Rome: Total War thrusts you into an epic timeline depicting the events of the rise and fall of the Roman Empire.
Gameplay: It is absolutely great. There is such in-depth coverage of all sorts of cities and regions. You can forge armies and march out to conquer new lands, all for the glory of Rome. There are so many different ways and strategies to go by, that you can never get bored. You can send out diplomats to create trade agreements with other factions. At the same time though, you can send an assassin behind their back and murder their faction leader. There is a massive range of units that you can use, from roman Urban Cohorts, to Carthaginian elephants. Each faction has their own unique units that you can deploy and plan with. On the turn-based campaign map, you create units, build buildings, and move your family members with their armies. Then, when there is conflict between an army of an enemy, and your own army, you go to the battle map. Here, you move your units around and crush your enemy to a pulp. Overall, the gameplay of Rome: Total War leaving little, if anything, to be desired.
Graphics: These graphics are some of the best I have seen in this genre of a game. On the campaign map, you can literally see the huge stons that the walls of cities are built out of. The shadows of the trees and trade caravans move with the wind. All of the units on the map and the mountains and fields and plains are accurately and beautifully shown. When you move to the battle map, you see individual units standing in formation, getting ready to attack. Unfortunately, they seem to all be clones. This however, does not affect the quality of their armour, you can see it gleaming in the hot Egyptian sun as they prepare to attack. Overall, there is a bit left undone with the graphics. They could use a major overhaul. But for what is there, Rome: Total War has excellent graphics.
Sound:
There isn't much to be said about the sound in Rome: Total War. Although there is an some astounding fanfare, it leaves a a bit to be desired. After a while, the music gets quite repetetive. It does change though on the battle map. You hear the music change as the clangs of the swords are heard. You may though, eventually, just find yourself turing off the music. You wouldn't want to get rid of the sound though, because the noises that you hear over the course of the game are quite good. Overall, Rome: Total War has sound that really needs to catch up with the rest of the game. There are some good bits, but they are heavily outweighed by the bad.
Overall, Rome: Total War isn't a game that you should ignore. If you see it on the shelf, BUY IT. There is nothing better than the feeling you get as you conquer the world. The gamplay and graphics are great, but the sound leaves much to be desired. But, overall, Rome: Total War is a game that I play several times a week and is a great game that you should really try to get your hands on.