Shogun: Total War vs Total War: Attila
Shogun: Total War
Shogun: Total War is the first original title in a legendary, 15-year (and counting), award-winning, real-time strategy game series that currently spanned across multiple themes and settings. However, this game is set in ancient Japan - 1542 to be exact - when the last shogunate collapsed and the entire nation is thrown into conflict as multiple daimyo (faction leaders) vie for the most powerful seat. To make things worst, Europeans have also ventured to island at this point, bringing guns, religion and disease - factors that you'll eventually have to deal with if you are to attain the people's support and conquer the whole of Japan.The gameplay in Shogun: Total War is akin to Rise of Nations in the sense that each battle is carried out in real-time, but moving your troops on the world map is pretty much turn-based (Risk-style). However, unlike the latter, the battle itself is purely consisted of the actual fighting rather than having you build a base and amassing resources and an army. Instead, Shogun lets you view the entire battlefield from any view you like and send commands to your troops as the battle unfolds. This is basically something that's unheard of until this game came along.
Shogun: Total War may be an old game by modern standards, and due to this, many players might simply opt for its sequel in order to have a taste of that this game has to offer. However, if you truly want to experience the very first of the Total War series, this is the game to play.
Total War: Attila
Total War: Attila is relatively new addition to the Total War franchise that is set in the great steppes of the East where a warrior king is rallying up a massive army that would sweep across continents, burning cities as they go. In this game, you play as the commander of western Roman empire whose territories are coming under attack from both outside and inside. Starting with vast swathes of land, your hold over what's left of a crumbling Roman empire will gradually become a struggle for your very survive.This game has similar and iconic mechanics to most Total War games, but there are some important changes made, such as a reworked politcal system, family tree, civic management and technological progression. There are a few significant additions as well, including the incredibly strategic Raze option, allowing you to use the power of fire to terrify defenders or utterly scour entire villages or cities from the face of the Earth. Best yet, Total War: Attila can even serve as some form of educational game as every detail in the game are meticulously recreated based on actual historical documents and references.
Of course, let's not forget to point out how gorgeous the graphics and how realistic everything look and feel in Total War: Attila. It's just incredibly immersive and who know, you might even learn a thing or two about world history!