Total War Attila is this weeks free weekend deal on Steam, and I've been trying it out over last couple of days. I have been a huge Total War fan for a long time, through it's ups and downs, bad games and good. The game has changed so much since the the original Shogun. From the way you moved around the campaign map to the mechanics in a battle. It is a fantastic series, bringing the depth, and turn based strategy from a 4x game and joining it with an exciting, intense rts game. The battles have never been beaten in scale. The ability to command thousands of troops is both empowering and scary. And to see an opposing army march towards you, makes the fear even stronger. There is nothing like going into battle against an army twice the size of yours, and having to really make every charge count.
Attila still gives me that feeling. On top of that they have added brand new campaign mechanics and battle mechanics, such as the family/politics tree where you will have to control, help or possibly kill members of your family to stop them gaining too much power and opposing your reign, Game Of Thrones style. They also have migrating factions that never stay in one place, such as the Huns, who can't actually take control of a region, the only options being to sack it or raise it to the ground. This adds an amazing new playstyle, which forces you to stay on the move to keep your faction from going bankrupt. Armies can now change 'stances', for example migration stance which increases movement range, but all units will be tired in battle. This allows the migrating factions to turn there armies into camps, so they can gain food or people.
My first play through, I played as the Huns. I decided to beeline towards the Western Roman Empire, one of the remnants of the once great Roman Empire. This meant nothing to me though, as I sweeped across the lands, a sea of destruction following, and the smell of fear in front of me. I loved playing as the Huns because of their horse based armies. There is nothing like carving a path through the enemies weak unmounted units. However this often comes at a cost if you're not careful. The other Kingdoms often learn, and start to deply hundreds of spear units, which are lethal to cavalry. I learnt this the hard way when are charged into battle against some Anteans, looking to steal their gold and reap the spoils of their land. Without thinking I pushed up, the grassy plains spread out around my giant army, the wind calm. My cavalry destroyed their archers, not even halting their charge, but ran straight into a wall of spears. My army was slaughtered and my general (who happened to be the leader of my tribe) was killed. After that, the rest of my tribe was hunted down and killed. It seems the Huns can destroy anyone, but if they are not played the right way the consequences are severe. Playing as the Huns forces you to move to survive, which I like, it's very different. I would recommend this game to anyone, and you should definitely download it this weekend.
I am going away for a couple of weeks tomorrow so blogs might be a bit thin on the ground. I will try to keep them up, but they will be coming back everyday in a few weeks, so stay tuned for them. Thank you.
I am going away for a couple of weeks tomorrow so blogs might be a bit thin on the ground. I will try to keep them up, but they will be coming back everyday in a few weeks, so stay tuned for them. Thank you.