11 Best Historical Total War Games Ranked
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11 Best Historical Total War Games Ranked
With 13 games under Creative Assembly's belt, we're ranking 11 of the best Total War games here! Gamers don't even need to look too far into other fictional game genres and settings. Our very own history is full of interesting conflicts. Some of them have even inspired our favorite works of fiction literature (most notably Game of Thrones). So, when developer Creative Assembly introduced the Total War games to the PC gaming community back in the year 2000, it was a dream come true for many of us history nuts. It's like seeing and experiencing the greatest battles and wars you read on the books. It's even better than a documentary since you get to participate in all the action and even change the course of history in the games. Of course, the developers had to take countless liberties since they're still games and need to be fun. Nevertheless, they're about the closest thing we can get to coming, seeing, and conquering — all in the safety of our gaming chairs. Here are all of the historical Total War games ranked based on perfection. THEGAMER VIDEO OF THE DAY SHOGUN
It has been 19 years ever since the first Shogun: Total War came out but it still is being played to this day. Surprisingly enough, its graphics were barely even 3D and most of the units appeared to be texture sprites. That didn't matter to the most hardcore and faithful Total War fans, however. Back then, that was all the rage and the nostalgia is well-remembered. While the gameplay has aged quite well (it's fundamentally the same over the 19 years of Total War), the graphics and the artificial intelligence (A.I.) of the strategy game don't hold up well these days. That's to be expected, of course, just knowing that all the other Total War games owe much to Shogun is enough. MEDIEVAL
After the success of Shogun, the developers just had to keep Total War coming. So they did, and fashionably so with the first Medieval: Total War. It's a pretty obvious choice for their next setting; the Medieval era of Europe was quite well-documented (relatively) and had huge battles and political intrigue to boot. The graphics seem to have been marginally improved-- it was released two years after Shogun and that's to be expected. However, it's still quite a pain in the eyes to look at the pixelated units, especially when they clash in melee. Unlike the "modern" Total War titles, your soldiers in Medieval (or Shogun even) turn into a pixelated blob which looks like censorship when you zoom out while they're fighting. THRONES OF BRITANNIA
Fast forward to 2018 and with the current technology, we were given . It's also set in the Medieval era but much earlier in the Middle Ages, specifically 878 AD — soon after the death of the legendary Viking Ragnar Lothbrok. As a result, the budding kingdoms of feudal Europe had one heck of a power struggle to see who comes out with the most lands. Unlike Total War titles that came before this one, Thrones of Britannia has a smaller scope and a less ambitious setting. You probably know that by the title already, but the game only takes place in the British Isles (the United Kingdom these days). Beyond the graphics, A.I., and gameplay changes it doesn't have many advantages over the first two games above which have had sequels better than Thrones of Britannia. ROME II
To say that Total War: Rome II had a rough release in 2013 is an understatement. It was quite a disaster, to be honest. The A.I. was embarrassing, the graphics were unstable and demanding, and the bugs, glitches, and oversights were just insulting for a full-priced game. What's even worse was it was supposed to be a successor to the first Rome — which is considered a masterpiece when it was released. Why is it better than Thrones of Britannia or the first two Total War games? Well, it improved considerably. Over the next five years since its release, the developers fixed the games' problems (most of it) and even rereleased an Emperor Edition of Rome II in 2018 with a graphical upgrade. ATTILA
Total War: Attila was, in many ways, a refinement of Rome II's formula. It came a year after Rome II's rough release and wrestled with a gloomy time period near the fall of the Roman Empire. Of course, it also featured Attila the Hun himself, who swept through Europe and Asia like a plague made out of blades, spears, and arrows. The gameplay on the battle and campaign map are pretty much similar to Rome II's save for the horde mechanic in Attila. The horde mechanic introduced a new playstyle in the campaigns and allowed you to focus more on battles and causing all sorts of hell for enemy settlements without having to worry too much about borders or buildings. Such a fresh spin on the formula would later make significant waves in the Total War: Warhammer titles. EMPIRE
