Rome: Total War Collection

2004 Creative Assembly Strategy

Windows 11With a fix

MacNot sold

LinuxPlatinum

Steam DeckPlayable

Gamicality score

Metacritic 924

OpenCritic Not rated

Steam players 921

How it’s combined

Playability today

Runs today2.5/5

Design today3.5/5

Steam user reviews

Very Positive

95%

16,177 reviews1

Watch the trailer

Facts checked November 1, 2026

Does Rome: Total War Collection run on Windows 11, Apple Silicon Macs, Linux and Steam Deck?

Windows 11With a fix

Runs with a fix. See the steps below.1

Mac (Apple Silicon)Not sold

No Mac version is sold.

LinuxPlatinum

Through Proton. ProtonDB: Platinum, runs perfectly out of the box.3

Steam DeckPlayable

Playable, as rated by Valve. May need some setup.1

Played Rome: Total War Collection lately?

One click, no account, so the next player knows. How we check where it runs

How to get Rome: Total War Collection running today

If the game runs slowly, apply the Disable fullscreen optimizations compatibility setting to its executables, or use the DXVK wrapper (PCGamingWiki).
For broader bug fixes, faster turns and a WASD battle camera, install the unofficial REX patch and launch the game from its shortcut (Steam Community).
For widescreen, set the resolution in preferences.txt in the game folder (PCGamingWiki).

Synopsis

Rome: Total War is a strategy game that pairs a turn-based campaign map with real-time battles fought by thousands of soldiers. You lead one of the Roman families or a rival power, managing cities, armies and diplomacy before taking command on the battlefield. The Collection adds the Barbarian Invasion and Alexander expansions.

Developer: Creative Assembly
Released: 2004
Best version: This Collection (base game, Barbarian Invasion and Alexander) now comes bundled with Total War: Rome Remastered on Steam, and the original is the one to pick for its classic look and prologue, while the 2021 remaster is the easier choice on modern hardware.
Genre: Strategy

Reception

Critics hailed it at release as a landmark, with a PC Metascore of 92, praising the scale of its battles and the depth of its campaign. Its battle AI and some historical liberties drew criticism. On Steam it holds a Very Positive rating from about 16,000 reviews, and many players still prefer it to the remaster for its look and atmosphere. A common complaint today is poor performance and crashes on Windows 11 without fan patches or wrappers.

Trailer from Steam

Playability today

The average of two parts, each from 1 to 5. Tap a check to see why. How it works

Runs today

2.5/5

?Not confirmed yetSold or given away today by an official source
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
Needs fan patches to run well on Windows 11
?Not confirmed yetSingle-player works without an internet connection
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
Some content no longer works (servers, DLC, unlocks)
Steam no longer sells the Collection on its own; it comes only with Total War: Rome Remastered. GameSpy is gone, but the Steam build moved online play to Steamworks and LAN still works (Steam, PCGamingWiki).
No proper support for modern resolutions and widescreen
Widescreen only works by editing preferences.txt, and the interface stretches (PCGamingWiki).
No full controller support and no remappable controls
The game has no controller support (PCGamingWiki).
Steam Deck Verified or Playable
?Not confirmed yetNo intrusive DRM or required third-party launcher account
No source covers the current version yet, so this check counts as open, not passed. Played it lately? Tell us
No pay-to-win or pushy microtransactions
No known game-breaking bugs in the current version
Low frame rates, stutter and missing DLL errors all have listed fixes, so no open issue blocks play (PCGamingWiki).

Design today

3.5/5

Controls feel natural on a modern controller or mouse and keyboard
Battles and the campaign map are run with mouse commands and fully remappable keys, as expected of a PC strategy game; there is no controller support. Source: pcgamingwiki.com.
Menus, text or interface are hard to read on today's screens
Widescreen must be set in a config file and the interface then stretches instead of scaling, leaving small, blurry text on modern screens. Source: pcgamingwiki.com, steamcommunity.com.
Saving is fair: free saves or frequent checkpoints, little lost progress
The campaign can be saved freely on the map, and the game also autosaves at the start of every turn. Source: steamcommunity.com.
It teaches itself: no guide needed to make progress
A short tutorial campaign teaches battles and city management, and the Roman factions then receive senate missions that give a first campaign clear goals. Source: eurogamer.net, steamcommunity.com.
Pacing holds up: little grind, filler or forced backtracking
Rival Roman families turn on the player in a civil war late in the campaign, which keeps the late game from becoming a simple mop-up. Source: eurogamer.net.
Camera or movement fights the player
WASD camera movement is not the default and needs a different key set or rebinding, and the zoom range is limited; the unofficial REX patch exists largely to replace the battle camera. Source: steamcommunity.com, github.com, pcgamingwiki.com.