Total War — Steam Gift

Total War: ROME II — Emperor Edition: ancient warfare at full scale

Total War: ROME II drops you into the age of clashing ancient powers. It's the classic Total War loop: on the campaign map you play turn-based grand strategy — grow cities, weave diplomacy and intrigue, move armies and fleets across the Mediterranean — and when armies meet you switch to spectacular real-time battles commanding thousands of soldiers, siege engines and warships. Emperor Edition is the definitive build of the game: what ROME II became after years of free updates.

What Emperor Edition is and what's inside

Emperor Edition shipped as a large free update on top of the original ROME II (2013 release) and became the reference version. Inside is the full base game plus everything free that accumulated since launch: a reworked political system, overhauled building chains, rebalanced battles and improved visuals both on the campaign map and in combat.

There are eight starting playable factions: Rome, Carthage, Macedon, the Iceni, the Arverni, the Suebi, Parthia and Egypt. On top of that are free factions added by updates: Pontus, the Seleucids, Baktria, Armenia, the Getae and Massilia. Separately there's the free large Imperator Augustus campaign about the power struggle after Caesar's assassination, plus the historical Battle of Pydna.

What's NOT in this edition

To be straight with you: Emperor Edition does not include the paid add-ons. Left out are the Culture Packs (Greek States, Nomadic Tribes, Pirates & Raiders, Black Sea Colonies, Desert Kingdoms) and the Campaign Packs (Caesar in Gaul, Hannibal at the Gates, Wrath of Sparta, Empire Divided). Those are standalone paid DLC, and if you want them they're bought separately. Emperor Edition gives you the foundation and all the free content, but not the paid campaigns.

How you get the game: a Steam gift

Here you're buying a Steam gift, not a key. The mechanic is simple: you leave a Steam friend invite link and specify your account region, and our bot adds itself to your friends and sends the gift. You don't need to accept the friend request, and Steam Guard on the account isn't required either. After delivery the bot removes itself from your friends automatically. Delivery usually takes a couple of minutes from checkout.

Two conditions the gift can't go through without

For a smooth delivery, keep two things in mind. First: your Steam account region must match the gift region — otherwise Steam simply won't let you accept it. If you're unsure of your region, check it in your Steam account settings. Second: the game must not already be in your library — Steam won't allow a gift for a game you already own. And your profile privacy settings must allow friend requests, otherwise the bot can't reach you.

Short and to the point

• Full base game + all free Emperor Edition factions and updates.
• Turn-based strategy on the map + real-time battles, multiplayer included.
• Paid Culture/Campaign Packs are sold separately and aren't part of this edition.
• Delivered as a Steam gift via a bot, usually within a couple of minutes.

Campaign and battles: how the game is built

The heart of ROME II is two linked halves. On the campaign map you run an entire power: you found and grow provinces, build economy and supply lines, conduct diplomacy, and face plots and civil wars inside your own senate. Time passes in turns here, and every decision — from taxes to alliances — echoes a dozen turns later. When armies meet, the real-time tactical phase begins: you deploy cohorts, a phalanx or a barbarian horde, flank the enemy, hold the line, storm walls and clash fleets in naval battles. It's exactly this shift between the grand and the field scale that makes Total War what it is.

Who to play and where to start

If you're new to the series, Rome and Carthage are the most readable starts with clear economies and strong armies. Want something different — take the barbarian tribes (Suebi, Arverni) built around ambushes and a furious charge, the eastern powers (Parthia, Egypt, the Seleucids) with cavalry and chariots, or the Hellenistic states with their phalanx. The free Imperator Augustus campaign is a separate scenario with its own map and balance of power, great once you've gotten a feel for the main campaign. Thanks to all the free Emperor Edition factions, replayability here is huge: every power plays differently.

Performance and platform

ROME II is a Windows game delivered through Steam, so after the gift arrives it shows up in your Steam library like any other game. Battles with thousands of units appreciate a strong CPU and GPU, but the game has flexible graphics and unit-size settings, so tuning it to your hardware is realistic. On Steam Deck, playability depends on your settings — the controls are built around mouse and keyboard, so keep that in mind if you plan to play on a gamepad.

If you love Total War

ROME II is a great way into ancient-era strategy, but it's just one part of a big series. If the classical period clicks, look toward Total War: ATTILA and its grim fall of Rome. Fans of sweeping campaigns will enjoy the historical Total War: THREE KINGDOMS set in China's Three Kingdoms era, and if you want fantasy with the same gameplay there's Total War: WARHAMMER III.

🎮 Sequels & parts

On the same topic we also have: Total War: WARHAMMER II, Total War: WARHAMMER, Total War: PHARAOH.