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Creative Assembly Announces Total War: Arena
Today at the his GDC panel "Designing Grand Strategy: Making the Mechanics of Total War," Creative Assembly lead designer James Russell announced the newest entry in the Total War series: Arena.
This free-to-play online PC title features 10v10 team-based multiplayer battles. Each player controls just three units (max of 500 men) instead of the usual 20, and they must cooperate to emerge victorious. Players serve unique roles on the battlefield. For instance, one person may head up the archers, while others command assault troops or cavalry. Since you are supervising a smaller portion of an army instead of the entire legions, Creative Assembly is creating more detailed controls for units, which may include giving the player direct control over each individual soldier.
Creative Assembly promises balance matchmaking, tightly designed maps, and a deep progression system that allows you to upgrade generals, units, items, and abilities. The vast majority of upgrades can be earned simply by playing the game. Players can purchase items as well, but the studio is making sure the microtransactions won't throw off the balance of competition.
This era-spanning game doesn't take place in a particular time period, so you can expect to control armies from various points in history. Look for more information on Total War: Arena in the near future.
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