GAME
OF THE
DAY
ROME: Total War
Epic tactics, massive battles
“VICTORYYY!” So, you’ve captured your first settlement. Bodies lie strewn on the floor. Do you occupy it, enslave its inhabitants to build a workforce or simply massacre them, pillaging all their cash?
Rome: Total War’s dilemmas aren’t exactly everyday, like where to have lunch. This is life or death stuff for your army, settlements and faction.
You direct your fledgling empire from a lofty perch above ancient Rome, building settlements, sending troops to siege other towns and doing plenty of other morally questionable things in the pursuit of power.
You can send a diplomat to Rome to negotiate a deal, or to offer to take down a rebel faction for financial reward. Or send a spy over to your next target to get valuable intel. You can even marry off your daughter to a promising general, to elevate his status in your empire – and that’s just in the first 20 minutes or so.
Then, when you’re done making all of those more subtle choices, there’s the action. There’s a reason Total War’s live battles have become the series’ trademark – they’re spectacular.
While the battles always start viewed from on high, you can pinch and drag your finger on the screen to zoom around the battlefield and get as close as you dare. As hundreds of troops enact your commands, you’ve got to adapt your strategy depending on the ebb and flow of each battle.
It’s not just the millions of Total War fans on PC that will love playing on their iPhone or iPad whenever they please; anyone interested in deep, epic-scale historical strategy gaming shouldn’t hesitate to download.