Shogun: Total War Review: The Start of a Tactical Gaming Revolution

The overview map in the game is like a simple board game layout and the action here is turn-based. Players control a number of provinces and must conquer more in order to win the game. They can build various buildings and troops in their provinces but graphically speaking it is very basic and the situation in individual provinces is not obvious at a glance.

The real focus of the game and the genius of the game-play is in the real-time battles which feature huge numbers of units on detailed maps with varied terrain. The terrain and troop types have an impact on the battle and it is important to choose a good location to set up your men. With up to ten thousand units on screen at once the battles soon degenerate into vicious chaotic fights. The AI here is tactically fairly basic and the bulk of the troops are archers, spearmen or cavalry. The game does include a few special units such as samurai and warrior monks and the Dutch and Portuguese factions have gunpowder units.

The most important facet of the tactical approach to battles is to use the terrain to your advantage. You can hold off huge numbers of enemies by setting up on the brow of a steep hill. Manoeuvring your troops on the battlefield is quite tough and while they work best in formation it is sometimes tricky to get them laid out how you want.

The spy and diplomacy options in the game are also quite limited and the turn based portion of the game is something The Creative Assembly developed to much greater heights with later titles in the Total War series.