End of the Total War Series?

On my game shelf I own every copy of the TW series and each release has given me many happy hours of gaming. All except one which is Empire.

After playing Empire and comparing it to the quality of previous titles I felt like I'd brought a product which hadn't been finsihed and it left me wih the belief that I'd been conned out of my money. I quietly hoped the game would quickly be patched up to the quality of previous titles but it was to no avail.

I would like to ask the people at TW why should I now go out and buy Napoleon when it hits the shop?
What steps are you taking to turn the Empire experience into a more positive one?
How will you recticy the game issues?
Will you be rectifying them?

If Empire is corrected I will consider buying Napoleon if it isnt (and I suspect it wont be) then something tells me this game will be the last in the series as your sales figures are about to hit rock bottom.

actually Empire was amongst the top selling of the series,doing quiete well across the board and appealing to an as of yet untapped market in the fans of the era of Musketry,which of course I suspect Napoleon will do as well,tapping into the massive array of those that hold place in the cult of the Emperor.with these things going forward I am rather sure they are well enough off as it stands,although you are right in saying there are still some glaring things amiss all in all they have done admirably in tackling the major issues in good time,now it is really a polishing job that is left and we should be good to go,by polishing of course I refer to some still remaining issues in the BAI

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

actually Empire was amongst the top selling of the series,doing quiete well across the board and appealing to an as of yet untapped market in the fans of the era of Musketry,which of course I suspect Napoleon will do as well,tapping into the massive array of those that hold place in the cult of the Emperor.with these things going forward I am rather sure they are well enough off as it stands,although you are right in saying there are still some glaring things amiss all in all they have done admirably in tackling the major issues in good time,now it is really a polishing job that is left and we should be good to go,by polishing of course I refer to some still remaining issues in the BAI

I see that you are working under the assumption there that Empire was fundamentally a good game weighed down by bugs and poor AI. I disagree...it's an awful game weighed down by bugs and poor AI...

Originally Posted by Rt. Hon. Gentleman

I see that you are working under the assumption there that Empire was fundamentally a good game weighed down by bugs and poor AI. I disagree...it's an awful game weighed down by bugs and poor AI...

I seem to be a minority here, but Empire was actually my favorite of TW series (Rome was 2nd, MTW2 was 3, and I never played the others). I loved the age of musketry, the volleys, followed by bayonet charges, the soldier waving the flag as he scales the redoubt, lines being riddled with canister etc. It added not only great graphic scenes that would could gaze at for hours and forget about the task at hand, but it allowed for great tactics. Feinting with some light infantry, probing the enemy lines, drawing them in to a death trap in the town where you pound in with artillery from the hills around etc. I grant you that the AI was flawed, but it had better tactics then the pervious games. My other criticism was the lack of provinces and similarity in the battle maps (no bridge battles except for a few-).

I will definitely by NTW, mainly because is there any other game that provides the same quality as TW? Grognards (I tried the demo) was fine but confusing and had poor graphics, Imperial glory had no generals on the field or morale system (just to name a few flaws), Crown of Glory was turned based battles, and that just about covers the other grand strategy Napoleonic games. I love total war and I believe it to be the greatest series ever manufactured, and I strongly urge all of you to stop criticizing the game until you actually know what it is when it's released.

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

actually Empire was amongst the top selling of the series,doing quiete well across the board and appealing to an as of yet untapped market in the fans of the era of Musketry,which of course I suspect Napoleon will do as well,tapping into the massive array of those that hold place in the cult of the Emperor.with these things going forward I am rather sure they are well enough off as it stands,although you are right in saying there are still some glaring things amiss all in all they have done admirably in tackling the major issues in good time,now it is really a polishing job that is left and we should be good to go,by polishing of course I refer to some still remaining issues in the BAI

Instead of employing spin doctors why doesnt TW just correct the game?

They don't need spin doctors. Nobody cares about ETW except the TWC.

Originally Posted by D.B. Cooper

They don't need spin doctors. Nobody cares about ETW except the TWC.

