Total War is a series of strategy games created by a British company called Creative Assembly for personal computers. These games mix turn-based strategy and managing resources with controlling battles in real time. This is different from most real-time strategy games because moving around enemy forces and arranging troops in certain ways are important parts of the gameplay. The first game in the series, Shogun: Total War, was released in June 2000. The most recent major game, Total War: Pharaoh, was released on October 11, 2023. By April 2021, the series had sold more than 36 million copies.
Main games
Shogun: Total War was released in June 2000. It is the first game in the series and is set in feudal Japan. The single-player game includes interactive videos that show choices the player can make, such as converting to Christianity. The original Shogun was not a widely sold product, but it gained a loyal group of fans. An expansion pack called The Mongol Invasion was included in the Warlord Edition when the game was first released.
Medieval: Total War was released in August 2002. It uses the same game engine as Shogun and takes place in medieval Europe. The expansion pack for this game is called Viking Invasion, and the combined version is known as the Battle Collection. This game was one of the best-selling titles in the Total War series.
Rome: Total War was released in 2004. It is set in the Roman Republic and introduced free map movement, a feature that allowed players to move freely across maps instead of being limited to provinces as in earlier games. This was the first game in the series to include a 3D map. The first expansion pack, Barbarian Invasion, was released on September 27, 2005. A version called Rome: Total War Gold Edition, which combined the original game and its first expansion, was released on February 14, 2006. This version was on one DVD instead of three CD-ROMs. A version with four CDs was also made. A Mac version of Rome: Total War Gold Edition was released on February 12, 2010, by Feral Interactive. A second expansion pack, Rome: Total War: Alexander, was released on June 19, 2006. A collection of the original game and both expansions, called Rome: Total War Anthology, was released on March 16, 2007. The series also includes popular mods, such as Europa Barbarorum and Rome: Total Realism, which aim to make the game more historically accurate. A simplified version of the game was later released for mobile devices. Rome: Total War has won many awards for its realistic campaign and battlefield animations. A remastered version of the game, called Total War: Rome Remastered, was released on April 29, 2021, by Feral Interactive.
Medieval II: Total War, a sequel to Medieval: Total War, was released on November 10, 2006, in Europe and November 14, 2006, in North America. The game includes more detailed characters and covers events such as the Age of Discovery, the colonization of the Americas, and the Mongol and Timurid invasions. An expansion pack called Medieval II: Total War: Kingdoms was released on August 28, 2007. A Gold Edition containing the original game and the expansion was released on February 1, 2008. The Kingdoms expansion includes four campaigns: the Britannia Campaign (set in the British Isles in 1258), the Crusades Campaign (set in the Middle East in 1174), the Teutonic Campaign (set in the Baltic region in 1250), and the Americas Campaign (set in the New World in 1521, during the decline of the Aztec and Maya civilizations).
Empire: Total War was announced on August 22, 2007, by Sega. It was developed secretly after the release of the Barbarian Invasion expansion. Players choose an 18th-century faction and work to dominate the world through military force, diplomacy, espionage, and economics. This was the first Total War game to include real-time 3D naval battles. The game also introduced a feature called decentralization of provinces, which made the game more realistic by allowing production and technological advancements to occur outside of a province’s capital. Empire: Total War was released on March 3, 2009, in North America and March 4, 2009, in Europe. An expansion pack called Warpath was released in October 2009. Warpath is set in the Americas and allows players to control one of five Native American nations. While the game was praised for its innovative gameplay, it faced criticism due to technical issues. Sega claims most problems were fixed after the game’s release. Creative Assembly, the game’s developer, explained the issues several months later. This was the first Total War game to use Valve’s Steamworks DRM and achievements system, requiring players to use Steam to play. A mobile version of the game, developed by Feral Interactive, was released on November 21, 2024, for iOS and Android devices.
Napoleon: Total War was released in North America on February 23, 2010, and in Europe on February 26, 2010. The game focuses on the politics and major military campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. It was released in several editions: Standard Edition, Imperial Edition, and Emperor’s Edition (available only in Australia and New Zealand). Players take the role of Napoleon Bonaparte or one of his rivals in a turn-based campaign and engage in real-time battles. Like its predecessor, Empire: Total War, this game includes three separate campaigns: the Italian and Egyptian campaigns, the European campaign, and the Battle of Waterloo.
In the grand campaign called "Campaigns of the Coalition," players control Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, or Russia on a map covering Europe. A second campaign, called "Peninsular Campaign," is available as DLC and allows players to control France, Spain, or Great Britain in a struggle for control of the Iberian Peninsula. The Napoleon: Total War Gold Edition was released for Macs on June 3, 2013.
On June 2, 2010, Creative Assembly released a preview of Total
Spin-off games
Spartan: Total Warrior was created by Creative Assembly and released in 2005 for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube. This action game was designed to bring the large-scale battles from Total War to console systems. Instead of focusing on historical accuracy, the developers used ideas from Greek and Roman mythology to create a setting with imaginative settings and enemies. Players control a Spartan warrior guided by Ares, who must defeat the Roman Empire. The game includes two modes: "campaign mode," which has 14 levels, and "arena battle" mode, where players survive increasingly difficult enemy attacks. A later game called Viking: Battle for Asgard was released in 2008, but it did not use the "Total Warrior" name.
Total War: Arena was a free-to-play game that stopped being available in February 2019.
Total War: Elysium is a new free-to-play strategy game where players collect cards and battle with generals from history against other players.
Total War Battles: Shogun was released on April 20, 2012, for iOS devices. It was also released for Android and Microsoft Windows. Set in medieval Japan, the game uses real-time strategy and includes managing troops, combat, and building structures. Players can use samurai, archers, ninjas, and cavalry. The battle system uses hexagon-shaped tiles for movement, and a new rule requires units to follow the "Bushido" code, meaning they cannot move backward once they advance. The game supports 1 vs. 1 local multiplayer.
From the team that made Total War Battles: Shogun, Total War Battles: Kingdom entered open beta on PC on March 9, 2015, after a limited closed beta. Set in medieval England, the game combines managing a kingdom with real-time battles. It was available for PC, Android, and iOS, but support ended on April 28, 2022, and the game is no longer playable.
Total War Battles: Warhammer is the next game in the Total War: Battles series. Developed by NetEase, it is officially licensed by Creative Assembly and Games Workshop. The game aims to bring strategic gameplay from the Warhammer Fantasy Battles world to mobile devices worldwide. It will be available for Android and iOS platforms.