Total War: Shogun 2 is a strategy video game created by Creative Assembly and released by Sega in 2011. It is the seventh main game in the Total War series and returns to the setting of the first Total War game, Shogun: Total War, after several games focused on Europe and the Middle East.

The game is set in 16th-century feudal Japan during the Sengoku Jidai, a time of war when the Ashikaga shogunate lost control over regional warlords (daimyō) and their clans. These clans fought each other for power. The player manages one of these clans, aiming to defeat rivals and become the new Shogun of Japan. The standard version includes eight factions (plus a ninth for the tutorial), each with unique starting positions and strengths. The limited edition adds the Hattori ninja clan, and a downloadable content (DLC) package introduces a tenth clan, the Ikko-Ikki.

Unlike previous Total War games that covered Europe and the Middle East, Shogun 2 focuses only on Japan’s islands (excluding Hokkaido) and uses fewer unit types. The game was praised for making the series easier to play while returning to its original roots. A separate expansion, Total War: Shogun 2: Fall of the Samurai, was released in 2012. It features the 19th-century Boshin War.

Gameplay

Shogun 2 combines turn-based strategy and real-time tactics gameplay, a key feature of the Total War series. The player takes on the roles of both the clan leader and general, switching between the campaign, where the player manages land and armies step by step, and battles, where the player controls armies in real-time on the battlefield.

During the campaign, the player must manage settlements, military production, economic growth, and technological progress. The player organizes and moves armies and units on the stylized campaign map to fight other factions. In addition to battles, the player can engage in diplomacy, political actions, and use special agents like ninja and geisha, who act as assassins and spies.

The game includes units such as ashigaru, basic infantry that are easy and cheap to recruit, and samurai, who are more skilled in battle but require specific buildings to recruit. Other land units include siege weapons like mangonels and cannons, as well as special units like kisho ninja, who are good at stealth and climbing castle walls. Naval battles, first introduced in Empire and Napoleon, return in Shogun 2. Players can build warships of different sizes and speeds to attack enemy ships or board them.

There are four types of agents the player can recruit:
– Ninja: They can scout, sabotage, and assassinate.
– Geisha: They specialize in assassination.
– Metsuke: They can oversee provinces, arrest or execute enemy agents, or bribe enemy settlements and armies.
– Monks (or missionaries for Christian clans): They can inspire armies, spread religion, and convince enemy agents to retire.

The "Mastery of the Arts" research system helps clans improve. It has two branches: Bushido (military) and Way of Chi (economic, religious, and agents), which provide new units, buildings, and abilities. Certain buildings, events, and character traits can speed up research progress.

Players must also manage religious matters. The main religion, Shinto-Buddhism, allows recruiting warrior monks—unarmored infantry with strong combat skills. The Catholic faith, introduced by European traders, gives better trade and early access to firearms. Converting a clan to Christianity can offer more benefits. However, provinces with different religions cause unrest, which must be addressed with religious buildings or agents. Players can also spread their religion to enemy clans to cause unrest.

There are nine major clans in Japan for the player to choose from, including the "Amakasu retainer clan." Each clan has unique strengths that affect gameplay:
– The Chōsokabe clan lives in Tosa Province and can recruit better archers and earn more income from farming.
– The Date clan controls Iwate and can recruit better no-dachi samurai, with bonus damage when charging.
– The Hōjō clan are skilled castle builders and siege specialists, living in Izu and Sagami Provinces.
– The Mōri clan lives in Aki Province and has a strong naval tradition.
– The Oda clan fields better ashigaru and lives in Owari Province.
– The Shimazu clan lives in Satsuma Province and can recruit better katana-armed samurai, with more loyal generals.
– The Takeda clan rules Kai Province and recruits better cavalry.
– The Tokugawa clan starts in Mikawa Province as a vassal of the Imagawa clan and relies on diplomacy and better ninja and metsuke.
– The Uesugi clan controls Echigo Province and specializes in Buddhism, allowing better monks and more income from trade.

