I'm one of the newbies who just picked up Sengoku as part of the MotE pre-purchase deal, and as a lover of Sengoku Jidai history and dedicated consumer of PDS games, I've already started finding some things I really enjoy and some I don't enjoy quite so much.
First, the good:
-The map, interface, and visual assets are all beautifully designed and very evocative of the period.
-The ashigaru-samurai-teppo unit divide is good history and good balance.
-The variety of religious buildings does a good job of capturing how pluralistic Japan was at this time. I'm glad they didn't slap an EU/CK-style state religion mechanic onto things.
-Honor as a currency is a great way to balance expansion.
Now, the bad:
(Unfortunately there are a lot of these)
-Battles are not very interesting or satisfying, especially compared to the richer systems in Vicky 2 or CK2.
-The lack of barony-level titles really takes the fun out of vassal management and makes provinces too uniform.
-Courts are very small and mostly full of unlanded relatives, so all my lands seem to go to brothers and uncles.
-A general lack of decisions, province modifiers, and random events means there's not much flavor.
-The game would benefit immensely from sliders like EU3's, laws like EU:R's, an infrastructure/development system that resembles the spread of tech in CK2- something, anything that would let players steer their clans in different directions or pursue different strategies.
In history, the Sengoku Jidai was a period full of development and change, with more and better land surveys, new systems of taxation and military service, expansion of trade and the money economy, changes to the laws governing both samurai and commoners, and a wide variation in military organization, tactics, and vassal policies. But as a game Sengoku is just too straightforward. Of all the PDS games I've played, it has the least depth and breadth of content even though the content it does have is a good base.
Some players have been asking for an expansion, but honestly I think that's a lost cause. PDS is moving on to bigger and better things- since Sengoku, Crusader Kings has been released and given multiple expansions, March of the Eagles has gone gold and will be available in a few days, and we'll have Europa Universalis IV later this year. Sengoku just isn't going to get that kind of love. But what I would definitely like to see is a more active modding community here, to expand the flavor, variety and fun of this game. And the more of its content we can port into CK2 (which is similar but vastly improved), the better.
First, the good:
-The map, interface, and visual assets are all beautifully designed and very evocative of the period.
-The ashigaru-samurai-teppo unit divide is good history and good balance.
-The variety of religious buildings does a good job of capturing how pluralistic Japan was at this time. I'm glad they didn't slap an EU/CK-style state religion mechanic onto things.
-Honor as a currency is a great way to balance expansion.
Now, the bad:
(Unfortunately there are a lot of these)
-Battles are not very interesting or satisfying, especially compared to the richer systems in Vicky 2 or CK2.
-The lack of barony-level titles really takes the fun out of vassal management and makes provinces too uniform.
-Courts are very small and mostly full of unlanded relatives, so all my lands seem to go to brothers and uncles.
-A general lack of decisions, province modifiers, and random events means there's not much flavor.
-The game would benefit immensely from sliders like EU3's, laws like EU:R's, an infrastructure/development system that resembles the spread of tech in CK2- something, anything that would let players steer their clans in different directions or pursue different strategies.
In history, the Sengoku Jidai was a period full of development and change, with more and better land surveys, new systems of taxation and military service, expansion of trade and the money economy, changes to the laws governing both samurai and commoners, and a wide variation in military organization, tactics, and vassal policies. But as a game Sengoku is just too straightforward. Of all the PDS games I've played, it has the least depth and breadth of content even though the content it does have is a good base.
Some players have been asking for an expansion, but honestly I think that's a lost cause. PDS is moving on to bigger and better things- since Sengoku, Crusader Kings has been released and given multiple expansions, March of the Eagles has gone gold and will be available in a few days, and we'll have Europa Universalis IV later this year. Sengoku just isn't going to get that kind of love. But what I would definitely like to see is a more active modding community here, to expand the flavor, variety and fun of this game. And the more of its content we can port into CK2 (which is similar but vastly improved), the better.
