The Total War 25th Anniversary Showcase has just wrapped up, and there's a lot to unpack. From confirmation that Total War: Medieval 3 is in development to Total War: Warhammer 3's vast Lords of the End Times DLC revealing the long-awaited return of Nagash, fans of the iconic strategy series have a frankly staggering amount of developments to be excited for.
Still, that hardly scratches the surface. Whether you missed the showcase or just want someone else to tell you that, yes, Medieval 3 is real, we've rounded up everything that was announced during the Total War 25th Anniversary Showcase. And if you're looking to hear more from Creative Assembly itself, check out our Total War Big Preview to hear more about the future of Total War and how Creative Assembly is learning from its past to set itself up for another 25 years of dominance in the strategy field.
Total War: Medieval 3 announced
It's been nearly 20 years since Creative Assembly released Medieval 2: Total War – a seminal strategy experience that's long been considered one of the best Total War games of all-time. Today SEGA announced the long-awaited return of the sub-series, with Total War: Medieval 3 now in early pre-production. Creative Assembly says that this new chapter will be a "rebirth of historical Total War", with the studio working to deliver "the ultimate medieval strategy sandbox" as it returns to the Middle Ages period. While Total War: Medieval 3 doesn't have a release date, the promise of "meticulous historical authenticity with unprecedented player agency" certainly sounds as if it'll be worth the wait.
There's a new Total War engine
Sometimes it can be tricky to really parse what the announcement of a brand new game engine really means. But there's one particular detail surrounding the announcement of a new Warcore engine that you really should pay attention to – it's going to enable future Total War games to be released on PlayStation and Xbox, a first for the franchise. As for what Warcore will mean for the evolution of the games themselves, Creative Assembly promises that it is the most advanced technological foundation the series has even been built with, empowering "developers with a suite of tools that allows for gameplay to be more immersive, dynamic and responsive than ever before."
New Total War: Warhammer 3 DLC
Total War: Warhammer 3 may have released back in 2022, but Creative Assembly clearly has no plans to walk away from its fantasy sandbox. Today, the studio announced that the game's biggest DLC to date, Lords of the End Times, is coming in summer 2026. Introducing four new legendary lords into the colossal Immortal Empires campaign experience, the first to be revealed is Nagash – a great necromancer who wishes to drown the world in undeath. GamesRadar+ has already spoken to Creative Assembly about its vast End Times adaptation, so stay tuned to learn more in the coming days.
Total War: Warhammer 3 is getting a free End Times update
Alongside Nagash and company, Lords of the End Times will arrive with a vast update to the base game. Total War: Warhammer 3's campaign will be transformed as vying powers fight to save (or destroy) the Old World as we know it. Expect to see entire provinces destroyed as earthquakes tear the land asunder and warpstone meteors leave craters in the map, whilst anything under the rule of Nagash withers and dies. Creative Assembly is also teasing a free Legendary Lord who is "ready to leave their mark on the cataclysm to come" – but their identity is a secret for now.
There's another announcement at The Game Awards
Are Nagash, Total War: Medieval 3, and a new engine not enough? That's alright – Creative Assembly is feeling generous, and it still has one more surprise up its sleeve. The studio has another announcement to make at The Game Awards, which is set to broadcast on December 11 at 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET. For UK folk, that's 12:30AM on December 12 – but given the secrecy around this, it's looking like one worth staying up for. "Here's to 25 more years," says Roger Collum, vice president of Total War – but what could match Medieval 3?
Tides of Torment for Total War: Warhammer 3
Tides of Torment, the latest DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3, is out now. The DLC, which can be bought as one whole or on a Lord-by-Lord basis, adds three new Legendary Lords: Norscan shaman Sayl the Faithless, High Elf naval expert Aislinn, and Slaanesh-corrupted daemon Dechala the Denied One. Even if you're not buying Tides of Torment, the DLC coincides with a sizable patch 7.0 which brings a host of fixes and introduces a free Legendary Lord – dancing Slaaneshi Daemonette The Masque. One more turn? Oh, go on then.
Total War: Warhammer 3 colossal Immortal Empires campaign is free
The Total War: Warhammer trilogy turns 10 next year, and the map it began with looks nothing like the sprawling Immortal Empires campaign that has come to define Total War: Warhammer 3. Now it's opening its doors to even more players, as Creative Assembly is making Immortal Empires – a stitched-together map that spans the setting of all three games – free in both Total War: Warhammer and Total War: Warhammer 2. This means you'll be able to play without owning Warhammer 3, and buy DLC from games you don't own – if you haven't played the Chaos Dwarfs yet, now is your chance.
Still looking for more? We've rounded up the best strategy games for you to play next
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