Shogun 2 Complete Edition Pulled From Sale After Backlash: What Happened and What Owners Can Do

Shogun 2 Complete Edition has been pulled from sale just two days after it launched. SEGA and Creative Assembly confirmed on 15 October that they are removing the remaster from stores and bringing back the original 2011 game while they "investigate the issues", after one of the worst launches in Total War history. On Steam, the Complete Edition had sunk to Overwhelmingly Negative, with only 16% of almost 2,000 players recommending it.

If you bought it, you keep it. Here's what went wrong, exactly what SEGA has said, and what you can do now.

Shogun 2 Complete Edition at a glance

Why was Shogun 2 Complete Edition removed from sale?

SEGA's statement doesn't list specific problems, but it admits the remaster "has fallen short of both your expectations and our own standards." It was posted on the game's Steam page and SEGA's social channels on 15 October, signed "SEGA & Creative Assembly":

"We've seen your feedback, comments, and reviews. 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. Existing owners will still be able to access and play the game."

SEGA adds that it is "working closely with our development partner to identify the causes of these problems, deliver improvements, and ensure Shogun 2 – Complete Edition meets the quality standards players expect from Total War." The development partner is MATABOO, which Creative Assembly's FAQ lists alongside itself and SEGA as the remaster's developers.

The players who left those reviews were much more specific. The complaints that come up again and again are:

• Art that looks AI-upscaled. Players posted unit cards and artwork with smeared faces and odd details, and accused the remaster of using undisclosed generative AI tools. SEGA's statement doesn't mention AI at all, so for now this is what players are reporting, not something SEGA has confirmed.
• Old bugs not fixed, new ones added. Long-standing problems such as siege pathfinding and passive AI are still there, players say, alongside new bugs like a voice-language setting that breaks until you verify the game files.
• Performance. The headline feature was a 64-bit upgrade for better stability, yet players report frame rates that are worse than newer Total War games on the same PCs.
• Mods and price. The Complete Edition uses mod.io instead of the original's mods, and Creative Assembly's FAQ confirms that old Shogun 2 mods are "not compatible". Many players also felt a paid upgrade (even at 75% off) was the wrong move for a 15-year-old game.

What was in Total War: Shogun 2 Complete Edition?

On paper, it was a big upgrade. Creative Assembly announced the Complete Edition on 29 September, and its official "What's New" post listed:

• All DLC, including the Rise of the Samurai and Fall of the Samurai campaigns
• A 64-bit upgrade, 1440p and 4K UI scaling and a borderless fullscreen mode
• Updated textures, lighting, shadows, fog and skyboxes, plus DLSS and AMD FSR 3.1
• New 2.5D cutscenes inspired by Japanese Ukiyo-e art (you could switch back to the originals)
• More than 50 newly playable minor factions across the three campaigns
• A slider for the Realm Divide mechanic, a Quick Deal button in diplomacy and a bird's-eye battle map
• Modern controls from newer Total War games, plus color-blind presets
• Full Japanese and Chinese voice and text, with new text translations for Korean, Brazilian Portuguese and Latin American Spanish
• Dozens of fixes, including infantry finally being affected by fatigue

That list is why the reaction was so harsh. Shogun 2 is one of the best-loved Total War games ever made, and fans had asked for exactly this kind of update for years. The problem was how it shipped, not the plan.

Why fans were angry about the original Shogun 2 disappearing

A big part of the backlash had nothing to do with bugs. Creative Assembly's FAQ explained that standalone sales of the original Total War: Shogun 2 on Steam would end on 28 September 2026, with the original game and its DLC bundled into the Complete Edition instead. That meant anyone new to Shogun 2 had to buy the £34.99 / $39.99 remaster to play the 2011 version, which had been selling for less.

SEGA's decision to "reinstate the original game" reverses that. At the time of writing, Total War: Shogun 2 is back on sale on Steam at £24.99 / $29.99, and the Complete Edition no longer has a buy button.

I bought Shogun 2 Complete Edition. What happens now?

• You keep the game. SEGA says "existing owners will still be able to access and play the game", so it won't vanish from your library.
• You can still play the original. On Steam, the Complete Edition includes the original Shogun 2 and its DLC (except the Blood Pack, which Creative Assembly says was left out for age-rating reasons), and owners of the original keep it as it was.
• Your old mods still work in the original. Creative Assembly says mods for the original game "will remain unchanged". They just don't work in the Complete Edition.
• You may be able to get a refund. Steam's standard refund policy covers games bought in the last 14 days and played for less than 2 hours, so launch-day buyers have until 27 October if they qualify. SEGA hasn't announced a special refund scheme, so check your own store's policy if you bought on Epic, Microsoft Store or GOG.
• Fixes are coming, but no date. SEGA says it will "deliver improvements" but hasn't given a timeline.

What players are saying

The most helpful Steam reviews are almost all negative, but several are thoughtful about what went wrong. Credited to the players who wrote them:

• The bug list. Atlas_Ludde wrote the most upvoted review, with more than 5,000 people agreeing, listing original bugs that still aren't fixed and new ones on top, and promising to keep it negative "until you fix the game".
• The delisting. Xukaku argues that the community wanted a 64-bit port for stability and performance, and instead got a version that runs worse than newer Total War games, loses Steam Workshop mods and replaced the original on the store.
• Performance. Tundra Boy welcomes the UI scaling and 64-bit upgrade, but reports 30–40 FPS on the high preset at 4K, on an RTX 5090.
• The art. Smelphick says the new textures were slapped onto the models without care, to the point where "some cities are now in lakes".
• A fairer view. [{-|-409th-|-}] Bunny King, who has almost 700 hours in the original, says the game "mostly" works and the Shogun 2 they love is still there, but that's both good and bad.

Will Shogun 2 Complete Edition come back?

SEGA's wording suggests so: it talks about improving the Complete Edition rather than cancelling it, and says it is working with platform holders to remove it from sale "while we investigate". But there's no date, and no word yet on whether the AI-upscaling claims will be addressed or whether owners will get anything extra for the bumpy launch. We'll update this article as soon as SEGA or Creative Assembly shares more.

Until then, the simplest advice for anyone who wants to play Shogun 2 is to buy the original. At £24.99 / $29.99 (and often much cheaper in sales), it's still one of the best strategy games around.

Watch the Shogun 2 Complete Edition launch trailer

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Shogun 2 Complete Edition FAQ