For many fans of the Total War franchise, Empire: Total War (released back in 2009) was as alien as Warhammer. Empire made a huge departure from the hammer-and-anvil melee battles of the pre-gunpowder age Total War titles. It was set in the colonial period (around 16th to 18th century) where most European countries were scrambling to get as many third world colonies as possible. For that matter, Empire probably had the grandest scale ever in all Total War games. The campaign involved nearly the whole world end-to-end and it can get rather chaotic and confusing managing your international colonies. Additionally, Empire first introduced naval warfare to the franchise which was impressive and commendable but could have had better execution. Finally, Empire also explored the American Revolution — there are lots of new shiny things in this game. NAPOLEON
Empire was ambitious... perhaps even too ambitious for conventional gameplay and it often got confusing or dizzying. Thankfully, Napoleon: Total War got released in 2010 and gave a much-needed focus for the Total War games. Instead of partaking in a campaign that spans the whole world, Napoleon focuses on the French general and emperor's campaigns in Europe. You can choose to play as Napoleon Bonaparte himself (who wasn't short for his height back then, mind you) or his enemies. Being set in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, it also features line infantry warfare and naval battles with no shortage of gunpowder. However, it has been notably improved compared to Empire's. MEDIEVAL II
Medieval didn't age well as a game and its time period deserves more than one title anyway. That means Medieval II: Total War was just a matter of time, thankfully it only took four years from the original Medieval before Medieval II was released in 2006. Of course, as expected, the graphics were vastly improved and are now fully 3D. It might still be outdated but it's still good to this day especially with the right mods. Aside from visuals, Medieval II was simply fun. Picking a feudal kingdom in Middle Ages Europe and conducting a crusade to retake Jerusalem is just one of the many things you can do here. Sometimes you can also piss off the Pope, marry your princesses to some far-flung dukes for alliances, or even overtax your peasants until they rebel. ROME
Rome: Total War was by far, the biggest leap Creative Assembly did with its franchise. It was released in 2004 just two years after the 2.5D texture sprites of the first Medival and it revolutionized strategy games. It was the first Total War game to have full 3D graphics that can handle battles on a Maximillian scale. It was so good back then, even the History Channel used the game in their history shows about the Roman Empire. It's not just the graphics Rome did right, but also the diplomacy, the campaign, and even the Roman Senate politics. Everything just did well in Rome — it was almost impossible for Rome II in 2013 to reach the same standard and set the same level of franchise innovation. SHOGUN 2
It wasn't until a decade later when Creative Assembly decided to revisit feudal Japan again as it did with the original Shogun: Total War. When they did, they made one of the best Total War games ever in all aspects be it atmosphere, gameplay, scope, visuals, and even the music and sound. To this day, Total War II: Shogun 2 is considered by many as the definitive historical Total War title. Shogun 2 was Creative Assembly at their best. The way they seamlessly combined Japanese aesthetics to the UI and how the warfare details give justice to the time period is astounding. Zoom in on the warrior mosh pit and you can even see individual soldiers or even Samurai engaging in one-on-one duels. Not to mention the campaign gameplay is also exciting since you' eventually trigger a sudden death mode where the Shogun will declare you an enemy of all of Japan once your clan or faction grows too powerful. THREE KINGDOMS
It seems the developers are quite good at translating The Orient's warfare history into Total War games. Like Shogun 2, Total War: Three Kingdoms (released just May this year) was a resounding success. It's probably even enough to dethrone Shogun 2 as the definitive Total War game. Three Kingdoms explores the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history during the Han and Jin dynasties where China became a free-for-all battleground between several warlords vying for power and the Emperor's throne. Three Kingdoms introduced a slew of new features which revitalized the aging campaign and battle formula of Total War. They scrapped the old and clunky diplomacy system for something more meaningful and less frustrating. The factions were also replaced with warlords, each with their own unique army traits and capabilities. Definitely not the last but still not the least, the game also introduced "Romance Mode" which adds a little dash of fantasy where the generals are pretty much like demigods as portrayed in popular Chinese films. It's a Total War experience that will ruin other Total War games for you.