Creative Assembly posted a statement on its official forum from Roger Collum, Vice President in charge of the “Total War” series, regarding the temporarily suspended sale of “Total War: Shogun 2 Complete Edition.”
"It was developed externally and had not undergone internal review," he explained.
Released on October 14, this title bundles the base game *Total War: Shogun 2* (released in 2011) with all DLCs, featuring enhanced graphics and Japanese language support as the definitive edition.However, user reviews on Steam were “overwhelmingly negative” from the start, citing issues such as slow performance, bugs, and incompatibility with existing mods.
In response, Sega and Creative Assembly announced on October 15 that they would temporarily suspend sales of the game to investigate the cause. Players who have already purchased the game can continue to play it. Additionally, sales of the original version have resumed, and it is available for purchase on Steam.
In a statement, Roger Collum acknowledged that the Complete Edition did not meet the company’s quality standards, noting that the studio shares the players’ anger and disappointment—especially among staff members who have been involved with the “Total War” series for many years, and in some cases, for decades.
Regarding the background of the issue, he emphasized that this title was not developed in-house at Creative Assembly. He explained that while various internal teams were focused on their next major projects, they had lost sight of the external development, and because it was an external project, it had not been subject to internal reviews or quality assurance (QA).At the same time, he acknowledged that regardless of the development structure, *Total War* is the company’s series, and as long as it bears that name, the company bears responsibility.
As for future measures, the company plans to form a small team of experienced developers and work with Sega and the external development studio to determine the next steps. Specific details have not yet been decided, but the company will provide an update once they are finalized.
Regarding Generative AI: “We Will Not Use It for Asset Creation”
There had been a series of claims that some images included in the game’s encyclopedia and other sections may have been upscaled using AI.
In response, Roger Collum explained that Creative Assembly does not use generative AI for the creation of game assets and requires the same of its external development partners. He added that the situation regarding the Complete Edition is currently under investigation.
On the other hand, the company also stated that it utilizes AI tools to support developers’ work in areas such as analysis, debugging, and prototyping. Collum expressed the view that AI is meant to support creators, not replace them, and added that AI cannot take the place of human experience, judgment, or creativity.
