Well, I haven't had the time to play many campaign turns and battles, but it looks far better than Rome 2 on the release date...

This is the game rome 2 should have been. It is almost bug free, well thought out and just heads and shoulders above Rome 2.

You can really take note of minor features of the game that make it so much better then Rome 2 ever was.

Now if only someone could mod Attila to be Rome 2.

Whoooo after playing a lot more of this game I can say that Attila will be remembered as one of my favorite Total Wars of all-time, right there alongside Rome Total War and Medieval II.

The new family tree and political system is the most detailed and immersive of any Total War game. You can have bastards, adopted sons and trueborn sons vying for power throughout their whole lives and even start rebellions and civil wars if their loyalty falls too low. Female family members are also more involved in the game than they ever have been before with the ability to employ nearly all of the political actions available to male family members, or cause political incidents of their own such as eloping with an influential character within your faction.

The campaign map is beautiful with forests, mountains, rivers and animals brought to vivid life and detail. You'll take the most notice of when a settlement is razed to the ground as the once prosperous city will be reduced to ruins and the region it occupies will "lose its color" so to speak indicating its reduced fertility.

The only really complaint I have with the game is the battles; they're way too short for my liking. I am however very impressed with how the AI handles siege battles more effectively. It will always have some type of force in reserve and will actively fall back deeper into a settlement as it loses ground to your forces. The general or captain's unit will also stay close to the battle to inspire its troops and use abilities, but stay out of any actual fighting until the very end when you're fighting in the city center.

Overall, Total War: Attila is a magnificent game and much more than an "Overpriced Rome 2 expansion pack". It is everything many of us here believed Rome 2 should have been and more, which is both wonderful and depressing at the same time.

5 out of 5

The neat and well made political system is a revelation after the poor to indifferent attempt at it in Rome 2. That was sad given how key politics was to the Roman Republic. The graphics have a gritty aesthetic and the game itself does not let down. I have had some crashes, but it is far more stable than Rome 2 was at the start even with a patch or two.