Late game would see the beginnings of bolt action rifle use and extended order, along with non-op machine gun forerunners like the Gatling Gun and Mitrailleuse. Cavalry would become virtually obsolete in the late game, although could potentially retain use as a scouting unit, running down retreating enemies and fighting enemy cavalry. However there was still a general military strategy of direct advance on the enemy over open territory and therefore translatable to Total War as we know it (WW1 represents the nadir of this type of strategy). By the mid/late 19th century, the line form of combat had basically been phased out, with extended order more dominant. This timeline would involve the same concern expressed above but could be much more manageable in terms of developing mechanics for advanced technology. This game would cover both the first and second era of colonization in World History. Unless CA has a trick up it's sleeve and can pull it off, I consider this the least likely time span for an Empire 2., but in my opinion the most ideal and exciting if the battles could be made interesting.
There's no strategy in setting up a machine gun, or field gun that is powerful and can cover the distance of the map, so something would have to be done to create challenges for the players, require actual strategic thinking rather than just taking advantage of tech, and above all, keep battles fun and long-lasting. A campaign map for any time period in history is possible, just ask Paradox Studios, the core of the problem is at what point do battles simply become boring joyless slogs where two armies mow each other down with machine guns, indirect fire, tanks and bombers. I'm not one of those people who believes a Total War post-1880's can't be done, I think it can, but it would require a radical re-thinking of how real time strategy battles are fought in Total War and mechanics which I simply can't conceive of. Below are three suggested time spans for the game One question for an Empire 2 game would be starting year and end year.
Both of those games benefited from updated graphics and superior computer power and there's no reason to believe an Empire sequel wouldn't be the same. It should also be noted that it has been over 11 years now since Empire came out, now being the longest time between an original total war and it's sequel (Shogun-Shogun 2: almost 11 years Rome-Rome 2: 9 years). While a sequel could undoubtedly be buggy, have improper mechanics or lackluster AI, it's also possible CA can fix all these issues present in the first Empire. While the third critique is perfectly fair and I respect those who favor antiquity/medieval era games, the first two are not un-resolvable problems as concerns making an Empire 2.
As I understand it, the main criticisms of the original Empire were mainly due to bugs at launch, faulty mechanics, awful AI and some fans who dislike the gunpowder era. This will be a long guide on why an Empire 2 could potentially be the greatest strategy of all time game and what features it could entail.Įmpire Total War is the only non-niche/saga Total War not to have received a sequel.