“An empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide. Thus, it has ever been.”

So begins the famous Chinese historical novel, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a fictionalised tale based on the very real, exciting and turbulent period of Chinese history.

The era is one renowned in Chinese culture, having been depicted in operas, comics, films and television series.

This Chinese New Year, immerse yourself in the age of heroes and fight alongside legendary characters by playing Total War: Three Kingdoms.

This is a real time strategy game by development studio, Creative Assembly, and published by Sega, released last May.

The game is set in the titular Three Kingdoms period and sees the player choosing one of many factions to reunite a divided China.

The game is set in 190AD, and with the death of Emperor Ling, the Han Dynasty falls apart as the new child emperor is used as a mere figurehead by the tyrannical Dong Zhuo.

A coalition forms to defeat him, but falls apart as each warlord harbours their own ambitions to rule over China.

Players are free to choose one of many factions, each led by famous warlords including the virtuous Liu Bei, the cunning Cao Cao, the brave Sun Jian and the hubristic Yuan Shao.

In addition to the warlords, bandits await their opportunity to strike out while the remnants of the Yellow Turban Rebellion struggle to reignite the faltering flames of their fight.

Gameplay is divided into two parts, with a strategic turn-based campaign that switches over into real-time battles when two armies engage on the map.

The main campaign takes place on a vast and beautifully designed map of China where players manage their empire, build infrastructure, raise armies, conduct espionage, engage in diplomacy and move troops about.

When two armies meet on the battlefield, the player is taken to the battlefield and takes charge of their forces as a commander.

In both of these aspects, Three Kingdoms excels in making the game accessible to first-time players but challenging enough to be fun.

The campaign’s artificial intelligence is the best yet in the Total War franchise, with the AI being shrewd and logical in its decisions.

Different faction leaders have different personalities, so never expect the same treatment from rivals or friends.

Just because the kind-hearted scholar Kong Rong isn’t hostile to you doesn’t mean the arrogant warlord Yuan Shu will be just as kind.

And on the battlefield, the AI performs reasonably well, sending its forces in a coordinated fashion rather than piecemeal that used to be an issue with older Total War games.

However, what one will immediately notice with the game is just how beautiful it is. Much love and care was poured into the design of the game and this shows in terms of presentation.

Stop playing and watch the campaign map as traders and farmers go about their business in their cities and villages, or listen to the relaxing ambient music.

And on the battlefield, you may just be taking in the scenery instead of commanding the fight – be it the rock formations of the north-western desert, the pillar mountains of the south or the mountains of the west.

But no one fights wars to sightsee.

The battles themselves are brutal, with arrows and bolts ripping through ranks and infantry and cavalry engaging in brawls with spears, swords, halberds and axes.

Taking influence from Chinese wuxia films, players can also choose between Romance or Records mode.

In Romance, generals are near supernatural heroes who easily kill hundreds singlehandedly and are endowed with powerful abilities to shift the tide of battle.

In Records, generals, while still very powerful, are much more vulnerable and mortal.

There is nothing more fascinating than watching two generals engage in a duel of honour in the swirling mass of soldiers.

In addition to the base game, there are other campaigns you may choose to play.

The first expansion to be released was Eight Princes, set in the obscure War of the Eight Princes.

Set just a decade after the Three Kingdoms period ended in 280AD, this war heralded the end of the Western Jin Dynasty and saw northern China lost to invaders for over 300 years.

This conflict saw the Sima clan, the ultimate victors of the Three Kingdoms conflict, tear itself apart as brothers turned on brothers to gain more power for themselves.

Unfortunately, the lack of new introduced features proved to be a dealbreaker for many players and the expansion pack was not well received.

Taking feedback into consideration, a new expansion, The Mandate of Heaven, was announced in December.

Set closer to the actual Three Kingdoms period, this campaign is set just eight years before the base campaign and has players witness the rise of the Yellow Turban rebellion.

Players can either choose to stifle the rebels as the Emperor and the nobility or fight for the rebellion as one of the three legendary Zhang brothers.

The Mandate of Heaven expansion pack is scheduled to be available on Jan 16 and comes with a 10% discount if pre-ordered.

So, with Chinese New Year around the corner, it’s timely to pick up Total War: Three Kingdoms for yourself.

So, take up your sword and go forth to forge your own legend!

Total War: Three Kingdoms and its individual expansion packs are available for purchase on Steam.