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Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition vs Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition

Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition and Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition both land in Strategy on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both are Strategy games on Steam. Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition (2009) is 1 year older than Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition (2010). Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition scores higher on Steam reviews (91.4% positive) than Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition (89.6% positive). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.

Which should you pick?

Choose Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition

Choose Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition if you want the Online PvP, Online Co-op, and LAN PvP side of the pairing. On Steam, it has co-op, so you can bring a friend. 12,170 Steam reviews back the pick.

Choose Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition

Choose Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition if it matches what drew you to this matchup. 10,179 Steam reviews back the pick.

Both Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition and Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition sit in Strategy on Steam and both list Multi-player, Camera Comfort, and Custom Volume Controls, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (89.6% vs 91.4% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.

Side-by-side comparison

Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition vs Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition — Steam metadata comparison
Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition — Steam game coverTotal War: EMPIRE – Definitive EditionTotal War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition — Steam game coverTotal War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition
Released20092010
GenresStrategyStrategy
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxWindows, macOS
Steam DeckDeck PlayableDeck Unsupported
Price24.99 USD24.99 USD
Steam reviews89.6% positive (12,170 reviews)91.4% positive (10,179 reviews)
MultiplayerMulti-player, Online Co-op, LAN Co-opMulti-player
DevelopersCREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (Mac), Feral Interactive (Linux)CREATIVE ASSEMBLY, Feral Interactive (Mac)

Side by side

Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition vs Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition — FAQ

Which is better, Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition or Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition?
On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition sits at 89.6% positive (12,170 reviews), Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition at 91.4% (10,179). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
Should I play Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition or Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition first?
If you want chronology, Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition (2009) came out before Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition (2010). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
Are Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition and Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition similar?
They overlap on Strategy on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.