Why Total War: Attila Is an Atmospheric Masterpiece

[@Lord-H]

I seriously can't enjoy the game with its atrocious performance, might as well play Medieval 2. Running TWW3/Three Kingdoms/Pharoah just fine ultra settings 1440p, same with Rome 2 or even the amazing Shogun 2, but Atilla seems cursed to never run well or at least at 60 fps no matter how many pc's I build, which is a huge letdown.

[@happycompy]

100%. It's a great game that feels awful to play. I don't complain about the performance just to be funny, I complain because it ruins the game. I have over 2100 hours in Rome 2, but "only" 440 hours in Attila. That's mostly because the horrendous turn times are a waste of my time when other TW games actually respect it. I would bet you money that Pharaoh's 189 faction mega map will have faster turn times than Attila's Rome 2 sized one. Maybe instead of wasting money on failures like Hyenas, CA could task a small team to actually support their products that still need help, like this one? Edit: pinned your comment because it resonates hard.

[@Lord-H]

@@happycompy Absolutely agree, chasing trends and throwing money into the pit, the funds that went into Hyenas are just insane, it could have done wonders for their existing products and sold thousands of copies, it's just dissapointing and exhausting. Especially dissapointing when a company has such a legendary IP, only to release a good game, and to leave it unfinished to chase the next new game.

[@happycompy]

​@@Lord-H"and to leave it unfinished to chase the next new game" has been CA's modus operandi since Empire Total War. They treat their games like Call of Duty releases instead of the big, replayable strategy games they are. Firaxis and Paradox understand this. Civ 6 released in 2016 and it got new patches and DLC well into the 2020s. Stellaris and Hoi4 were also released in 2016 and they're both STILL getting updates and DLC. -Empire released in 2009, got dumped in 2010. -Rome 2 released in 2013, got dumped in 2014 (yes, they eventually went back in 2017 but that was a unique case, and Rome 2 still has game breaking AI bugs) -Attila released 2015, got dumped in 2016. -Warhammer 1 I'll give a pass because it was always gonna be a trilogy and the content carries over -Three Kingdoms 2019, dumped in 2021 -Thrones lmao You hit the nail on the head, it is exhausting and frustrating.

[@Lord-H]

@@happycompy And to see it detailed in a list like that only makes it more depressing.. half the funds that went to Hyenas could have gone to a team like that, keeping all these games at top shape, it's really not that much to ask, instead it just keeps going. I would wager even Warhammer 3 is only safe as long as 40k or another more profitable TW comes around, even then the game keeps crumbling with bugs under the weight of DLC, at this point I just wish they would focus their work on letting devs work on the main games themselves before adding it or leave them as is. Great videos and topics all around, keep up the good work!

[@dattilo1]

They patched the game a few months ago, performance is much better

[@KTA1sVidsandFacts]

Rome: "I'm fighting for my fucking life!" Eranshahr: "The fuck they doin over there?"

[@happycompy]

The Sassanids really are chilling in Total War: Attila like introverts were during the pandemic lockdown 😂

[@PeteL-u1d]

​@@happycompy huh? Ever heard of the Hepthalites?

[@happycompy]

@@PeteL-u1d small fish compared to what ERE and especially WRE are dealing with

[@Rynewulf]

@@PeteL-u1dyeah but they took over half of Iran, and eventually losses and Iran bounced back. Meanwhile Eastern Rome nearly lost all of its European territories to rebels, nomads and Slavs (even by the Middle Ages Slav tribes were contesting mainland Greece) and Western Rome.... accidentally solo'd half the planet including its own vassals and allies

[@masterexploder9668]

Also Sassanids when facing Heraclius and Arabs: "Why do I hear boss music?"

[@blebcat]

Been through three CPUs and GPUs since Attila released, and my performance improvements have been utterly negligible. They just need to fix it. It's one of the best historical titles they ever made.

[@smoke12785]

I heard setting the game's vram from the preference file to 3000mb and lowering the amount of cpu threads to around 4 helps.

[@happycompy]

Yup. Ironically I'm on my third CPU/GPU combo as well since this game released and it still runs like absolute shit. The turn times in particular are atrocious. It's why I only have 400 hours in it.

[@mephisto279]

Its a phenomenal title, and my first Total War game. Why CA leaves it to rot? I'll never know.

[@James-sk4db]

I turned down the resolution and it seemed to really help me. All highest graphics but resolution set 1 lower than my monitor really helped

[@alexsitaras6508]

It would have been my most played Total War if the performance wasn't so bad. Age of Charlemagne really is excellent.

[@KC_312]

Happy: "When Attila FINALLY FUCKING DIES" I felt that deep in my soul.

[@happycompy]

The cutscene that plays when he dies hits different too.

[@huantruonginh2946]

How to kill him, i’m just new😅

[@captainvalourous6668]

As someone who is bros with Attile thanks to Arcadius' ( The Eastern Roman Emperor ) marraige to Attila's auntie this pains me. 🥲

[@SpaceTalon]

@@huantruonginh2946 you have to clap first few hordes and then he spawns. Mind you, you will have to defeat him 2 times, since the first time he just gets wounded. I recommend baiting him somewhere his horse archers will not perform optimally.

