Total War: Pharaoh

Total War: Pharaoh is a turn-based strategy real-time tactics video game. In the game, the player can choose from eight leaders, representing the game's three factions: Ancient Egypt (Seti II, Amenmesse, Tausret, and Ramesses III), the Canaanites of the Levant (Bay and Irsu), and the fragmented Hittite Empire under Šuppiluliuma II and Kurunta in Anatolia. New to the series is unit stance. Units in the game can now advance, hold (or forming a shield wall or a spear wall), and fall back.

When unit falls back, they will retreat and slowly cede ground while maintaining formation and facing forward. Units' armour will also degrade, causing them to become progressively more vulnerable during confrontations. As with Troy, environments and armour will affect unit movement. For instance, heavier units will become exhausted faster, and become bogged down in mud.

The game was developed by Creative Assembly Sofia, which had previously worked on Total War Saga: Troy. Described as a fully-fledged historical Total War game, the team stripped away the more fantastical elements founded in games such as Total War: Warhammer and Total War: Three Kingdoms for an experience that is more grounded in reality. Creative director Maya Georgieva added that as opposed to Troy, the game is a "fully historical title", one that is not "diluted or looking for multiple representations". The pace of battle was significantly slower when compared to Troy, with director Todor Nikolov adding that the team wanted players to make "fewer" but more "impactful" decisions, and that combat now requires less micromanagement from players.

As the game is set in a tumultuous period of time, the game world will become progressively more dangerous. The player needs to guide their civilization through this period of political hardship. Prosperity will result in the game becoming brighter visually and will boost production. However, as regions become politically unstable, settlements will be attacked by the Sea Peoples more frequently, and natural disasters will become more intense, ultimately leading to the late Bronze Age collapse.

Total War: Pharaoh received "mixed or average" reviews from critics and users according to review aggregator, Metacritic. As of October 2023, Pharaoh received a 'mixed' rating on Steam, with players criticizing the game for its interface and its lack of new features when compared with Total War Saga: Troy.

Leana Hafer of IGN complimented the game's battles and the campaign story. Tom Senior of Eurogamer enjoyed the strategy aspect of the game but found the battle experience limited. Rick Lane, a reviewer at PC Gamer, commended Total War: Pharaoh for its captivating strategy gameplay, particularly in an era with limited military tools. He highlighted the innovative "Power of the Crown" system, which allows players to compete for leadership roles through civil wars, creating compelling narratives and interactions on the campaign map.