Update: Rome II is now released! Best price for Steam key is only $44.97. Use coupon GMG25-3P6V5-3Q850
Sega and The Creative Assembly have announced a release date of September 3, 2013 – a Tuesday, of course – for the latest installment to the Total War series, Total War: Rome II.
To think…it was just over a decade ago when we were skipping classes to play Shogun: Total War. Twelve-years later, we’re in our boxers with a “work-from-home” job, writing about Total War. Who’s the failure now, Mrs. Kennington!?
Steam-activated preorder is 25% off
If you’re like us, you’ve already slotted away your September calendar so you can dedicate time to Rome II. Fans of the series will be happy to know that the preorder for the Steam-activated version is already 25% off thanks to a fresh coupon*, making the game only $45.
The Total War: Rome II preorder bonus includes the Greek States Culture Pack DLC. The download adds three new factions to the game, making a total of twelve playable factions.
The three additional factions of Athens, Epirus, and Sparta will each have their own units (including elite units), buildings, and missions, along with win conditions and tech trees. Furthermore, everyone will receive the Pontus faction as a free day-one DLC on the release date.
Collector’s Edition is $155
If you’re a hardcore fan, you might want to check out the pricier $155 Collector’s Edition, which has a limited run of only 22,000 units. The set contains a laser-etched Steelbook case, Tabula set, Tesserae dice, Total War Cards: Punic Wars, cavas campaign maps, and – get this – a complete, fully-functional Roman Onager siege catapult kit. (The catapult measures 26cm x 12cm x 12cm, just to crush your hopes of laying siege to full-scale buildings in real life.)
Evolution of Total War Series
For those that would like to reminisce over the evolution of the Total War series, here’s a video compilation (1:16) of the Calvary Charge through the Total War series.. from Shogun 1 all the way to the recent Shogun 2. (Note how things finally went “HD” with widescreen via 2009’s Empire: Total War).
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aER8eFADLMc&w=560&h=315]