[@seanbinkley7363]

Killing Atilla (actually killing him) in battle, as Western Rome, with emperor Honorious was one of my proudest TW achievements.

[@f3wbs]

I really love the atmosphere because its just so *dark* and you just have to find the light from the grand campaign to Age of Charlemagne.

[@happycompy]

Exactly!

[@romainvicta117]

It’s mad how within just a few minutes of the video I instantly have a strong desire to redownload and play it again

[@happycompy]

And behold a red horse...

[@romainvicta117]

Got a favourite faction you like to play as?

[@happycompy]

@@romainvicta117 Honestly? The Franks, the Saxons, and the ERE.

[@smokejaguar67]

Attila is my favourite total war game - I still play it today

[@happycompy]

I'll tell you one thing, and I'm not afraid to say it. My estimation of Honorius as a Roman Emperor just fuckin' plummeted.

[@andreascovano7742]

Attila felt grounded, I don't know how else to put it

[@jackstone112]

Atilla is my favorite hands down, i struggle to let go and play other games becuse of it

[@mihaimercenarul7467]

The performance îs awful tho

[@happycompy]

​@@mihaimercenarul7467love your pfp!

[@nms8397]

Attila is great because the battles are tactical. Talk about how good the battles are.

[@happycompy]

I much prefer Attila's morale system over Rome 2's. The battle AI is only better. But Attila doesn't have guard mode 😂

[@jamreal18]

How I wish Sea People in Pharaoh are really intimidating and coming from sea

[@happycompy]

They need to come in as a focused force. Having their stacks scatter like sticks in the wind after they spawn makes them feel less like a massive invasion and more like a bunch of random armies. I know they said that they're reworking the Sea Peoples and the Land Peoples in the incoming map expansion. We'll see what they do.

[@jamreal18]

@@happycompy that is nice to hear

[@Zarastro54]

There need to be sea battles for the SEA People.

[@mariusbehm9874]

@@Zarastro54 no there where no see battels 1195 bc was the first but see battels come in the iron age 900 bc

[@richardiv385]

@@mariusbehm9874There were amphibious battles, like when the Egyptians won by ambush in the Nile delta. It would be nice to have ships in the game just for that

[@PlainDoll]

agreed 100% one of the main reasons why i love it so much is that no other game has managed to capture the feeling of "the end times'' as much as this one

[@happycompy]

Exactly! Pharaoh is the only other game that gets within striking distance of it. But Attila did it first and did it the best.

[@tefky7964]

Its honestly fascinating to read how people prefer Rome 2 over Attila for its freedom, while in Attila you might be forced to act in specific ways and lead wars against specific enemies, because I fully get what they mean, but with the opposite opinion. I like how factions in Attila are different, even two very similar factions with very similar units and starting position near each other have different problems and you are forced to solve them and as such play differently for each of them. In Rome 2 you can do what you want, which means freedom, but when everyone offers same freedom it means that all factions are same. When I won a campaign as Celts in France and then another campaign as one of Greek states my playthroughs were very similar, conquer few neighbors, build few armies, conquer few more territories and soon you are basically unstopable, there aren´t any factions that might be a problem. Sure, each faction have different buildings, units and some different bonuses, but in the end they all play in very similar way and you face the same problems. Some factions have it easier, some have it harder, but your problems can usually be solved by another expansion. In Attila as some factions you just freely expand too, as some barbarians you should probably run to the west and plunder along the way, as Rome you try to survive... When I tried to play Slavs and normally expand I was totally screwed without chance to defend my lands, so I had to try again and fully invest into few fortified cities where I led some of the best defensive total war battles I fought against massive Hun armies, which just didn´t happen to me in Rome 2, there I am the one who is supposed to just attack as every faction, not to desperately defend my cities. In Rome 2 I never thought "wow, they are strong, they might actually fully conquer me". Sure I might lose an army or a city, but you just don´t get an actual fear about survival or motivation to try another tactic, the only tactic you need is expansion.

[@spaghettitime3263]

I love how the horde mechanic makes the campaigns so dynamic. I remember doing a Saxon campaign and pushing out the Danes early on, but not totally crushing them, and having them return dozens of turns later and fracturing my kingdom so unexpectedly. I was so frustrated yet so impressed

[@sativa-sloth6099]

Hey man i just happened across your videos today, and thank you for not absolutely dunking on Total War Pharaoh like everyone else seems to do. Im one of the few that plays Pharaoh, i have over 100 hours in game and i actually enjoy the gameplay. Especially the increased emphasis on diplomacy. And the fights are some of the most well done

[@happycompy]

Hey sativa, thanks for watching and for leaving your thoughts. You got me going, so allow me to go off for a second. When Pharaoh was announced, I went from excited to bitterly disappointed when I saw the map. I LOVE the Bronze Age Collapse and I think it's perfect for an apocalyptic Total War setting. I wanted Troy to expand to include the whole Bronze Age world years ago! When the game launched, I bought it anyway, and loved a lot about the gameplay, particularly the deeper campaign. The battles felt MUCH better than Troy's as well (like you alluded to). But that map...what the fuck was that, man?! It pissed me off so much because they were so close to greatness but whiffed HARD. I thought that was it, that we were never going to get a good Bronze Age TW game because of Pharaoh. I ended up rage-quitting my review script halfway through and basically stopped playing Total War altogether. Then they shocked me (and the dozens of us who played pharaoh 😂) when they announced the map expansion. I mean I was truly shocked, man. I figured this game was dead and done. The expanded map and scope looks like it's EXACTLY what I've wanted since Troy. It got me excited enough to get back to making videos because this game really could end up being a true banger of a historical Total War that we haven't had in years. If it lives up to its promise, it could be near Rome 2-levels of replayable for me. Needless to say, I'm HAPPY to not have to dunk on it! I feel bad for people who hate this setting because I feel like a kid on Christmas. Fingers crossed 🤞!!!

