pulled up on on a TW fan site is incredibly naive.

Your conclusion is based on your warped interpretation of this entire thread. The few people that have responded other than yourself have largely made interesting posts. Unfortunately due to your effective derailment and hole-digging, most other visitors have probably not wanted to post.

This lesson is free, I hope you can go on from here and be a useful member of the boards and that you enjoy your time here. My advice is to keep your head down until you learn to post without making a show of yourself.

No comment.

[Aradan]

Please take it easy on each other.