Nonsense. Every single person I know in real life who bought ETW hated it, and they couldn't give a stuff about the TW community. They range in age from 15 to 52, ten people in all (excluding yours truly, as I am on TWC), and they all felt that ETW was an epic fail. Where do you come off thinking that ETW was such an unmitigated success?

Originally Posted by Rt. Hon. Gentleman

Nonsense. Every single person I know in real life who bought ETW hated it, and they couldn't give a stuff about the TW community. They range in age from 15 to 52, ten people in all (excluding yours truly, as I am on TWC), and they all felt that ETW was an epic fail. Where do you come off thinking that ETW was such an unmitigated success?

The game was a success in sales figures as nobody realised the rubbish they were buying.

The shock to the sales figures will come with the release of Napoleon. Bye bye TW series.

It may have been a great success sales wise, but only due to the fact that the TW community foolishly believed that CA would follow up on their promises and bought the game, believing that they could only improve on the successful formula that they created.

Well we were proved wrong, and they will surely notice the difference in sales if it is a complete flop (which I do hope it won't be).

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

...actually Empire was amongst the top selling of the series...

An often overlooked fact unfortunately. At some point certain people on here decided that their dissatisfaction was representative of the views of the entire Total War player base and the cat was out of the bag. Naturally, this wasn't and isn't true, but try telling them that.

The Total War series is in terms of its (financial) success at a high point, not a low point, so of course this is not the end of the series (if anything, its prospects have improved).

(Edited to clarify what I meant by success)

Originally Posted by setep

An often overlooked fact unfortunately. At some point certain people on here decided that their dissatisfaction was representative of the views of the entire Total War player base and the cat was out of the bag. Naturally, this wasn't and isn't true, but try telling them that.

The Total War series is in terms of its success at a high point, not a low point, so of course this is not the end of the series (if anything, its prospects have improved).

That doesn't mean anything. A high selling game that relys on a massive and aggressive advertisement does not ensure that people will buy the sequel. They would only buy it if their expectation for such a high-profile game is sastified.

Given the fan ratings ETW recieved ( which is fairly low for the ETW series), this shows that a huge segement of people are disappointed with the game. Buying game does NOT equate to enjoying the game.

Not enjoying a game you bought would deter you from buying additional games in that series.

Originally Posted by ray243

Buying game does NOT equate to enjoying the game.

No, but it's a definition of success in the context of selling a product. And in what universe would this contribute to the failure of a sequel/expansion? (Or however else you choose to define NTW)

Look when one of developers says he would not give the game away to one of his friends you have a problem.

The game was a poor reflection of what I suspect was originally planned, somehow there was a balls up, the fact that it made money does not erase the balls up just makes it more palatable.

It has already cost SEGA extra money, it will have an impact on NTW sales and has tarnished CAs reputation.

Originally Posted by setep

No, but it's a definition of success in the context of selling a product. And in what universe would this contribute to the failure of a sequel/expansion? (Or however else you choose to define NTW)

If you bothered to read my post...

What I am saying is, that casual gamers that buy ETW due to the hype would be turned off from the series when they found out that ETW is rather buggy, unstable and etc.

If anything, many people would be turned off from buying NTW, even though they prefer a game featuring Napoleonic warfare as opposed to warfare in the 18th century.

Not all of them would be turned off, but a sizable amount of people will be turned off. If anything, this reduce the chance for CA to expand the total war game series.