[@Imperial_Legacy]

I’ve been burnt off by Total War games for some time, but you made me want to install TW Attila again. By far my favorite Total War game of all time

[@happycompy]

Man you and me both, Imperial. I basically took 2 years off of Total Was minus a few dozen hours when Immortal Empires dropped and a little bit of Troy here and there. Series has just been stale af. New Pharaoh map has me back though.

[@Imperial_Legacy]

@@happycompy yeah! I’m looking forward to playing pharaoh since they announced the map expansion (I haven’t bought pharaoh yet and the main reason for it was because the map was bad), but I feel the same way about TW… CA just hasn’t released a great historical title in almost 10 years and we get frustrated waiting for it.

[@happycompy]

@@Imperial_Legacy absolutely. It's been drier than the Sahara for historical fans.

[@benjaminhodzic4840]

Atilla needed just 1 more month in production and it would have been a true masterpiece. Cutscenes for staying and winning as pegan, reunite empire mission, confederate option, AI that goes into retard mod if you have 1 ship near their transports, AI with better stacks etc...

[@Ajaylix]

I think the only youtuber i seen that does not like Attila at all is Pixelated Apollo. But i was curious about total war starting 2 years ago. Eventually, i got Attila and Rome II for a combine $30 in the deal and its probably the greatest gaming investment i ever did. Still play DEI and vanilla Attila alot.

[@happycompy]

Hell yeah man im glad you're enjoying them! Ive got thousands of hours combined. Enjoyment per dollar for these games is off the charts.

[@ReviveHF]

The success of Three Kingdoms Total War was built upon the foundation laid in Attila Total War. Many of the RPG elements, battle mechanics and campaign features in Three Kingdoms were actually pioneered in Attila. Unfortunately, Three Kingdoms got abandoned. Remember CA promised us to add in Korean, and Japanese, Hunnic and Kushan Factions back in 2020? Yep, that didn't happened.

[@happycompy]

Three Kingdoms was done so dirty man.

[@blecis74]

Yep I remember that, I’m still pissed off about that, 3k was the best TW game ever to be made (in my opinion) and could have continued to get better and better, but no CA just had to abandon it, what the true reason for the abandonment was I don’t know, but abandoning Attila and 3k was really stupid.

[@MelkorGG]

100% agree. Historical feel is more important than historical accuracy. Attila does this perfectly. Some people may hate me for this: I would even go as far as to argue for horned helmets on Vikings in a Medieval 3. It's what most people recognise as Vikings, therefore it gives the feel of Vikings.

[@astadew]

No. I think most people know vikings didn't really have horns by now

[@MelkorGG]

@@astadew You hang around with too many smart people. 😆

[@jobogriff]

could not agree more

[@Atreas40000]

horned helmets no. Generally prioritize atmosphere. Yes.

[@James-sk4db]

Horned helmets were a sea peoples / Sardinian Bronze Age thing. So the normal arguments that it’s too impractical to use are wrong. But yeah I think the protonorse in Attila and the vikings in throne of Britannia look good

[@ElBandito]

Attila is also great because Medival Kingdoms 1212 mod is there.

[@Craftworld_patriot]

Most people will disagree with this, but I strongly believe that Attila has more variety in it's campaign than TWW does. Take, for example, WRE, Sassanids, Veneds, Ostgoths, Alans, Franks and Huns (sorry if I wrote something wrong). Each one of this faction has absolutely unique campaigns. Their initial challenges are completely different, their goals are completely different. In each of these campaigns you as a player will think about completely different things. As Franks you will decide how to grab as much roman territory as possible without getting overwhelmed with public order issues and lack of finances to rebuild stuff (or instead you can expand into German lands, becoming roman ally and protector of the Empire's borders, which is absolutely different experience). As Goth you will decide how to settle your tribe without getting killed in a couple of turns. As WRE you will try your best to protect your huge empire (unless you're a pussy who abandons Roman lands into barbarian hands!), whereas as a slavic faction you will stand your ground in 1-2 settlements against hordes of Huns. And when you think you've tried everything in this game, you will learn the Dark Cult exists. And you will try to get it as any of the faction and spread it across the ancient world, which is funny as hell. Each of these campaigns demands different strategy and approach, but all of them gives unique experience

[@nomooon]

That's why Total War in Ancient / Medieval Western Hemisphere is always fun. That's why I never really got that deep into Shogun Total War series, or Empire / Napoleon Total War.

