Battle Brothers vs Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition
Battle Brothers is an open-world RPG game from Overhype Studios (2017) while Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition is a sandbox simulation game from CREATIVE ASSEMBLY (2006).
What each one is
Steam files Battle Brothers under Open-World and RPG. In contrast, it files Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition under Sandbox and Simulation.
Lead a mercenary company in this tactical RPG set in a medieval fantasy world. Chase fame and fortune as you choose where to go, who to recruit, which contracts to pursue, and how to train and equip your men in a procedurally generated open world campaign.
Spanning the most turbulent era in Western history, your quest for territory and power takes you through Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and even onto the shores of the New World.
At a glance
| Battle Brothers | Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 7.7/10 | 8.2/10 |
| Steam rating | Very Positive (88%, 28,671) | Overwhelmingly Positive (96%, 36,357) |
| Critic aggregate | 80/100 | No aggregate |
| Price | $8.99 | $24.99 |
| Install size | 2 GB | 15 GB |
| Steam Deck | playable | playable |
| Released | 2017 | 2006 |
| Developer | Overhype Studios | CREATIVE ASSEMBLY |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Battle Brothers vs Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Battle BrothersOpen-world RPG gameTotal War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive EditionSandbox simulation gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Battle BrothersStrategy, RPG, MedievalTotal War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive EditionStrategy, Medieval, HistoricalThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Battle BrothersScore 7.7 · 88% on Steam · 80 criticTotal War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition ✓Score 8.2 · 96% on SteamThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Battle Brothers28,671 reviews · 9 add-ons · 2 GBTotal War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition36,357 reviews · 15 GBReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Battle Brothers ✓$8.99Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition$24.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Battle BrothersPlayableTotal War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive EditionPlayableValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Across the rounds a number can settle, it is level at 1 each. Which one is "better" is the part no figure decides, so we leave it to what you want from the two.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueBattle Brothers and Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The higher-rated of the two: Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition (GamingPickz Score 8.2)
- The cheaper right now: Battle Brothers ($8.99)
- Lighter on storage: Battle Brothers (2 GB)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
StrategyMedievalTurn-Based StrategyWarSandboxTacticalSimulationAction
Where they differ
RPGOpen WorldTurn-Based TacticsCharacter CustomizationTactical RPGTurn-Based Combat
Grand StrategyRTSMultiplayerMilitaryReal Time TacticsClassic
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Battle Brothers is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition is middle-of-the-road on difficulty.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 0 accessibility features for Battle Brothers and 0 for Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Battle Brothers and Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition in scope?
Battle Brothers has drawn 28,671 Steam reviews, ships 9 add-ons and installs in 2 GB. Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition has drawn 36,357 Steam reviews and installs in 15 GB.
Is Battle Brothers or Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition rates higher (8.2 to 7.7). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Battle Brothers or Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition?
Battle Brothers is cheaper right now at $8.99, against $24.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.