A Total War Saga: Troy Review: Epic Freebie, Epic Gameplay?
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The strategy genre hasn’t seen many consistent developers in recent years. Creative Assembly (CA), however, has remained a stalwart, delivering quality titles annually to critical and fan acclaim. Recently, CA split its flagship Total War series. The main branch explores new settings and narratives, while Total War Saga offers standalone experiences building upon existing Total War assets and mechanics.
After Total War: ATTILA and Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia, which revisited the Roman and Barbarian assets from Total War: Rome II with mixed reception, CA has turned to the Greek world with Total War Saga: Troy. This release marked a significant shift, offering the game free on the Epic Games Store for the first 24 hours and maintaining exclusivity on the platform until early 2021. This resulted in over 7.5 million downloads on launch day alone. But does this “freebie” continue the trend of less-than-stellar titles that started with Total War: Rome II? Let’s dive in.
Audio-Visual Upgrades
Despite being a smaller-scale title designed to leverage existing resources, CA didn’t simply port assets directly from the seven-year-old Total War: Rome II. Instead, Total War Saga: Troy utilizes the upgraded engine from 2019’s Total War: Three Kingdoms. Both games draw inspiration from literature – Three Kingdoms from Luo Guanzhong’s novel and Troy from Homer’s Iliad. This literary influence results in a distinct aesthetic.
Total War Saga: Troy
Both games feature a brighter color palette and cleaner character designs, reminiscent of other fiction-based titles like Total War: Warhammer 2. This contrasts sharply with the grittier, more realistic style of historically grounded entries like Thrones of Britannia and Total War: Atilla.
Total War Saga: Troy
While character models retain elements from Rome II, they’ve been significantly upgraded with higher polygon counts, improved textures, and a stylized, epic color scheme, giving the game a fresh look. Environments and the map itself boast impressive detail, likely aided by the smaller geographical scope focused on the Greek peninsula and surrounding areas of Western Asia.
Troy also inherits Three Kingdoms‘ emphasis on cinematic hero combat, utilizing motion capture technology. CA has drawn heavily from the Iliad and historical sources to create a roster of distinct heroes with unique abilities and fighting styles reflective of the Bronze Age, avoiding a simple reskin of Three Kingdoms‘ martial arts-inspired combat.
Interestingly, Prince Paris is designed with a more conventionally attractive appearance, reminiscent of actor Orlando Bloom’s portrayal in the 2004 film Troy. This contrasts with the more rugged, realistic designs of other characters, maintaining a familiar aesthetic for long-time Total War fans.
Total War Saga: Troy
The soundtrack, composed by Richard Beddow, delivers another strong performance. The score blends mythological themes with epic orchestral pieces that perfectly capture the game’s atmosphere. While Beddow’s team, including Jamie Christopherson (who scored 2011’s Warriors: Legends of Troy), is familiar with the setting, the soundtrack, while excellent, lacks the innovative impact of the Three Kingdoms score.
Overall, despite reusing assets, CA has significantly improved the visuals, creating a satisfying and epic experience within a new and engaging setting.
Fresh Gameplay Elements
While CA releases Total War games annually, the gameplay isn’t static like many 4X titles. Each entry introduces subtle tweaks that refresh the experience without alienating veteran players. Troy incorporates several such innovations, many inspired by the Iliad, making them feel organic and well-integrated.
Total War Saga: Troy
Resources, a series staple since 2011’s Total War: Shogun 2, are now quantified and play a more significant role. They’re no longer just prerequisites for technologies, buildings, or units. Food, for example, maintains public order and can be offered to gods for economic and military boons. These divine favors can have surprising consequences, from boosting your armies to causing marital strife among your generals if you neglect certain deities.
Total War Saga: Troy
“Mythological” units are represented as specialized troops with unique abilities. The Minotaur, for instance, is a powerful warrior with a bull-horned helmet, while Centaurs are heavy cavalry. These units are typically unlocked through divine favor and limited in number, so their strategic impact is limited.
Victory conditions are more diverse, moving beyond conquest. Troy introduces “Homeric Victory,” achieved by completing story-based objectives. These missions range from appeasing King Priam to marrying off your sister to an Egyptian prince, or even slaying Achilles.
Total War Saga: Troy
Despite these additions, Troy‘s focus on large-scale battles makes it difficult to rival the diverse victory conditions of 4X games like Sid Meier’s Civilization VI. While Troy adds complexity, CA hasn’t abandoned its helpful AI assistants, allowing players to delegate simpler tasks and focus on combat. This accessibility makes the game easy to pick up for newcomers.
Overall, Total War Saga: Troy offers engaging new elements and a more rewarding experience compared to the less well-received Thrones of Britannia.
Diplomatic Headaches and Epic Exclusivity
Despite dividing factions into Danaans and Trojans, Troy‘s diplomacy system is chaotic, even for the AI. Each turn brings a deluge of diplomatic requests from allies and enemies, covering trade, alliances, and minor agreements. Some Epic Missions require specific diplomatic actions, adding another layer of complexity. This can make diplomacy feel tedious, detracting from the core gameplay of building, developing, and conquering. Consequently, players might opt for conquest victories, which can become repetitive given the small map and similar factions.
Total War Saga: Troy
Some technical issues, such as crashes during loading screens or battles, initially plagued the game. However, CA addressed these with a rapid hotfix. The Epic Games Store exclusivity, lasting until 2021, might deter some players, especially those with existing Total War collections on Steam.
Conclusion
A Total War Saga: Troy offers a compelling blend of familiar Total War gameplay with fresh, Iliad-inspired mechanics. The enhanced visuals and engaging campaign are definite highlights. However, the cumbersome diplomacy and Epic Games Store exclusivity are drawbacks. Ultimately, Troy proves to be a worthwhile experience, especially for those who snag it during its free launch period.
Total War Saga: Troy
Total War Saga: Troy
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