You ever play a game that just activates your brain in all the right ways? I remember it happening a few times in my life—the first time I played Morrowind on a friend's PC and experienced a lifelong RPG addiction occurring in real-time. Just hearing that menu theme makes me want to run outside and start smacking mud crabs. The most memorable occasion, though, was playing Rome: Total War for the first time as a kid.
I immediately knew that this genre was made for me, and turns out I was right; over 6,000 hours and many years (and games) later, Total War remains my favorite. After 25 years, its longevity as a series feels almost unprecedented, especially as most of the games still use a very similar formula—the classic balance between real-time battles and overworld campaign management.
