CHENNAI: Creative Assembly’s Total War series has always been known for its commitment to providing a deep strategic historical simulation. So, when they announced they were doing a Warhammer-themed Total War, many people did a spit-take; but that proved to be one of the best Total War games in years. Now, they’re returning to historical themes — specifically, ancient China — with Thre e Kingdoms. As the name suggests, Total War: Three Kingdoms is based on the famous Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Now, you can choose to play this game in two ways — either ‘Romance of the Three Kingdoms’ or ‘Records of the Three Kingdoms’. In Romance mode, everything’s just a bit larger than life — your generals are fearsome warriors in battle, capable of taking on entire enemy units by themselves; or engaging opposing generals in titanic duels, calling on RPG-esque abilities in the process. Records of the Three Kingdoms offers a more realistic take on history, and a much more traditional Total War experience; however, I’m only going to be talking about the Romance mode today, as I believe that’s where Three Kingdoms truly shines.

The game begins in 190 AD, when the once-glorious Han dynasty is teetering on the brink of collapse. You will take on the role of one of the historical leaders of the time, and are tasked with either assimilating or conquering all other factions in order to unify China under your rule. Each playable character features a personality and playstyle tailored to match their historical selves — Liu Bei, for example, seeks to unify the remnants of the Han Empire, Cao Cao excels at intrigue and manipulating his rivals into costly wars with each other, and Lü Bu…well, nobody wants to mess with Lü Bu.

No matter how you’d like to play Three Kingdoms, there’s probably a leader who offers you that path; which is a very nice way to kick things off. Once you start the game, you’ll be off and running in no time. In fact, although Three Kingdoms still can be a little obtuse at times about how certain mechanics work, this is by far the most accessible Total War game yet. I’d go so far as to say that, if you’re new to Total War, this is the best entry point to the franchise.

The strategic management of earlier games has been streamlined without losing too much depth, and the overall result is a game where you’ll be engaging in sweeping campaigns or deft diplomacy much more than staring at menu after menu. It also deserves mentioning that Three Kingdoms is an absolutely stunning game. This is one of the best-looking games I’ve played recently, and the overall presentation is nothing short of jaw-dropping at times.

The sound design, the music, the artistic touches — this is a game that you want to be looking at and listening to. So there you have it — Total War: Three Kingdoms is a masterpiece. Forget being one of the best strategy games around (although it is certainly that!), it’s one of the best games around, period. Don’t be put off by the complexity of the franchise — of all of them, this is the Total War game you should try.