Total War: Arena official artwork without logo

Total War: Arena is a free-to-play variant of the main Total War series. Instead of the usual Total War battles where two commanders send legions of units against each other, in Total War: Arena there are ten players per side, and each one controls only three units. In order to keep things interesting these units can be customized in a variety of way, which is where the whole strategy aspect comes into play. You not only need to command your troops well, but you also need to ensure that they fit with your team's strategy as imbalanced compositions are highly likely to get overrun.

There don't appear to be any gameplay trailers just yet, but if you're interested in seeing what Total War: Arena looks like in action, allow me to share with you the recently posted teaser for the Carthaginian army. It unfortunately won't tell you how the game is actually played, but it will at least give you an idea of what to expect. Have a look:

Total War: Arena has just entered Open Beta, so if you would like to give it a try and see what its all about, you'll find what you're looking for over here. If you would prefer to read a little bit more about it before diving in, however, you should head on over to the official website instead.

As for whether Total War: Arena is worth your time, that is a bit of a difficult question to answer. I've played it for a little while now and I can honestly say that it isn't bad, but due to its free-to-play nature it's just a little bit too grindy for my tastes. As such, I find it hard to justify playing more when I can just launch Total War: Warhammer 2 instead and have a much more fleshed out experience. However, it is still completely free, so if you're even remotely interested I would say it's well worth giving it a brief look.