A fairly 'lean' strategy game in all regards, which is both its strongest point and also the thing that eventually makes me leave it for a while. Aside from the setting, the game is really carried by how satisfying the fundamental spear/bow/cavalry mechanics are to execute.

Battles are a lot of fun, the map strategy part not so much. Diplomacy is really gamey and rudimentary which is fine from a sort of setting-agnostic game design point of view but given the setting I'd have preferred some more involved choices on that front.

The economy and research mechanics kind of start feeling more or less fake the more you figure the game out. "Just produce more yari ashigaru" frequently ends up being not only the best decision militarily (lowering the usefulness of researching higher tier units) but also economically as well (lowering the usefulness of both research and investing in economy buildings). I know you don't have to play optimally on every difficulty mode, but I don't like that like 70% of the higher-tier unit roster feels like extravagance rather than upgrades you're desperate for.