[@TPhoton]

the best total war creator is back in action! :-) consider doing another live stream at some point

[@happycompy]

Ayyyeee thank you! You're too kind! I'll probably do a live stream when Pharaoh's expansion comes out. I'm not sure if and what I'd stream in the meantime, but we'll see :)

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

You’re going to see a lot of KZbinrs doing livestreams for Pharaoh update

[@alikh4541]

Awesome video dude👍 I love Attila for this reason exactly. it feels different.

[@happycompy]

It really is unique!

[@luigisaguier8336]

The battles in Attila are the best and most immersive powerpoint simulation I've ever seen! Well done CA

[@happycompy]

LMAO 😂😂😂

[@jansenjunaedi4926]

Best total war up until today. The only time I played a total war where my butt is on the edge of my chair as I watch my 1 unit limitanei in testudo holding 5 enemy units like a boss while screaming "don't break!!".

[@Realtimehammer]

Awesome to see you back bro! I love Attila, wholeheartedly agree with your argument about the atmosphere, it is amazing! Though on the balancing side of things they have made some egregious decisions, especially the ERE and their infinite money glitch, which sadly makes that faction specifically unchallenging unless you give away your money constantly (from mid-game onwards). The stupidest thing is, I don't think its possible to mod this, I've taken a dive into modding Attila, even created a mod to rebalance some of the Roman's weaker points, but I have found no possible way to edit or remove the faction traits. I think the ERE is a hit and miss in relation to basically every other faction. I would have made their faction trait a 2% increase on their income instead of their treasury or something like that.

[@happycompy]

Thank you! As for the ERE, you could probably change the value of their faction from 2% to 0% with RPFM. Worth a shot anyway.

[@Realtimehammer]

@@happycompy what is RPFM? Maybe its superobvious and I'm just not familiar with the acronym :P It would definitely be worth trying if that could do it.

[@happycompy]

@@Realtimehammer it's called Rusted Pack File Manager. It's one of the main tools modders use to edit the database of modern TW games :)

[@Realtimehammer]

@@happycompy as you can tell, I'm a beginner in modding still :) Thanks for the tip bro, will defs check it out!

[@danieltobin4498]

I played a lot as the Eastern Roman Empire. It’s a very unique feeling I rarely see in most strategy games. You inherit an empire that’s not great but not terrible. You have a LOT of work to do. You constantly feel like living on the edge of a knife. You’re either worrying about barbarians closing in on Greece, praying they’ll be content with your western Roman neighbors. Or you’re worrying about the eastern factions, praying they don’t declare war on you JUST yet! Act 1 is you fortifying your provinces and building your economy. But act 2, is when you finally go to war with the eastern kingdoms. If you win, then congrats. Act 3 is about consolidating your new empire and expanding your borders…and seeing the aftermath of Atilla’s genocide as you try to save Rome

[@happycompy]

Yes! The ERE is one of my favorite campaigns in Attila. Praying 🙏 that the Sassanids don't declare on me every time I click end turn is nerve wracking!

[@grolash6219]

It feels like you are the last bastion of light in a dark world.

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

Napoleon nails the atmosphere for me. I need to make my alternate video essay to this one

[@happycompy]

You should! I would watch!

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

@@happycompy I'll make one for sure! I've tried in the past but failed lol

[@nelson_sauvin]

Great video man! Some fresh air in this sea of Pharaoh and Warhammer news. Give me Rome II or Attila any day. I really hope that you are back for good. Cheers!

[@happycompy]

Thank you Nelson!

[@advokatarkadiya3274]

Attila is my favorita TW game and this video covered it pretty well. i love it

[@happycompy]

Thank you for sharing man. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@helena14]

Rome 2 feels like you are in a well made theme park of the acient world, Attila feels like you are there yourself. Only Total War Game (alongside Napoleon) where I never skip the intro.

[@keithstevens5614]

There is a conversion function whereby instead of tearing a wheat farm down you convert it to a cattle or sheep ranch. Fertility gets wiped out in most but not all provinces.

[@tophholland]

This game is so slept on. While not my favorite, I have over 500 hours.

[@happycompy]

Yeah, it's not my favorite either but it's such a unique title.

[@cloacky4409]

good to have u back dude

[@happycompy]

thanks cloacky! It's nice to see you again too.

[@mohamedmedhat7594]

I'm very glad you changed your mind about Attila TW.

[@happycompy]

How so? I've always thought that Attila had incredible atmosphere.

[@gergoradoczi8939]

the last TW game that was challenging, and where you needed strategy as opposed to the exploitation of insane faction mechanics like in warhammer. great video!

[@Annatar3019]

My love for this game was sealed when as a new player, playing visigoths and trying to sack rome, I was attacked by 5 full stacks against one of my armies. Somehow that battle was fought down to just two remaining soldiers (not units, soldiers) and the roman soldier was victorius. I did loose the battle and my faction leader, but it was such a massive blow to WRE, that my one remaining army was able to completely conquer all of hispania with ease. Once Hispania was conquered, I had almost no public order issues, all the factions around me loved me and I was rolling around in more money than I knew what to do with. Only campaign I ever finished. Been chasing that high ever since.

[@happycompy]

Sounds epic!!!

