Total War Three Kingdoms is set to bring players to a time period and location they’ve never been before: Ancient China. For the first time ever in the franchise, players will be given two different ways to play the game, which includes the Classic Mode and Romance Mode. Classic Mode will be more like the traditional Total War gameplay while the Romance Mode will cater to the players who have been playing the Total War Warhammer games instead.
In a blog post earlier today, Creative Assembly revealed the Classic Mode will offer a much more grounded recreation of the period for players who prefer a historically authentic Total War experience. This is the opposite of Romance Mode, which will adhere to the romanticised perception of the generals from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms source material. In Classic Mode, 3D character models will “use historically authentic weapons and period-correct armor,” instead of the “out of period chainmail and ceremonial weapons” used in Romance Mode.
Romance Mode will see generals battle entire armies single-handedly like gods. However, the Classic Mode will fight realistically “with a retinue of bodyguards surrounding them like generals in previous historical Total War games.” Generals in Classic Mode won’t have access to earth-shattering abilities. and when they duel on the battlefield, the bodyguards surrounding each general will encircle them and fight each other.
Additionally, battles in Classic Mode will last longer than Romance Mode, which will be more like the classic Total War battle experience. To put it in simpler terms, Creative Assembly representative Ella McConnell stated: “Classic Mode is all about tactics and statecraft, while Romance is more about personal bravado and individual martial prowess.” Total War Three Kingdoms was delayed from its initial release fall 2018 release date, and it will now be releasing for the PC sometime in spring 2019 instead.
