Total War: Pharaoh – Early Access, System Requirements, and More

Following years' worth of work on the Warhammer fantasy franchise, the crew over at Creative Assembly is ready for something new. Or, rather, something old. Ancient, even. And in more ways than one, at that. You see, CA began its grand strategy career on some true classics: historical titles that explored a whole timeline's worth of combat. Players that cut their teeth on, say, Medieval: Total War weren't too thrilled to have been stuck with a fantasy game for the past couple of years, and that's where Total War: Pharaoh comes into the picture.

This game is, in more ways than one, a return to form for Creative Assembly. Gone are the flying hawk-lions and the rutting rat-ogres. No more magical spellcasting and instantaneous warp-based teleportation. All you've got in Pharaoh are hard, realistic resources, and the way you leverage them makes all the difference.

We discussed the core appeal of Total War: Pharaoh before, mind. If you're in need of a flavour primer, that's your first stop! If you're looking for hard facts - especially about the pre-order goodies, system requirements, and the early access offer - then you're at the right place!

READ MORE: A Comprehensive Starter Guide for Total War: Warhammer 3

Everything You Need to Know About Total War: Pharaoh

Total War: Pharaoh pulls the franchise back towards its roots. It is a slower, more realistic, and more grounded rendition of grand-scale historical combat than Creative Assembly has produced in years, and that alone makes it a hugely important release.

Set in ancient Egypt, Pharaoh puts players into the shoes of one of the contemporary leaders operating during the Bronze Age Collapse, all hoping to wrest control over the region from everyone else. Choose between Ramesses, Amenmesse, Tausret, Seti, Irsu, Bay, Suppiluliuma, and Kurunta and lead one of them to victory. Or, perhaps, into total and abject defeat, depending on how it all plays out?

For the first time, this Total War game will place heavy emphasis on environmental effects and weather. Deal with bushfires, torrential rain, sandstorms, and more, and prove your legitimacy as the next great leader of Egypt!

Pre-order Total War: Pharaoh today to score early access to the game!

Official Release Date

Total War: Pharaoh is coming to PC on October 11, 2023.

Early Access Weekend

While CA has set up a way for players to access Pharaoh early, this offer was a limited-time bonus taking place from September 29 to October 2. In other words, there is no full-fledged early access option for anyone that's missed out on this particular weekend.

PC Hardware Requirements

It takes just a passing glance at any of Total War: Pharaoh's screenshots to see that it's a beautiful game. This beauty, however, won't take a nuclear-powered PC to run properly. In a strange turn, Creative Assembly has revealed that Pharaoh is a fairly humble game in regard to hardware requirements. Of course, we'll need to wait and see how it fares in unofficial third-party benchmarks, but for the time being, things are looking good.

Minimum Specs

Recommended Specs

Pre-Order Content

Anyone who places a pre-order on any of the three editions of Total War: Pharaoh before October 11 will score an impressive selection of cosmetics to fiddle around with! The full list includes:

These will be available as a separate DLC option after the game comes out, of course. If you know you'll be playing Pharaoh on day one, though, it would pay off to score a sweet discount and the extra cosmetics while you still can. Just use one of the 2Game store links featured below.

All Available Game Editions Explained

There are three disparate versions of Total War: Pharaoh. While all three of them will - of course - allow you to play the game on day one, collectors might wish to splurge on the higher-end versions to get more goodies and key content. Here are all the details, with (discounted!) links to each version available right now.

Total War: Pharaoh Standard Edition

*only if purchased before October 11, 2023

Total War: Pharaoh Deluxe Edition

*only if purchased before October 11, 2023

Total War: Pharaoh Dynasty Edition

*only if purchased before October 11, 2023

Are You Taking the Plunge?

"We wanted to make a game where your choices are fewer, but more impactful," said CA's game director, Todor Nikolov, in a recent interview with Polygon. "We wanted to reduce the amount of micromanagement because of how overwhelming it can be for the player. You need to plan a bit more, taking into account army composition, terrain types, elevation, and weather."

That is, from what we've seen of the game, the entire microcosm of what makes Pharaoh special. This is a true tactical wonderland: a place where your decisions need to be based on the realistic, simulated state of things, and not whether your latest supercharged spellcaster can burn an army from a mile away. If that's the experience you're after, Total War: Warhammer 3 is a phenomenal product. For those who are eager to get down to brass tacks, Total War: Pharaoh should not be missed out on.

CHECK OUT: Total War Warhammer 3 Content Roadmap for 2023 and Beyond

Following years’ worth of work on the Warhammer fantasy franchise, the crew over at Creative Assembly is ready for something new. Or, rather, something old. Ancient, even. And in more ways than one, at that. You see, CA began its grand strategy career on some true classics: historical titles that explored a whole timeline’s worth of combat. […]