[@wickedautisticchristian4530]

Still to this day this is my favorit TW game bechose of all the things that makes you angry and when you sucsed you realy fell it

[@Chad6o]

I purchased this recently, simply because it's a requirement for Crusaders Wars, a CK3 mod, and it was on sale. But your video presentation was exciting enough for me to want to give Attila a try, so thanks.

[@happycompy]

Have fun!

[@vonxoliver]

Every time i play Attila, i feel gratefull living in this easy and comfortable times compared to people who lived during the collapse of Roman Empire, imagine dealing with famine, desease, long winter, civil war, banditry, and heard a guy nicknamed "The Scourge of God" went rampage in Eastern Europe💀

[@happycompy]

No kidding 😂. You and I both.

[@waqarsaleem8611]

I never had problem playing Western Roman Empire. I retreated back to Italy and garrisoned Aquileia (North eastern town of Italy) and stationed 1 full stack. Hunnic massive stacks were unable to take that single settlement and thus prevented from invading Italy proper.

[@happycompy]

Nice. The good ol' "retreat to the heartland strategy." The same one the Assyrians used to survive the Bronze Age Collapse. Those soldiers in Aquileia must've been some crazy veteran troops by the time Attila died in your campaign.

[@waqarsaleem8611]

@@happycompy I had to kill Attila 3 times before he finally died for good. I didn't like his death bcz it alleviated some pressure and i wanted non stop war and pressure. Keeps the game interesting.

[@albertdevivies4540]

I made some of my best campaign on Attila. One where as the Westerns Roman Empire I desperatly try to hold the hunnic hord. Turning border city into forteress only to see them fall one by one until I finally defeated the hord before it enter italia

[@happycompy]

That sounds epic!

[@albertdevivies4540]

@@happycompy It was ! But the best part was that when I defeated Attila for the first time he retreated into the frozen wasteland that was the Balkan and I had to send an expedition to find him and defeat him for good. I succeded but lost my emperor and 90% of my expedition in the process. Its kinda sad that TWW never gave those kind of feeling with the chaos invasion

[@skops7343]

Yes, Atilla was my favorite. Maybe Rome or Medieval when those came out and I was younger, I probably had more fun with those but Atilla I got into a lot.

[@happycompy]

Which Total War (or strategy) game do you think has the best atmosphere?

[@johnantwn5299]

Thrones of Britannia is really good tho

[@ReptilicusTV]

As grimdark as you can get in a historical . God do I love this fucking game. Also,2024 compymaxxing

[@happycompy]

Agreed. As a fellow Pharaoh enjoyer, I'm curious what your thoughts are on Pharaoh's atmosphere compared to Attila's?

[@ReptilicusTV]

@@happycompy Half baked just like a lot of other cool concepts - you feel the rising dread,sure,but the biggest problem is that the crisis events are pretty irrelevant,diseases are a joke unlike RL and there's not enough build up / warning to the different invasion waves,just small flavor text in the corner when you mouseover a different sea people tribe wave. If the crisis events were more impactful/interesting on top of an actual buildup for each wave,it could come close/match Attila.

[@happycompy]

@@ReptilicusTV I completely agree 👍

[@ReptilicusTV]

@@happycompy Don't worry tho there'll be a high quality mod team at work for this soon after the update.

[@happycompy]

@@ReptilicusTV Bold of you to assume that there will be more than exactly 37 concurrent players playing Pharaoh and that modders will justify working on it 😂

[@No-Name-1993]

TWA with the WRE on Legendary is the best campaign possible, surviving what should be almost impossible the re expanding back out while the world burns around you is such a great buzz

[@No-Name-1993]

For an easier ride choose the ERE where the Sassanids are the primary threat

[@GhenTuongHB]

I will pay anything for TW Attila 2. I would buy it if they just fixed all the bugs and performance issues and re-released Attila.

[@happycompy]

I'd settle for an optimization patch 😭

[@Znz343]

What would they even add in the sequel to justify a completely new game? I would much prefer performance fixes and maybe DLC

[@edmur4315]

"It's punishing and unfair. Just like the era it represented."

[@ethansenter5298]

Oh man yeah I remember playing a coop campaign with my buddy he’s playing some German tribe I can’t remember the name of and I’m the Geats. And man once the fertility starts going down that whole campaign just turned into us making increasingly southern conquests to secure food. Then Attila shows up and it’s just became a desperate bid to hold him in my buddy’s land (which itself just got utterly destroyed) because i didn’t want the horde to reach my lands. Throw in public order collapsing in the my northern holdings as I prioritized maintaining food and sanitation instead and my military was stretched so thin that that campaign just felt utterly hopeless after a while.

[@Thongger]

Everything looks so miserable and muddy and covered in shit . I love how grimdark everything is

[@happycompy]

Yeah. It's the exact opposite of Rome 2's aesthetic.

[@jankristek7533]

Attila is my favorite Total War. Its setting, empire survival theme for the Romans. It would be nice if CA Sofia could use some of their magic on Attila as they did on Rome 2.

[@happycompy]

If only man...

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

Excellent editing

[@happycompy]

Thank you so much Medjay!

[@Ryder2010G6]

The atmosphere adn setting of Attila make this TW game the best of the series. It s the only TW game in which your goal isn t expansion. It s survival.

