2. Total War: Shogun 2

Blood and steel

Set during the bloody Ashikaga Shogunate, Total War: Shogun 2 has you assuming the role of the general and leader of one of nine clans.

Each clan has a specialty, such as the Chosokabe clan’s exceptional bowmen, the Mori clan’s superior navy, and the Uesugi’s dedication to Buddhism, which enables them to recruit the game’s best warrior monks.

As exhilarating as watching hordes of samurai cut each other down like they’re made of butter, war is not always waged on the battlefield. Special agents, such as geishas and ninjas to act as spies and assassins, are just as useful at getting the job done.

Like all Total War games, the campaign mode lets players maneuver their armies across the map, and manage the economy and other empire-building activities. So far, the formula has worked, and in Shogun 2, it’s at its best.