I often ponder the significance of "producer interviews"—especially during the game预热期 (pre-launch phase), when relevant information is still in the "stay tuned" preparation stage.
The most reasonable explanation is naturally to view it as a promotional window and channel.
The marketing department needs to fulfill its functions, so it naturally arranges activities to increase exposure. In such cases, having a specific figure step forward to embody the tone of the work and channel player emotions is undoubtedly a good choice. This isn't limited to the gaming industry; nowadays, all companies that rely on the internet as their primary promotional platform follow the same path.
In recent years, the domestic game market has grown increasingly robust, and overseas publishers' attention to Chinese players has risen accordingly. As domestic media, we naturally benefit from this as well. It is clearly noticeable that whether in online launches or offline exhibitions, more and more overseas producers are beginning to interact with everyone.
But as an industry professional, one must sometimes admit that these "exclusive interviews," which highlight sincerity, often contain a high amount of "press release" content. Rather than being an exchange, they feel more like a ritual, a posture adopted by the developers. And among the various types of rituals, Sega and Creative Assembly are somewhat unique—if described in one word, it might be "sincerity."
Of course, by now, the meaning of "sincerity" has also changed flavor. If "sincerity" sells well, then one might as well sell "sincerity." But as an old saying goes: Creative Assembly might really be different.
"Chinese players are a group of people who particularly enjoy using their brains and also love strategy games." This is Chris Toepker's first impression of Chinese players. As the Production Director of the "Total War" series and the former Ambassador for "Magic: The Gathering" in China, Chris has indeed captured a characteristic of the domestic community—that is, their penchant for deep diving.
The vitality and popularity of the "Total War" series in China stem from a very polyphonic source. Unlike real-time strategy games that resolve matters quickly, the sandbox mechanism of large-scale campaigns gives the game a sufficiently heavy lingering appeal. The long-term sandbox progression complements the explosive battlefield atmosphere, forming a strategic tension that has endured over time.
Domestic players have an extremely high enthusiasm for delving into the "Total War" series, especially when it comes to discussing campaign mechanics and unit strength, which is the mainstream of the community, striving to fully understand and master the game. This gave Chris ample reason to believe that Chinese players would particularly favor this game. And indeed, this is the case.
But as for Creative Assembly itself, this may not necessarily be the case—including in this interview, Creative Assembly always maintains a somewhat "clumsy" posture. This posture may sometimes appear less appealing to a community that enjoys deep diving—although this "clumsiness" might precisely be part of their "sincerity."
This was a completely unscripted, free-form exclusive interview. Chris Toepker attempted to communicate with us in Chinese, resulting in many bumps and frictions along the way. Some questions were too lengthy, making it difficult for the interviewee to extract the key points, while many other questions belonged to the aforementioned "stay tuned" category. Chris could answer them, but the timing wasn't right now.
There are some facts we can confirm:
The game uses Creative Assembly's new Warcore engine. The upgrade in technical conditions has resolved the AI issues of previous games, making long-range fields of fire more flexible. When controlling large numbers of units, the AI response is also more immediate, adapting to the chaotic environment of hot weapon combat. Powerful physics calculations and particle effects also make the game's explosion scenes incredibly shocking.
At the same time, this title will be the next "Total War" IP game to feature full Chinese localization, including complete Chinese voiceovers and "official" text translation. However, due to Games Workshop's IP supervision requirements, we won't see the catchy fan-made translations from the past in the game, which is perhaps a slight pity.
The most crucial point: Chris himself has confirmed that in the grim darkness of the far future, we will also get to play the "Imperium Superior" of "Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000." So, there will be Chapters, there will be naval battles, there will be outrageous Commissars and the Emperor's great sons. But for now, the Great Crusade is not yet successful, comrades, we must still strive.
To condense it into one sentence from Chris: We hope to bring the entire "WARHAMMER 40,000" IP to players intact, but unfortunately, we can't reveal too much at this time—you may have seen this phrase in many interviews. Sometimes, this is more about pacing arrangements for promotional windows.
If you understand this point, you should have a more concrete understanding of Creative Assembly's "sincerity" and "clumsiness." This reminds me of a little anecdote from a few years ago, when the domestic community of "Star Citizen" held a meetup in a large auditorium with big banners, startling the officials into sitting upright with formal seriousness.
Although an exclusive interview is indeed a valuable opportunity, sometimes this format can be overly serious. Often, the interviewer comes with a clear purpose, while the interviewee responds with the task of conveying selling points and attitudes. Then, both parties engage in an exchange of information and positions.
From a professional standpoint, this is certainly straightforward and efficient, and worth both sides putting in sufficient effort to prepare for.
But personally, I prefer to discuss things that are less "intense." After all, an interview should be a vehicle for human connection. It may serve as a promotional angle at a certain commercial milestone, but ultimately, an interview remains a form of communication between people. While the two interview outlines may flow smoothly, people sometimes struggle to express themselves clearly.
And this is the point that moves me the most.
In the past, it was often domestic media asking questions to English speakers. Now, the person trying to express and understand using the other's language has become Chris, who speaks Chinese. We often say that the boundaries of language are the boundaries of meaning—so surely, being able to learn and use each other's language must be the greatest form of respect.
This feeling is especially profound for a player who has been playing "Total War" with Huanglong and Zuo Xianwang's fan translations since childhood. It truly feels like the world has changed dramatically.
At the interview site, I met Dr. Duan in person. He joined Creative Assembly in 2019, which doesn't seem particularly early. But starting from "Total War: THREE KINGDOMS," followed by the addition of Grand Cathay in "Total War: WARHAMMER III," and a series of updates large and small, I, who have been following update announcements on Bilibili, suddenly realized that seven whole years have passed.
Dr. Duan witnessed the entire process of the official community, from nothing to something, from hostility and misunderstanding to slightly sarcastic playful "teasing," and from scattered sparks to sustained activity. This was truly no easy feat. Just like Chris's summary of the "Total War" series—"It is not a simple battle, but a long-term result that requires you to employ many strategies to truly conquer it."
As mentioned and complained about multiple times above, Creative Assembly has always been a relatively "clumsy" game studio. Although their scale has expanded year by year, one can still feel that they do not have much control over certain player-facing aspects. Whether it's the popularity of game topics or the management of game public opinion and promotion, they are quite different from many game companies I've encountered—of course, this is also a characteristic of Sega as the Chinese publisher.
I think being able to chat casually with Chris and Dr. Duan already sufficiently illustrates this point.
In any case, I still vividly remember that during an online interview for the 25th anniversary of the "Total War" series, two veterans of the series told me that a core member of the team had left the company to become a beekeeper in the countryside. Just looking at this answer, you might not imagine what I asked at the time, but the answer—or rather, the question—was actually quite simple. I asked: Which installment of "Total War" is your personal favorite?
During the interview for "Total War: WARHAMMER 40,000," I asked a similar question, and Chris Toepker, as the interviewee, gave his own personal answer.
"I think it's the Astra Militarum. Because they have to face a vast universe filled with powerful and strange creatures, yet they are just a group of ordinary people."
"So, I can say that they are the bravest."