[@erivej]

When you play a historical game, other than some first person shooters and RPG, the object is to change history.

[@Tom-sd2vi]

You can fix the performance by limiting the amount of cores/theads the game can use to 4/8 in task manager. Also, turning shadow quality 1 notch down from the highest helps a lot on the campaign map.

[@unklezam7873]

All time masterpiece. The crown takes Charlemagne DLC for me. I wish they would make a Medieval III based on that.

[@GradyGame]

great video! best total war game ever...

[@happycompy]

Thank you 🙏

[@cheddar1554]

I've just fallen into this trap. I assumed Egypt wouldn't be impacted

[@happycompy]

Happens to the best of us lol

[@danielpardo1237]

Attila is my favorite TW thanks to the atmosphere of the downfall of Roman civilisation. I tried playing with the barbaric factions but honestly it doesn’t feel the same as when you are holding the borders of the empire against every new invader. Thanks for bringing the game up with this video! It’s a shame that the game never got a rework to improve its performance or give barbaric factions unique storylines or mechanics like they did with the desert kingdoms.

[@tuckerkoch7027]

Still playing a this is total war Roman campaign at over 500 turns with hundreds of thousands of barbarians killed.

[@ordinaryman5070]

I still play this game: I always take one of the Romans, turn it into Pagan and try to keep all my borders. Absolute tort...FUN!

[@ДмитрийСиренченко]

the best part of the total war series

[@AngryHistorian87]

To be fair, there were no named Sea Peoples leaders in Egyptian texts, which is why there isn't a single villain to hate like with Attila.

[@happycompy]

That is a totally fair point! I actually like the idea that the Sea Peoples are a "faceless horde" rather than them having a Big Bad. The Mongols were the same way in Medieval 1+2. The difference is that the Mongols invaded in one MASSIVE concentrated horde, whereas the sea peoples just sort of scatter into the wind after they spawn.

[@prpitprp4927]

I would like to have a total war medieval 3 or a total war during the 16th century

[@Tbpoilspill2010]

If I win the lottery or get enough money to fund a good team. the greatest total war like game to ever exist will be made and not to make the creators rich but to make the gamers experience disgustingly rich and enjoyable

[@happycompy]

Hey, crazier things have happened.

[@JustSayingitslore]

To kill the hunt you need lots of catapult

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

Yes yes very interesting. What is the mod at minute 12:46?

[@happycompy]

Dark Ages 705 AD

[@saguntum-iberian-greekkons7014]

@@happycompy thank you

[@cyrusshakeri1103]

Some of the campaign mechanics (aside from the Huns) are pretty good in Total war Attila. In Rome 2 I found myself often frustrated with the AI because of their blatant disregard for diplomacy. In Attila however, you can actually push a faction into accepting peace terms (except the Huns and their vassals). I often just mess with some of the gothic factions and either destroy them or offer them territory. This normalizes our diplomatic relations and they eventually trade with me and protect my border provinces from invaders. The blood animations for Attila are also really cool in my opinion (much better than Rome 2). And cavalry armies really carry some weight; to the point where you can just outmaneuver every infantry army thrown at you with a cavalry full stack. I love being a horse lord 😂. There is also a great sense of urgency and planning. This game is not just for the average dork looking for glory, it is for the seasoned strategic commander. It forces you to actually adopt policies (defensive/offensive). The player has to consider the consequences of his actions and he has to make sacrifices. All in all, I find TW Attila a very well rounded game. I even learned economics and long-term planning because of it! I love it’s harsh and uncompromising nature 😂

[@happycompy]

That was a great read 👍. "The player has to consider the consequences of his actions and make sacrifices" so true.

[@romainvicta117]

6:36 got me

[@anormaldudewhowasattackedb9864]

3 kingdoms for me at least come close with matching attila's atmosphere (obviously completely different atmosphere but still). Attila somehow can present the end of the world scenario better than the actual end of the world in warhammer despite how muchi love fantasy

[@DirkusTurkess]

Over the time of this video I managed 2 turns.

[@happycompy]

I'd laugh even harder if the abysmally slow turns didn't ruin the game for me 😭

[@zlatinalexandrov102]

After completing the Western Roman on Very hard everything seems very easy

[@happycompy]

You're a masochist. Respect 🤘

[@ひろゆき二十一]

How do you deal with the unfair ingame battle stats when played in very hard

[@zlatinalexandrov102]

@@ひろゆき二十一 I try to fight mostly unfairly with more armies than my opponent but at the beginning is very hard I always lose battles but I try to do as much damage as possible and play defensive battles, when defending a settlement I win battles with smaller armies with choke points

[@mephisto279]

The air was filled with smoke and blood.

[@happycompy]

Rome was weak...

[@mephisto279]

@@happycompy They made ready for war.

[@happycompy]

@@mephisto279 the world had fallen into shadow.

[@mephisto279]

​@@happycompy Man, I wish CA would just give this game the love it deserves. They Gave Rome 2 more new DLC before Atilla!

[@happycompy]

@@mephisto279 I know. IMO all it really needs is a "potion of speed" type of update that fixes the performance and turn timers!