Originally Posted by Chevalier IX

actually Empire was amongst the top selling of the series,doing quiete well across the board and appealing to an as of yet untapped market in the fans of the era of Musketry,which of course I suspect Napoleon will do as well,tapping into the massive array of those that hold place in the cult of the Emperor.with these things going forward I am rather sure they are well enough off as it stands,although you are right in saying there are still some glaring things amiss all in all they have done admirably in tackling the major issues in good time,now it is really a polishing job that is left and we should be good to go,by polishing of course I refer to some still remaining issues in the BAI

it sold well because the total war series has a loyal fanbase ie us
and becaues M2:TW and rome had done so well

for myself i'm going to wait and see whut the next installemtn is going to be like after napoleon

Originally Posted by Exarch

it sold well because the total war series has a loyal fanbase ie us
and becaues M2:TW and rome had done so well

for myself i'm going to wait and see whut the next installemtn is going to be like after napoleon

Your giving yourself way too much credit. The hardcores are a drop in the bucket, and I'd subscribe to another's opinion (I forget who) that they would love to see us just go away. Even though I only complain about real issues, not personal grudges or perceived "betrayals" over musing and discussions about features people projected into promises. It was buggy as at release, I'm generally pleased with the product now.

We had nothing to do with RTW or MTW sales. Graphics and an advertising blitz sold RTW through ETW, not us.

Oh and Reviewers who are working for "the man"...In reality they are mostly guys with limited or no TW experience and impressed with the concept, graphics and a BAI that might be crap for us, but would impress newbs; It's not something sinister.

It's like a hot chick you date for like a week and you tell all your friends how awesome she is, then a few weeks later you realize she is pretty shallow and doesn't have an interesting thought in her head.

Originally Posted by Shabby_Ronin

Your giving yourself way too much credit. The hardcores are a drop in the bucket, and I'd subscribe to another's opinion (I forget who) that they would love to see us just go away. Even though I only complain about real issues, not personal grudges or perceived "betrayals" over musing and discussions about features people projected into promises. It was buggy as at release, I'm generally pleased with the product now.

We had nothing to do with RTW or MTW sales. Graphics and an advertising blitz sold RTW through ETW, not us.

Oh and Reviewers who are working for "the man"...In reality they are mostly guys with limited or no TW experience and impressed with the concept, graphics and a BAI that might be crap for us, but would impress newbs; It's not something sinister.

It's like a hot chick you date for like a week and you tell all your friends how awesome she is, then a few weeks later you realize she is pretty shallow and doesn't have an interesting thought in her head.

So? That doesn't prove that the majority are pleased with ETW. You cannot prove that the majority of the players who buy the game will enjoy it just because a small minority vocie out their discontent.

Originally Posted by ray243

So? That doesn't prove that the majority are pleased with ETW. You cannot prove that the majority of the players who buy the game will enjoy it just because a small minority vocie out their discontent.

You are correct sir. You have nothing to back up you are the norm either, the average consumer who is just looking for an interesting experience for his 50 dollars probably doesn't seek out forums, they play the game and don't go on forums to argue this or that.

There are flaws in the game, but the anti CA partisans go way overboard.

I may be a complete aberation, though I am fairly sure I am not, but my personal experience may help inform CA on the wisdom to make modding as easy as possible as soon as they can. I love this era but haven't played ETW nearly as much as I expected or want too. There are just so may annoying little bugs and gameplay problems that the enjoyment is very limited. In the past modders would come along and tidy up some of the problems that CA never got around to. With ETW they can't do this since the code is locked down tight.

I will soon buy M2TW Gold again just to play some mods and I bought RTW Gold a few months ago for some mods. I hope CA realizes that over time players buy multiple copies of their games as old disks get lost or ruined and as new or improved mods get released. I still have some small hope that after CA milks ETW with DLCs as much as possible and NTW is released that they open up the code for ETW and the modders can get on with the business of their tiddiness with ETW. Please think long-term CA and don't just worry about the quick buck. If you play your cards correctly you can have both the quick buck and long-term sales and keep everone happy.

Originally Posted by Sol Invictus

I will soon buy M2TW Gold again just to play some mods and I bought RTW Gold a few months ago for some mods.

DO NOT buy M2TW gold, this is just a general service announcement.

I repeat, DO NOT BUY M2TW Gold. Many mods don't work with ut, CA goofed up with that one yet again.

Get the original M2TW, and buy Kingdoms separately (really worth it in that case).