Pulled days after launch
Sega and Creative Assembly are pulling Total War: Shogun 2 – Complete Edition from sale days after it launched, and putting the original game back on stores while they work out what went wrong.
The problem
The Complete Edition’s Steam reviews sit at Overwhelmingly Negative, Rock Paper Shotgun reports. Complaints vary, but the loudest is the accusation that generative AI was used to upscale the game’s unit cards, and that this wasn’t properly disclosed. The update also broke existing mods, a trade-off for the 50 minor factions it added.
The official response
We’re aware that Total War: Shogun 2 – Complete Edition has fallen short of both your expectations and our own standards.
Sega and Creative Assembly, statement on Steam
The statement, posted on Steam and Sega’s social channels, goes on: “We agree that the current experience is not where it needs to be. As a result we are working with platform holders to remove the game from sale and to reinstate the original game while we investigate the issues.” Sega says it is working with its “development partner” on fixes.
Neither company has addressed the AI upscaling accusation directly. If it’s confirmed, the Complete Edition will likely need new unit card art, an AI disclosure on its store page, or both, before it returns.
Players accuse the Complete Edition of using generative AI to upscale unit cards without disclosing it. Image: Sega / Creative Assembly, via Steam.
Who it affects
| You are… | What happens |
|---|---|
| A Complete Edition owner | You keep it and can keep playing it from your library |
| Planning to buy | You’ll be sold the original Shogun 2 again until the Complete Edition returns |
| Running mods | The original version is the one your mods were built for |
The workaround
For now, the original Shogun 2 is the version to play. It was also briefly pulled from sale when the Complete Edition arrived and is returning to the store. There’s no date for the Complete Edition’s comeback, and no word on what the investigation will change.
