Looks Are Crucial for Shogun 2: Total War

The Creative Assembly has confirmed that it is working on Shogun 2: Total War, bringing its long running mix of strategic and tactical gameplay back to where it all started more than ten years ago. The creators have also said that they plan to design an experience closer to that of the first Shogun than to that offered by the more recent Empire and Napoleon: Total War. And it seems one of the ways to draw the player in will be the clever use of art assets.

In an IGN first look at the new Total War project, The Creative Assembly has said that the overall art design for Shogun 2 is crucial to the success of the game. They are stating inspiration for the way the title looks was taken from the unique features of Japan, like the fascination with cherry blossoms and the way snowy peaks mix well with samurai warriors.

The company is also making good use of improvements to the actual game engine, with 52 bones simulated for every soldier on the battlefield, which results in smoother movements and better fighting animations.

All the combat moves were created after actual Bushido practitioners and people from the British Kendo Association were motion captured. The team was interested in making Shogun 2:Total War close to the period when it comes to sounds, actually using original weapons to hit different materials in order to record the sounds.

The engine, apart from better animation, will also push the boundaries of how many combatants can be displayed on screen. The Creative Assembly is promising up to 56,000 units engaged in a single battle, which sounds about right for the time period and for Japan. As long as the developers and SEGA can avoid adding too many features that are only marginal to the strategic and tactical focus, Shogun 2: Total War is shaping up to be a real back to basics effort.