How much is Attila an improvement over Rome II

[bigdaddy1204]

I like Attila. As many other posters have said, it's a much, MUCH better game than Rome II. Really the two don't deserve to be compared, imo - Attila has so much good going for it. I wrote a review of the game for Amazon.com; to save you the trouble, I've pasted it here below as I think it will give you a good idea:

If you are reading this, you have probably come here to decide whether or not Attila is worth buying. The first thing to know is that Attila gets the 'feel' of its historical time setting right from the beginning. Maybe it's the cinematic scenes, which cleverly quote directly from the Bible's Book of Revelation - the terrifying chapter which introduces the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. In many ways, it is an appropriate reference, because Attila himself was known to the Romans as the "Scourge of God" and his armies of horsemen were easily recognisable as the bringers of War, Famine, Pestilence and Death to the Roman Empire.

In terms of game play, the selection of factions is pleasing. You can play as the Eastern or Western Roman Empire, and each brings its own challenges. I have spent countless hours and several repeated attempts at the Eastern Roman Empire campaign, and I've found it gripping. Trying to fend off wave after wave of barbarian horsemen sweeping into your lands from the north is quite an epic experience and makes for a good challenge. I never found it too much - it was all very nuanced. So if you make the right choices and win the initial battles, you have a good chance to escape the worst of the damage. But if you are defeated, the tribes will be drawn towards you, like wasps to a jam jar.

I've also played some very satisfying campaigns as the Saxons and Jutes, where I took my barbarian people across the North Sea and landed in Roman Britannia. These campaigns are very enjoyable and you really get a sense of the winter snow creeping in from the north as climate change pushes the barbarian tribes west. I loved the 'Dark Age' Romano-British towns, the way you would find a half-abandoned Roman amphitheatre with a tree growing up in its middle, or other Roman monuments turned into makeshift fortresses. It was all very atmospheric and added greatly to the Dark Ages ambiance. I liked the way some of the "Levy" units from the Saxons consisted of both men and women mixed together in the same unit - it gave a pleasing representation of a whole people on the move, migrating together with their families in search of a new home land. I felt that it also made the battles more intense and more meaningful, because you realise that these people have no choice but to win or die. They are fighting to settle a new land. All very historically accurate.

There is another way to play, as the Visigoths, Vandals and others you can migrate your entire tribe, abandoning your home region and moving on as a horde in search of new lands. This is a lot of fun as you can sack and raze settlements to the ground, and you can also recruit units while on the move from temporary camps. In one campaign, I took my Visigoths and sacked a trail of Roman towns, reaching as far as northern Italy where I was suddenly hit by a surprise Roman attack. One of my two horde armies was cut off and isolated from the other, and in a desperate battle in a forest my force was annihilated and my king killed. The destruction was a disaster, and so my single remaining army had to flee for its life, taking the last hopes of our people with it. I decided to flee towards the coast, and attempted to sail down the Adriatic. We were pursued by Roman ships all the way, and nearly wiped out along the way. Eventually the survivors made it to North Africa, where the Romans were weak and their towns were already under siege from desert peoples from the south. There, we were able to rebuild our strength over a few years and begin a new migration. We moved west along the African coast and eventually invaded Spain, where we at last decided to settle. We made a new homeland in the Iberian peninsula and established a prosperous, successful kingdom there.

I really like Attila. There are just so many excellent touches. The towns. The music - honestly I think the music is worth a review of its own. All I can say is, it's really atmospheric and adds brilliantly to the vibe of the game. I think the weather plays a big role too - huge snowstorms in winter, clouds, rain, sound effects of the wind blasting and birds. It all adds immersion. I've played all the other Total War games since their first (Shogun back in 1999), so I am aware some of these elements were in the earlier games - what I'm saying is that even so, the way they have been implemented in Attila affected me.

At this point, there is only one complaint I would make about Attila. And that is that they didn't include the "Blood and Gore" pack from Rome II. Having got used to seeing a bit of blood spattered about on units during battle, I do miss this feature in Attila. Perhaps they'll add it later, certainly I'd like to see it included. The battles seem a bit too 'clean' without any blood! That is only a minor detail though and I should emphasise that "Blood and Gore" was not a default feature of previous games. But I want my Blood and Gore!! CA, please add it.

*Note - this was written before the blood pack was released. Subsequently, a blood and burning pack was added, which I downloaded and am now using.

[EmperorJulian]

So in this thread I'm hearing some fairly good things about Attila, which is somewhat in contrast to what I came across closer to release. I recall the viewpoints back then were highly (and I do mean highly) mixed, with praise going to CA for attempting to remedy the many issues Rome II faced, but failing to get things right. Or at least that was my impression at the time. As I am taking a pass on Total Warhammer however, I've gone back to considering the possibility of buying the previous entry in the series. If possible, could anyone here tell me if the Age of Charlemagne pack is worth the price (on sale or no)? If I do purchase Attila I intend to get the associated DLCs and that one in particular has caught my eye. I will, of course, appreciate any additional information you guys can provide, though bigdaddy1204's review is certainly very positive and informative. Cheers!