Review of Total War: Medieval 2 on mobile: getting back in the saddle

In 2006, Total War: Medieval 2 was released. That made me eight years old. My sister and I used to use our parents' laptops to play games while they operated their own company. They were both positioned exactly next to one another. We used to play The Sims a lot together and critique one other's design decisions. I also recall playing Lemmings a lot. I mostly recall playing video games called Total War.

I begin this way because, well, I really like this game. It was certainly the largest effect on my decision to pursue a degree in Classics, ranking second only to Rome: Total War. I recall seeing such well-known sayings on the loading screens. I can still clearly recall every word that your soldiers, a general speaking before a fight, or the ridiculous French diplomats' accents uttered. It's incorporated into my being's rivulets. I thus adore it.

However, as any lover of grand strategy is aware, they may be a little tricky. It is always optimal to play video games on a computer, whether you are playing Civilization or Total War. That was the situation, anyhow. Recently, Crusader Kings III—a new genre record—made a very good transition to consoles. Additionally, Civilization VI has been successfully running on consoles and mobile devices for a long now. Heck, I've spent a ton of hours on the mobile app. It's fantastic!

In other words, even if I'm talking slowly, large, intricate strategic games don't have to be limited to the PC. However, they must be handled cautiously when moving them to touch screen devices. Rome: Total War is one of the greatest games ever, thus I like Feral Interactive's mobile adaptation, which they completed a few years ago, even if it wasn't as polished as I would have liked. This is because the warfare mechanism in Total War games necessitates a significant amount of real-time strategy, in contrast to almost every other game in the genre.

As one would anticipate, Total War: Medieval 2 gives you a map that displays the regions you are in control of. You take possession of Caen, Nottingham, and London if you choose England as your starting faction. You are in charge of your money, diplomacy, towns, and barracks on an overworld map. Construct new structures to bolster defenses or revenue, prepare men for impending combat, and do your utmost to maintain good relations with everybody.

But ultimately, a battle must break out. To be honest, it doesn't take long. The first task is to capture a neighboring city that is under rebel control—in this instance, York, in England. At that point, you start working, enlarging a little map to show the city walls in the distant. Here, you must first arrange your forces for combat before directing their movements. To increase your chances of winning, use flanking or pincer moves. You may also bring ladders to aid in the siege or demolish the walls. Hopefully, you will succeed.

It everything has a pretty nice overall appearance. The overworld map is clear, and navigating over it is snappy and fast. It's still exhilarating to zoom in on your men when they're cutting through the battlefield. It surprises me how nice the game looks even after all these years. Yes, it did cause my iPhone 11 to overheat and drain the battery, but that is to be anticipated for such a large game.

From then on, you may dominate the globe via these different dynamics, which include large-scale conflicts and both overworld diplomacy and conquest. For the conquest to be successful, a variety of things might happen, and various sides have distinct objectives. For example, you have to rule Jerusalem and a certain number of other colonies like England. Even with the smaller screen, there is still the excitement of covering the whole map with the color of your side.

Medieval 2's user interface has been improved, making it much more sophisticated than you would have thought. Overall, the experience is fluid, but it may still be tricky to pull off a rapid maneuver in the middle of a combat. I had the same excitement from the first war I played—capturing York City. It's been translated rather well, but it can still be suspenseful stuff.

Everything is much better on the Overworld map than it was on the Rome mobile port. Managing alerts and settlements is simpler. With a new auto-management system specifically for your militia, micromanaging is decreased. Almost all of the problems I had with the prior port have been resolved. Even if there is still a lot of information on a little screen, it is much easier to read.

There are also some pleasant improvements to the quality of life. After you've saved your game, if you exit and then return, a pop-up window will allow you to resume playing without having to navigate the menus. That's excellent. While I understand that this is to be anticipated with mobile games, ports of strategy games that are 20 years old are not. Okay, good one.

The hardware of Medieval 2 on a mobile device is the primary problem. The screen on my iPhone 11 is a little too tiny for me to comfortably see the game. My thumb gets in the middle of the screen while I'm dragging a route for units, therefore it always seems wrong. It may be difficult to navigate menus, and I often press buttons that I don't want to.

Of course, there are disadvantages to translating a game like this on a mobile device, and who am I to tell if there isn't a better way? In any case, it's not flawless. And for those who are interested in this game, it is the major conversation. When you were eight years old, did you play it next to your sister? And are you wanting to play it on your phone particularly, or are you simply wanting to play it again?

I used to work at the student union store when I was an undergraduate. This task was as uninteresting as wallpaper. I didn't attend classes very often, like most university students, but when I did, I always made sure to bring my computer and a strategy game for that boring lecture on St. Augustine's Confessions or something. I mean, let me tell you, I liked my degree, but I didn't love St. Augustine.

Thus, my existence consisted of two really dull activities: labor and lectures. I could see a computer in front of one of them, but not the other. However, I could covertly leave a phone out while a computer was put away. I so purchased Civilization VI—my third installment of the game—on my iPhone. I played the game for dozens, if not more than a hundred hours, even though it's the worst way to play, since it was precisely what I needed. Perhaps the Rome: Total War port would have been mine if I had been in that era of Total War.

Thus, what can be said? Sure, take advantage of this if you find yourself in any of the aforementioned or comparable situations. Although it's the greatest method for playing the game on your phone, this is also the worst method. I'm sure it would be a better experience if you had an iPad. Then then, why not simply use a laptop at that point? You see, it's all very difficult to reconcile. It makes no sense to give this strategy game a low grade since it is so excellent. All you need to do is choose if you can live with the compromises made in order to get it onto a smartphone. Is it possible?