Solid game once patched!
I was getting crashes to my desktop, very buggy gameplay with flickering graphics, and even had a memory dump that restarted my system. I run an AMD X2 6000+ 3.0GHz, 3GB RAM, 8800GTS just to give an idea that I had enough system to where the gameplay should not be as sluggish as it was, especially since I even conceded that I could always upgrade and just let the game pick the best settings without trying to push it too much (so high instead of ultra, basically, in the graphics department.)
After the first patch came out, I was setting the bar very low, expecting it wouldn't help enough to notice, but amazingly, ever since the patch, I have not had a single crash, and I have put in several hours of gameplay since then (mush to the displeasure of my wife) and have gone from cautiously optimistic to pleasantly suprised. And with more patches on the way according to the developers themselves, it should get tweaked even more to help some of the areas it tends to be slightly choppy, which is mainly on the campaign map when scrolling around.
The game itself, once running, is awesome. I have been playing Total War since Rome total war and love how everything ties in together, politics, trade, the elections, the revolutions.....I love it! It is nice how the countries are divided up on the diplomacy menu between major powers and the minor countries, that way you aren't trying to sort it out yourself, with the number of countries on the game, you tend to take the help with open arms.
Really, I could describe the gameplay all day, the stuff you can do, the graphics and details are amazing, so don't even worry about that department, if not 100% sure, play the demo, you'll be impressed....if not, you don't appreciate a great strategy game when you see one, period.
One thing I look to be improved in the patches to come would be the AI, it tends to be a bit suicidal in battle......then again I was fighing indians and pirates in the two big battles I am thinking of saying that, and I know the indians don't hold back and come right at you, and the pirates were a bit better on the water than fighting in mobs against the red coats.....soo, I will have to see how my upcoming battle with the french goes.
If you are a fan of the total war series, pick this game up, now that it is patched and will have more fixes coming, it is worth it. If you don't know the game and you like strategy games, try it out as well, at the least play the demo and see what you are missing.
UPDATE: Naturally, after writing the review about being able to play for several hours without a crash, I have had about 5 CTDs in 24 hours. Here is hoping for another patch asap! For now, I will keep my score as-is since the developers have acknowledged the problems and promised patches according to their official forum.