A Total War Saga: Troy will be free at launch

The Creative Assembly has a long story of very good strategy games behind it and Total War has become a renowned license among the fans of the genre. Whether they have a historical background or they take place in a fantasy setting like the Warhammer universe, the games in the series deliver complex strategic gameplay and massive battles where players are able to control hundreds of soldiers on the battlefield. The fans of the series are probably expecting all that and a bit more from the next installment in the series, but if you are one of those that were eagerly waiting for the release of A Total War Saga: Troy you are in for a very nice surprise.

It has just been announced that all players will be able to get a free copy of A Total War Saga: Troy on Epic Games Store when the game is released on August 13 this year. This offer will be available only for 24 hours after the release of the game, and as far as we can recall it's the first time that something like this happens and a video game becomes free for a limited time at launch.

The developers explain the reason behind this in a blog post on the official Total War website, and they are very easy to understand. Epic Games offered them to sign an exclusivity deal that will last for 12 months and they will also pay for the players to have A Total War Saga: Troy for free on day one. The opportunity to reach a vast amount of players and to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise in this way was too good to let it pass.

This announcement could add more fuel to the Epic Games Store vs Steam drama but the pre-orders for A Total War Saga: Troy are not open yet on Valve's platform so unless you really dislike Epic Games' digital distribution platform, there is no reason why you shouldn't get the game for free when it is released, even if you plan on playing it on Steam later.