[@christianweibrecht6555]

Would be awesome to play Rome 2 with the mechanics this game introduced

[@happycompy]

Absolutely it would...dude don't even get me started 😂. I made a whole video ranting about how Attila should have been a big expansion for Rome 2.

[@selucusptolemy3149]

I love Attila and Pharaoh TW

[@happycompy]

You are a man of culture.

[@andrewfish3141]

Is a reason why is my fav total war game all time and i know for a fact for most total war veterans is the same... youtubers included like Andy's Take,Termi and probably you ^^ Well for the best mods also,try Fireforge mod for Attila or Fall of the Eagles same feeling same atmosphere,took me a lot to understand why the lighting is like that in Attila!!! 555ad (Age of justinian) ad also gives me the same vibes just got updated (beta)I was waiting for some one to highlight what you just did...if only the performance......nuff said ^^

[@mattcat83]

The visual design is very difficult to make its units clear and distinct to play with on the tactical map.

[@godoforder1828]

The thing about this game is the sheer contrast with rome 2s theming. In rome 2 you are the greatest empire europe had ever seen rising from a small collective of cities to become a glorious powerhouse. The MOMENT you open attila rome's campaign, its all downhill and youre just fighting to barely survive, seeing the glorious empire you built in the first game collapse into oblivion

[@happycompy]

Exactly! Compare the atmospheres of Rome 2/Attila to Empire/Napoleon or Shogun 2/FoTS. The Rome 2/Attila difference is night and day.

[@StridentVoice84]

When the objective becomes SURVIVE you know you’re fucked

[@happycompy]

Exactly. I love it.

[@tahahadada1936]

This game is a survival str6game made for people with a fight in them. Every campaign I was reduced to one army because of the huns.

[@shrekas2966]

Attila cam be fun on normal difficulty.

[@lunsen402]

They do really capture the whole "when the world stopped making sense" with attila. Better so then they´ve done with any other game. Pharao, warhammer 1 and three kingdoms in a sense are all thematicly similar to this what with pharao and warhammer 1 both having their own "attila invades" but as you point out it falls flat becouse of no real build up, as for three kingdoms it does have the whole "an empire collapsing" thing, even have that mechanicly just does not have the sort of everything burning down theme though i guess. I do wish they revisit it if only to fix the preformance though couse i can barly stand the game as it is whenever i sitt down with it becouse of the shit preformance even after having managed to get the games FPS up somewhat through my own trouble shooting. It is frustrating.

[@happycompy]

Wow you just made me realize I didn't even think about the fact that 3K has an "Empire collapsing" theme. I mean, the centuries old Han empire is literally collapsing at the start of the game! I guess that's because the gameplay and "vibe" don't really play up that "destruction/collapse/survival" as much as they play up the various characters and their personalities? I'm not sure. On paper, 3k could have a CATACLYSMIC APOCALYPSE vibe but in practice it just doesn't 🤷‍♂️. It feels more like a "grand epic" atmosphere. Could also be due to my general ignorance about the conflict/story.

[@lunsen402]

@@happycompy I imagen it is for the theme of the work it is based on (romance of the three kingdom) which starts with something along the lines of "the empire, long divided, must unite, long united, must divide" Basicly chinese history telling is fairly cyclical. China will fall and remerge sort of deal. So while the game is techincly a apocalytic one taking place at the collapse of an empire (one of the most important ones in east asian history, basicly the rome of the east in a way) the undertones of the story is that a corrupt and weak dynasty give way to a greater and stronger one. So maby thats why it doesn´t have those tones might be becouse of the idea of china presisting dispite falling apart. Though i guess we won´t know unless CA decides to explain themself :)

[@happycompy]

@@lunsen402 that makes sense. Thank you for the write up!

[@lunsen402]

@@happycompy Was a bitt worried i wrote to much. The three kingdoms is a really intressting period in chinese history though am still more a fan of the victorian age in europa.

[@happycompy]

@@lunsen402 I think a Victorian Age game that ends with WW1 would be FIRE 🔥🔥🔥

[@CrunchyNorbert]

It's comically bleak as WRE when Britannia just gets flooded with multiple threats all at once and those hordes just carry on and sweep down into gaul and beyond..

[@arkadisevyan]

its like the triple volley in empire total war, its fake but its perfect

[@Juvelira]

THE BEST TOTAL WAR EVER

[@Rynewulf]

I love Attila's mechanics, but it barely runs. There arent even mods to fix it, situations dire

[@happycompy]

yup

[@skierus_maximus]

Yeah Attila is absolute GOAT in atmosphere but I want to point on Teutonic campaing in Medieval 2, especially on soundtrack. Where other campaing has pretty wide spectrum of sounds (Britania has celtic wibes, Crusaders have Kingdom of Heaven inspiration, Americas have a precolumbian vibe) the Teutonic campaing have practically only grim sounds. I mean even intro in this campaing is pretty despering (we summon demon and must deal with it now vibe). Victory theme always cheerful and lively here is grim and sad (we are victorious but what change this?). Pre-battle theme in teutonic campaing is also different, something like apocalipse is now and no matter what happend now is doesnt matter, we are die anyway but our honour demand to stand here and fight. Personally this is my favourite (even if Attila objectively do it better )

[@happycompy]

Good shout out! I sleep on the Teutonic campaign because I usually don't play the mini campaigns much in TW games. You're right, it has a banger of a soundtrack.