Three additional factions are available as downloadable content:
– The Hattori clan leads Iga Province and recruits highly skilled ninja.
– The Ikkō-ikki clan is a religious rebel group controlling Echizen and Kaga Provinces, recruiting rōnin and better warrior monks.
– The Ōtomo clan controls Bungo and Buzen Provinces, starts under the Catholic faith, and can recruit better firearm units and Portuguese soldiers called terços.

In Shogun 2, leaders and generals have unique traits and abilities, with a focus on role-playing. Players can improve and unlock traits as characters gain experience. Managing family politics within the clan is also important to keep members loyal.

Battles in Shogun 2 involve large armies fighting on land or water. Naval and siege battles are redesigned to match Japan’s setting. Japanese castles have multiple levels, so battles focus more on courtyard fighting and tactics than wall defenses. Naval battles use unique Japanese ships that resemble "floating castles," with factors like ship-to-ship combat, arrows, and coastal terrain affecting outcomes.

Weather and climate affect battles, as in Empire and Napoleon. For example, fog reduces visibility, and heavy rain weakens archers and gunners. Armies on enemy land during winter or fleets far from the coast suffer losses.

A unique feature called Realm Divide occurs when all surviving computer-controlled clans declare war on the player or ally with each other. This happens if the player captures Kyoto and holds it for four turns or raises their clan’s fame to the maximum level through conquest and victories.

Shogun 2 includes multiplayer battles with up to 8 players and multiplayer campaigns for 2 players. In campaigns, players can join different clans, with one player acting as the clan leader and others commanding armies. The leader can assign tasks and rewards based on loyalty and performance. When armies attack or are attacked, the game matches players for battles. Winning battles and conquering territories earns points and bonuses for the clan. An achievement system gives players unique abilities and cosmetic upgrades.

Release

A demo version of the game became available on Steam on 22 February 2011. The demo includes the campaign tutorial, the historical Battle of Sekigahara, and the full game encyclopedia.

Shogun 2 was released in four editions. The "Standard Edition" includes only the game itself. The "Limited Edition" adds a unique playable faction (the Hattori Clan), an additional historical battle scenario called "Nagashino," a complete set of armor for the player’s online avatar, and a starting amount of experience points for that character. The "Collector's Edition" includes all the content from the Limited Edition, plus a replica bamboo box with a Shogun 2 art book and a detailed figurine of Takeda Shingen. The "Grand Master's Edition" includes all the content from the Collector's Edition, as well as a bamboo chess set themed after Shogun 2, available only in select stores in the UK and Australia.

Players who pre-ordered the game at GameStop (online or in-store) could participate in the historic Battle of Kawagoe. This battle, which took place in 1545, involved the Later Hōjō clan launching a successful nighttime attack against the Uesugi clan, choosing speed and stealth over heavy armor. Players who pre-ordered at Best Buy (online or in-store) received 1,000 Koku, the in-game currency used in Total War: Shogun 2. This allowed their campaigns to start with enough resources to build structures, train units, and upgrade towns.

As a special pre-order bonus, Steam released the "Shogun Pack" for Team Fortress 2. This pack was given to players who purchased Total War: Shogun 2 before its release date. It included eight items inspired by feudal Japan, such as a sashimono, katana, kunai, and gunbai. These items could only be used in Team Fortress 2 and had no effect on Shogun 2. Steam also released the Total War Collection on 10 March 2012, which included Empire: Total War, Medieval II: Total War, Rome: Total War, Napoleon: Total War, and Total War: Shogun 2. Players could preload Shogun 2 on 14 March.

