Total War: Shogun 2 Review scores and more

Based on 11 critics - Overal Score: 90 / 100

GameInfo: This is the latest installment in the Total War series and returns to the 16th century Japan setting of Shogun: Total War.

Shogun 2 will have a combination of real-time strategy and turn-based strategy gameplay, a staple of the Total War series. The player plays the role of both the clan leader and general, alternating between the "campaign", where the player manages his land and armies turn by turn, and the "battles", where the player takes control of the army on the battlefield in real-time.

In the "campaign", the player will need to oversee the development of settlements, military production, economic growth, and technological advancement.
The armies and units will be organized and moved around the stylised campaign map by the player to carry out battles with other factions. In addition to fighting, the player will be able to engage in diplomacy, political manoeuvring, and special agents to gain the upper hand. Ninja and geisha are confirmed to be included in the game as assassins and spies.

In Shogun 2, leaders and generals will be given personality and depth in gameplay. Generals and agents are to be portrayed as "larger-than-life" heroes with unique characteristics and powerful abilities. The player will be able to improve and unlock traits and special abilities for the characters as they gain experience. However, the player will also be inclined to engage in family politics within the clan, to keep its members loyal.

The "battles" of Shogun 2 will involve large-scale skirmishes between armies that meet on the campaign map, taking place on land or on water. The developers proclaim they are paying particular attention to re-designing the naval and siege battles appropriate to the new setting. In contrast to European castles and forts, the castles in feudal Japan had multiple tiers, and thus the siege battles in the game will put less focus on wall defences but more on courtyard brawls and tactical manoeuvring. Also, the players will fight naval battles with unique Japanese ships resembling "floating castles", and take into consideration melees on ships, arrow fire, coastal terrain, and other factors.

Shogun 2 will feature multiplayer battles as well as multiplayer campaigns that may involve more than 2 players. In a multiplayer campaign, players can be grouped into different clans, so that for each clan, one player assumes the role of clan leader and others take command of armies. The clan leader will have the ability to direct other players and assign rewards based on loyalty and performance, introducing clan politics into multiplayer. As a player's army invades an enemy territory or is attacked by enemy armies, the online matchmaker finds a suitable opponent and initiates a multiplayer battle. When a player defeats enemy armies and conquers territories, the player will gain points and other bonuses for the clan. In addition, an achievement system is designed to provide adhering players with unique abilities and cosmetic upgrades.

Critic	Score
Examiner The RTS genre may be the purist gaming genre remaining, as there isn't a leading RTS game most companies are trying to mimic. There is so much diversity from Dawn of War, Supreme Commander, Total War, Sins of a Solar Empire and many others, that you have a good chance of picking up a current RTS and not having it feel like another. Read Full Review	100/100
GameDynamo "Spear units still trump cavalry, bows are terrible in melee confrontations, and a well-placed cavalry charge can still send a healthy unit fleeing for their lives. However, there's something different in Total War: Shogun 2 that sets it miles apart from the previous Total War games - the dedication to Japan and Japanese culture here is truly inspired." Read Full Review	100/100
AusGamers It’s not a game for the feint-hearted, and you’ll be investing many, many hours if you play the campaign the way it’s meant to be played. The new multiplayer stuff is excellent and almost a reason to purchase the game alone, will the other bells and whistles equally add to the value of the product. There’s absolutely no question this is the best in the series. Read Full Review	91/100
IGN Longtime fans will surely find a lot that's familiar in Shogun 2, but will also find Creative Assembly's most polished, well-presented and playable version of its Total War franchise. Shogun 2 is an expertly tuned turn-based strategy game filled with exhilarating real-time tactical battles against a capable artificial intelligence or others online. With a gigantic multiplayer suite and fantastic visuals and sound, Shogun 2 is a high point for the Total War series, featuring a staggering attention to detail and immensely satisfying gameplay. Read Full Review	90/100
Destructoid Total War: Shogun 2 is Creative Assembly's most polished game to date, and serves as a reaffirmation of the values that made the series the revelation it was more than a decade ago. It seems only fitting that those values were reaffirmed in a game based on the same setting as way back then. It's said that "You can't go home again". Well, Shogun 2 kind of did, in the best possible way. Read Full Review	90/100
Ironhammers I can’t believe that it’s been eleven years since the release of that flagship PC title. But, with the return of Shogun, it seems that unique Total War blend of both turn-based and real-time strategy has lost none of its appeal. Read Full Review	90/100
Strategy Informer "It's fitting that the latest game in the series, which is a re-make to the classic first game in the series, could very well be one of the best in the series since perhaps Rome: Total War. When Napoleon was released last year, we mentioned how it was the game Empire should have been in terms of technical presentation." Read Full Review	90/100
BuzzFocus Creative Assembly did a fantastic job in re-imaging the original Shogun: Total War. Shogun 2 gives more than a bang for its buck, with phenomenal,reactive battle AI. It's the first Total War game to be mainly balanced and playable without any form of mod. Read Full Review	88/100
ITF Gaming To say that Real Time Strategy (RTS) games have undergone a change over the past few years would be an insanely huge understatement. Anybody who has ever played any of the Age Of Empires titles will be able to tell you that the current generation of RTS games are in a class of their own… how you would want to interpret that though is entirely up to you. The chances are that most PC gamers are currently caught up in either Portal 2 or Crysis 2 however, Total War: Shogun 2 appears to be far more power hungry than these two titles. Let’s find out if this title is worth upgrading your PC hardware to play. Read Full Review	87/100
GameSplash "The Total War series, has gone back to its roots with the recent game in the series, and the result is a sequel to their original. For those of you unfamiliar with Total War, the series is best compared to a beefed up cross between Civilization and Risk. Total War: Shogun 2 is a beautiful advancement to the RTS genre." Read Full Review	85/100
IncGamers "Shogun 2, I suspect, is going to divide Total War players. Compared to recent entries in the series this particular Total War title has a narrow focus, and this is going to be the factor that will please as many players as it'll incense." Read Full Review	82/100

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Details:

Developer(s) The Creative Assembly
Publisher(s) Sega
Series Total War
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Release date(s) 15 March, 2011
Genre(s) Turn-based strategy, real-time tactics
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer
Media/distribution DVD-ROM,
digital distribution