[@marcofantesini5058]

Playing as the huns and burn every great city of europe is peak total war experience. But they could have polished it better

[@munen-muso]

Attila is my favorite of the Total War series. Although, it must be pointed out that Atilla was Germanic/Gothic/Barbarian, and definitely NOT Mongolian/Asian. (His name is of Germanic origin, he is depicted as Caucasian in all the earliest artwork, and he was born north of the Danube River, which is Eastern Europe😆)

[@CptSlow89]

My first TW game was Rome 1... Now last that I played was 3K and is amazing. Yesterday I started with Rome 2... Maybe I will try Attila after it, but probably on easy difficulty... Btw it runs like shit.

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

So what you’re saying is total war Pharaoh needs to be Attila

[@happycompy]

Exactly.

[@MedjayofFaiyum]

@@happycompy Understood. I hope the free update does this a lot

[@ZubiForce]

"Clicks like, watches the video" I have the game but never played it (won it on a ruffle!) and I guess it suffers from the same as other TWs I have "some" interest for. And that is Rome 2 and Warhammer 2/3. When I fancy TW is either Rome 2 for historical (unbeatable age and location in my opinion, diversity only matched by WH) or Warhammer 1/2 if I fancy the magics and monsters. I did play a single campaign of Troy that was super long and fun because I had been in Sardinia on holiday visiting a crap tone of bronze age stuff and come back all hyped about it 😂 Same goes for Shougun 2 and 3K... some day maybe is just... Rome II is the one for me

[@happycompy]

I hear that. We like what we like 🤷‍♂️

[@martinguerra5152]

I agree with all points except with the outcome, they made it so depressing i don't like to play it. Its my issue with all art that tries to make something deliverly ugly, if they succeed then they have something ugly. A super subjective point, i know. I imagine that's one of the greatest appeals of Rome II, its beauty. But not the only one, Medieval II and Shogun II are as beautiful as great gameplay and i dont feel deppresed by playing them.

[@happycompy]

Yeah. There is no beauty in Attila. It's ugly as hell 😂.

[@phile1832]

I love attila, i have about 2500 hours init

[@happycompy]

Holy cow...nice 👍

[@therexbellator]

I dunno, I've been meaning to return to Attila at some point, but I just enjoy Rome II more. I appreciated its theming and mood early on, like you do in this video HCP, but for me the biggest problem with Attila is how scripted and "on rails" some of the factional campaigns are, and this is further compounded by the game mechanics. One thing I love about Rome II is the ability to customize provinces according to my needs. Need food? Set aside a province with fertility and have it focus on agriculture to produce food for your cities. Need to pump out trained, high level units ASAP? Have a province geared toward military production and training. Need money? Focus on commerce. You can't do that in Attila. Your hands are literally tied from the beginning. The squalor system is odious. Every building improvement and technology that makes your life easier is gated behind either squalor or the need for squalor removal, and by the time you get it, you're struggling to hold on because you're dealing with constant incursions. I can deal with loss of fertility, but Attila is simply overtuned toward frustration. I've watched Legend and Lionheart play these campaigns, and what this heavy-handed game design means is you have to play the same way every time. It just lacks interesting choices for me. "Mood" and "atmosphere" only go so far in maintaining my interest. Even you admit in your video it's utter bullshit, but your tolerance for bullshit is way higher than mine. But who knows? It's been a few years since I last played, maybe I'll enjoy it more now. Either way, great video HCP!

[@happycompy]

Hey Rex, long time no see! As you probably already know, like you, I also prefer Rome 2 over Attila despite Attila's deeper (superior) game mechanics. The biggest reasons for that are the turn times and the setting. I may have a higher frustration tolerance than you for bullshit gameplay, but i have a VERY LOW tolerance for slow turn times. Its like a black hole that sucks the fun out of the campaign for me. The setting is just less interesting to me than Rome 2's Classical Antiquity. Rome 2 might have a more bland and inoffensive atmosphere, but that's part of what makes it so replayable. It's the ultimate sandbox in a setting with lots of interesting cultures. I agree with you about the provincial buildings. Like i said in the video, the fact that provinces have to have self-sufficient food production is frustrating, and like you said, it makes it so that you can't specialize your provinces in Attila like you can in Rome 2. In Rome 2, capturing Egypt is a prize because it can feed your whole faction. That's not the case in Attila. All that said, i still appreciate Attila and its boldness when it comes to how it presents its atmosphere. It's divisive and less replayable, but it's also unique and full of character. I just wish it didn't feel like shit to play.

[@therexbellator]

@@happycompy I hear ya, that's why when I finally get around to Attila I hope I can approach it with fresh eyes. Or maybe I'll just look for a mod that tweaks the gameplay to my liking lmao. Thank you for responding!

[@Gersemi_Trader]

Paraoh has that mobile game feel to it with the UI etc, i just prefer Attila

[@corwinusm.7875]

so atmospheric masterpiece all i do was instal Medieval Kingdoms 1212 xd

[@happycompy]

No shame. Attila has awesome mods!