When They ALMOST Made The PERFECT Total War - Empire: Total War 2022 Review

there is nothing i want more than empire 2 to be the next historical total war, the global theatres and naval combat is all I want

Empire was my 1st Total War game and still my favorite. I have over a 1,000 hrs in and still not bored with it. Fingers crossed that they announce development on Empire 2 within a few years.

Had a lot of fun with Empire back in the day. I remember capturing the entire map as Prussia. Having the Prussian life guards versus the Indian elephants was awesome. I sure hope that CA brings back the naval battles in their next historical title.

This will always be my favorite Total War game. The economy aspects, population actually mattering towards the growth of your regions (even if only to a point, the town/village turning into cities system, which you can then develop according to your needs is really cool) this was always so engaging... rushing the full development potential of my regions was always my favorite way to play this game. Having multiple schools to research more than one thing and not being stuck to a single research choice is something I miss greatly. Economic growth actually existing in this game (it was last in shogun 2) is something else I wish Total War didn't forsake. The idea of tax having an impact on population growth, emigration to colonies, and the overall wealth of your population (immediate VS long term gains) instead of tax ONLY being about public order and raw income from static sources and nothing else, was such a lovely aspect of this game. If this game ever saw a remaster, a genuine remaster that refined what was attempted here, got the same polish its spiritual successor Napoleon got, and expanded on the depth of the theaters, I think it could easily become the most celebrated total war game.

Empire total war with the full world map, starting in EU IV start date, with colonization and exploration mechanics, tech similiar to Empire (with gradual improvements to army, economy and navy), and a deep enfâsis on trade routes and rare resources for economy (as it was irl), and thus making the navy the most important asset in the game. The small towns are actually an important part of Empire, think their importance should be even bigger, so protecting them would be essencial. Think this is my perfect Total war. Obviously, good graphics, no bugs, decent balance, etc, are a must.

I'm glad you mentionned the forts battle. I was able to tolerate the bugs, the clunky pathfinding, the incompetent AI, but the constant forts battle ruined my spirit. Some of the small town settlements with no walls, though, were some of the most fun maps I've played. Put 2-3 units in buildings, guard the most important streets, avoid the arty with the available map items ... Empire is in my top 3 TW games where I had most fully finished campaigns. Playing as the Indians rising up, the brits going full America, France dominating western Europe , Ottomans going for a new golden age or Russia soloing the world. Had a lot of fun.

1700s warfare is the perfect setting for a total war game, they should make a Empire 2

Empire was close to greatnesses, but it was just too unfinished and the mechanics needed way more polish. Still a solid game.

Well, the fact that we are here talking about TW historical games from 2007 is a sign that the developers are focusing too much in fantasy and leaving us without options. So let's talk about MODs for all these good old TW historical games! I am ok with that.

I loved the game. The biggest problem I have is the lack of provinces. I mean, take Paris and pouf no more France. It's a bit ridiculous. Also, all European armies should start with bayonets (Most armies did not have pikes anymore in 1700)...And different types of firings would have been interesting (for all units).

Empire was my first Total War. More than 400 hours in steam. That one deserves a Empire 2. With countries splited into provinces, political mechanics, more units by countries, missions, chapters and Campaigns like 7 Years War, French Revolution, cities sieges remodelled

The nostalgia. My first Total War game and to this day my favorite. It has aged in some aspects like controls. What would I give for modern unit controls on the field. But the campaign map is still the best I played, with Shogun 2 getting a close second. The scale alone makes its title justice. You could feel that you are building an empire, having provinces on 3 different continents. Trade was really deep compared to others. You have to go out of Europe to get valuable goods and ship them back to your capital and then send them to your trading partners. Tech was also fun. Better trade? Get better ports and plantages buildings. Better armies? Get canister shot or line fire. And navel combat. So much time as a kid was simply watching these battles. Two lines sailing past each other and unloading hundreds of cannons in unison and even then you would not fully grasp the scale of this battles. A single ship could carry more cannons than most armies in that age. It offers just the feeling of building and commanding an Empire, something that has gotten lost today. I just don't like the focus on individual characters like in 3 Kingdoms. Sure, I like the story of them, and having named ones makes the game better, but the rest just got a bit forgotten. Units tide to them and only 6 units? Even with that, you could only have 1 or 2 armies at the beginning, denying the option of splitting most of the time. And having no growing economy just feels boring. In Empire, some techs gave you huge boosts in income, both in trade and industry. But I start rambling. Emipre is just unique in the series. It still has so much potential. Only thing that stops me sometimes are the controls and a bit the AI. And fort battles...

I remember some of the cancelled features like the naval landings and where the ships were able to participate in a costal land battle. Features that eventually made it into Rome 2. But they would have just been so incredible given the period. I really hope for a Total War: Empire 2 at some point.

It is my most fondly beloved entry in the whole Total War series. It had its drawbacks, as pointed out in the video, but it had this feel of empire building like no other game in the series. It felt grand, ambitious, and the battles felt relevant and cinematic, even if they got buggy as hell every now and then. The idea of juggling between several war theatres also added so much opportunity cost and forced to make some heavy decisions because you simply could not dominate on all theatres in the early game. I really hope they release a sequel someday.

I really liked the battles on Empire, the pacing was perfect, the battlefield would shift, you could scan over the map after the battle and actually tell what happened. It told a story in a way.

Empire is so good with mods, I have been playing it a lot lately and have grown to love it even more despite its flaws.

If they made a 2nd empire game with the stuff they have learned in the war hammer and mini games, it would have the chance to be one of the best strategy games of all time.

I wish we had a shogun2 style gameplay on the empire map. Tech allows you to build gun batteries for forts, ports and other map chokepoints. Have naval/fort battles. Like realm divide discourages early game expansion, have diplomacy actually matter as territorial expansion scares AI into forming alliances, fortifying and attacking. Generals have trainable abilities. Rare trade resources can be obtained by tech/diplomacy achievements. Compete for trade deals. Late game trains/merchant shipping allows rapid auto transport of armies. Tech revolutionizes battlefield with Gatling guns prompting trenches. Howitzers bring the evolution of star forts into bunkers. Percussion shells demanding ironclad ships requiring coal depots.

Still have a campaign every year or two, so much you can do in this game. My favourite was playing as Austria and using the Windbaersch Jaegers (or similar name). Could obliterate entire armies from some factions with just two units

Ya know, i would still love to know whos bright idea it was to make "follow up games" for total war, cus just imagine if they spent all the time and money making the "main game" grate and just taking on the "follow up game" as DLC or and expansion like FoTS was. The improvements over Empire in Napoleon are obvious (ships being able to repair in battle for example), how hard can that POSSIBLY BE?! Empire still has the best TECH PROGRESSION of any total war to date, its not about unlocking better stuff and small bonuses its about upgrading your existing troops and getting them more tools (although as you progress you do get more troops and better troops, BUT most of them are limited in number) and the "province capital" and smaller cities that you can specialize i feel had alot of potential, certainly more so then the modern building system. (why is France only once city? it should be 4 or 5 at least) Empires only real downside is the battlefield AI, which is sad cus empire also has alot of interesting little features like garrisoning buildings for cover or using walls for cover. Not to mention certain units have access to certain fortifications when defending (light infantry are the only ones that can lay mines), not to mention all the units have at least SOME purpose.