• The "Ikko-Ikki Clan Pack" (released on 26 May 2011) added the "warrior monk" clan to Shogun 2, along with new content for all game modes. This clan could be used in single-player or multiplayer campaigns, as well as custom and multiplayer battles. It included eight new unit variants, a new technology tree, a new historical battle (Nagashima 1574), an Ikko-Ikki armor set for the avatar, and new retainers for the Avatar Conquest mode.
• The "Sengoku Jidai Unit Pack" added ten new elite units for multiplayer and single-player game modes. This pack also included a patch that fixed bugs and improved unit balancing in multiplayer modes.
• The "Saints and Heroes Unit Pack" added nine new hero units for multiplayer and single-player game modes. This pack also included a patch that fixed bugs and improved unit balancing in multiplayer modes.
• The "Rise of the Samurai Campaign" (set 400 years before the events of Shogun 2) is based on the Genpei War, a conflict between six legendary clans. This DLC added 16 new land units, 4 new hero units, 10 new naval units, 3 new naval special abilities, 4 new agent types, and a new historical battle (Anegawa 1570). The campaign included the same realm divide event as Shogun 2.
• The "Hattori Clan Pack" included all the content previously available only in the Limited Edition of Shogun 2. This faction, known for its mastery of Iga-ryu ninjutsu, could be used in single-player or multiplayer campaigns, as well as custom and multiplayer battles. It included powerful battlefield ninja units and the historical Battle of Nagashino (1575), where the Oda and Tokugawa clans fought the Takeda clan.
• The "Blood Pack" added blood and gore visual effects and appropriate sound effects.
• The "Otomo Clan Pack" added a Christian clan with a modified research tree and more "Westernized" units.
• The "Battle of Kawagoe" added a historical battle previously available only to players who pre-ordered at GameStop.

• Assembly Kit & Workshop support (September 2012): Creative Assembly released the Total War: Shogun 2 Assembly Kit, a set of modding tools that allowed Steam Workshop integration and scripted single-player battles. This improved community mod support. Steam Workshop support also became available, letting players discover, subscribe to, and share custom maps, scenarios, and full conversion mods through Steam.
• Final compiler & CPU patch with chat removal (May 2023): After over a decade without updates, Creative Assembly improved performance on modern hardware and fixed crashes on CPUs with more than 32 logical cores.
• Steam Deck compatibility status: The game is currently marked as "Unsupported" on Steam Deck, with Valve working on official support.

On 5 March 2013 in North America and 8 March 2013 in Europe and Australasia, the "Gold Edition" compilations were released. The North American version included the base game, the Rise of the Samurai campaign, and the Fall of the Samurai game. The European and Australasian version included these items plus most of the downloadable content packs (excluding the Blood Pack). It also came in a gold and black wajima-nuri inspired folding case, unlike the standard case used for the North American version.

On 31 July 2014, Shogun 2 was released for macOS by Feral Interactive, along with the Total War: Shogun 2 Collection, which included all previously released additional content except the Blood Pack. Shogun 2, the Shogun 2 Collection, and Fall of the Samurai were released for Linux

Reception

Total War: Shogun 2 received "universal acclaim," according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Al Bickham of PC Gamer gave Shogun 2 a score of 92%. In his review, he praised the game's visual design, music, and atmosphere, the attention to detail, the more organized and easier-to-use troop options, the enjoyable and challenging siege battles, and the improved enemy artificial intelligence during both campaign maps and battles compared to previous Total War games, such as Empire. He noted that the enemies are more difficult for players on higher difficulty levels. Bickham also praised the updated multiplayer features and the addition of a clan system that promotes teamwork among players. He concluded that the game offers a more focused and improved experience compared to Empire and Napoleon, calling it a return to the series' best qualities. In 2019, PC Gamer listed Shogun 2 as the best Total War game.

GameSpot reviewer Daniel Shannon called it the "best Total War game yet."

For their work on Total War: Shogun 2, Alan Blair (lead campaign programmer), Kevin McDowell (lead artist), and Scott Pitkethley (lead battle programmer) won the British Academy Games Award for best strategy game. During the 15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Total War: Shogun 2 for "Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year."

As of March 31, 2011, the game had sold 600,000 copies in Europe and North America.