Summary
After a brief stint in the world ofWarhammer, theTotal Warfranchise has returned to history withTotal War: Pharaoh. That game has brought players to a brand-new historical period and has tossed in a few new mechanics to really spice up the classic RTS gameplay that fans have come to love. One such mechanic comes in the form ofTotal War: Pharaoh’s new dynamic weather. While weather effects have always been a part of the franchise, fans have never really seen them like this.
Total War: Pharaoh’s new dynamic weathercan shift the battlefield at a moment’s notice, which can often be a lot of fun. Players must now deal with rainstorms, sweltering heat, and all sorts of powerful sandstorms as they fight their way through the Bronze-Age Collapse. This addition helps add a new level of strategy to these familiar battles, and it sounds like Creative Assembly may have gone the extra mile to ensure that these storms are as authentic to the period as possible.
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Ina recent interview with Game Rant,Total War: Pharaoh’s lead battle designer Milcho Vasilev talked all about how the studio crafted these storms. While much of the discussion was focused on the actual gameplay aspects and why they were included in the first place, Vasilev also talked about the actual authenticity of the storms. When asked just how accurate these storms were to reality, Vasilev said,
It’s hard to know exactly what the average weather event was like in the region at the time of the Bronze-Age Collapse, but we have tried to represent the weather as authentically as possible. Some of the theories around the collapse point to weather being one of the primary reasons for the Sea Peoples becoming a nomadic tribe, with severe droughts leading to a lack of food, thus people had to find more fertile ground, which pushed forces into direct conflict with one another. Our main source for our interpretation of the battle weather what we see from day to day within these regions such as the sweltering heat and sandstorms that occur within the Saharan Desert or the thunderstorms that grip the wider Mediterranean.
SinceCreative Assembly was unable to actually travel through time, the studio had to try its best to represent the storms as authentically as possible through other means. Specifically, it seems to have done a lot of research into the different theories surrounding why certain groups ended up working how they did. Usually, the environment that people live in affects the way they live, so it only made sense that storms may have dictated their actions as well. Vasilev went on to say,
We always strive to represent the world in an authentic way and a great deal of research goes into our games. The weather is part of the climate research we do which also includes the types of battle maps, their topography, flora, and fauna. We want to ensure that certain weather conditions are much more likely to happen in the correct geographical regions. Players are not going to encounter a sandstorm in the mountains of Anatolia, and they are much more likely to be overwhelmed by the sweltering heat when in the desert.
Creative Assembly always spends a lot of time researching the time periods that it will be exploring, and the dynamic weather just became a part of that research. Because the studio knew the game wastaking place in Egypt, it was relatively easy to figure out what storms would have actually taken place there. Additionally, storms have seemingly only changed so much over the years, so it was able to base the concept on what people see from day-to-day as well.
There was a lot that went into craftingTotal War: Pharaoh’s storms, which has led to a pretty fun feature. This weather has given the game a whole new feel that will hopefully be built upon even further for years to come. And while the studio may never be able to fully recreate these storms exactly like they were centuries ago, the amount of research that goes into them should at least getTotal Warclose.
Total War: Pharaoh
WHERE TO PLAY
In Total War: PHARAOH immerse yourself in ancient Egypt at the zenith of its power and experience the dramatic events that threaten its destruction. With dynamic real-time battles and incredible turn-based empire management, will you rise to become Egypt’s last great Pharaoh, or a conquering Great King of the Hittites? Or will you take command of the Sea Peoples’ bloodthirsty hordes and drive the Bronze Age Collapse?With the Bronze Age Collapse looming and the dark sails of the Sea Peoples filling the horizon the people of Egypt cry out for a new leader. Many desire the power of the throne, but the path to becoming Pharaoh is a perilous one. Unearth a breathtakingly vibrant recreation of the Bronze Age Collapse as you battle societal disarray, face natural disasters and fight to protect your people against waves of invaders.Enemy armies aren’t the only challenges to overcome on the battlefield. Lead your soldiers through sudden and dramatic shifts in weather, such as torrential rain and sandstorms, and witness the tides of battle turn as it directly impacts the surrounding terrain. Beware the threat of fire too, as battles can become engulfed in flames, striking and spreading across the battlefield as it burns forests and damages the foundations of enemy settlements.
