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Stronghold: Warlords - castle building in East Asia

Infinitron

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Coming September 29th.

 

deama

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I wonder if they're ever gonna release the source code for the 2D strongholds.
 
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Thac0

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After the turboautism that was Strongholds 3 and the creativily bankrupt Stronghold Crusaders 2 Firefly swears their new game will be better this time!
I am willing to give them a fair chance since I loved their games from Stronghold 1 to Stronghold 2 (with the exclusion of Crusader Extreme, what even was that shit?) and Legends was 6/10.
 

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Crusader 1 was the best, after that the changes they made to the series were for the worse (like building limits etc). Legends was pretty good too, Crusader 2 is just a reskin of Crusader 1 lol.

They've been making the same game ever since the original Stronghold, but they never managed to capture the same fun and charm as in the first two games.
 
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Thac0

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Crusader 1 was the best, after that the changes they made to the series were for the worse (like building limits etc). Legends was pretty good too, Crusader 2 is just a reskin of Crusader 1 lol.

They've been making the same game ever since the original Stronghold, but they never managed to capture the same fun and charm as in the first two games.

My german blood boiled at all the chores and management in Strongold 2. Building police outposts, catching rats, shoveling shit, farming expensive carots for the noblemen, all that stuff made the castle feel alive and makes Stronghold 2 my favourite in the series.
After all we Germans are those that love stuff like Tropico, Anno and Citites Skylines.

Stronghold 1 is pretty good aswell. I never cared too much for the crusading aesthetic after that, although the sparce oasis land for food makes for interesting gameplay.
 

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https://store.steampowered.com/newshub/app/907650/view/2910972885526648575

New Beta Gameplay!

Join us for brand new gameplay of Stronghold: Warlords, releasing January 26th 2021 on Steam! Introducing new strategy and RTS focused units and features, Stronghold: Warlords brings a fresh variety...

Available on Steam during the weeklong the Autumn Steam Game Fest, our new beta Stronghold: Warlords demo can be downloaded right now. That's right! Between October 7th and 13th players will be able to try out our latest build, a brand new mission from Warlords' Vietnam campaign starring the warlord Thuc Phan. After October 13th the demo will no longer be available, so move fast if you want this chance to play our upcoming 'castle sim' before launch and let us know what you think on Discord.

What better way is there to pass the time waiting for that demo to download, than by watching one of our handsome developers play through it for you? Follow our resident Videographer Aaron Hayden as he walks players through some of the new features, visuals and challenges offered by our latest Stronghold: Warlords demo. Expect new info, laughter and perhaps a few tears as Aaron attempts that precarious balance between achieving a perfect run and voicing a full mission walkthrough for the uninitiated.

Players can expect today's new footage and dev commentary to be followed by additional Feature Spotlight videos in the coming weeks and months. Addressing the most common questions about Warlords' gameplay on Discord and YouTube, such as planned A.I. improvements and the titular warlords system, these new videos will also feature more map sizes and community driven features.
 
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Infinitron

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Dear Stronghold Community and Fans,

It is with deep regret we announce to you today that we have come to the difficult decision to delay the release of Stronghold: Warlords for a second and final time. The release date will no longer be January 26th 2021. We will instead be launching Stronghold: Warlords six weeks later on March 9th 2021.

The reason behind this is that the game’s Multiplayer mode is simply not ready to be released yet. We have run into some unexpected issues with it and, while we have worked very hard to resolve these with our current deadlines, we need more time to iron them out. We want to be as transparent as possible with you about this and we did consider releasing as planned, delaying Multiplayer to go live in a future update. However, as we have promised Multiplayer functionality for Stronghold: Warlords at launch for over a year now, releasing without it wouldn’t be fair to players.

We want to thank you for your continued support and patience. Delays are never desired by any studio, especially this close to the announced release date, and we can only apologise for the disappointment it causes. It is however necessary if we want everyone to have an excellent, full experience with Stronghold: Warlords when it launches on March 9th, 2021.

Thank you,

Nick, Aaron and Natasha
Marketing and Community Team
 

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Coming to GOG: https://af.gog.com/game/stronghold_warlords?as=1649904300

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/907650/view/3047216284987464887

New Release Date & Demo
Dear Stronghold Community and Fans,

Last week we announced that we had come to the difficult decision to delay the release of Stronghold: Warlords for a second and final time. The release date will no longer be January 26th 2021. We will instead be launching Stronghold: Warlords six weeks later on March 9th 2021.

The reason behind this is that the game’s multiplayer mode is simply not ready to be released yet. We have run into some unexpected issues with it and - while we have worked very hard to resolve these with our current deadlines - we need more time to iron them out. We want to be as transparent as possible with you about this and we did consider releasing as planned, delaying Multiplayer to go live in a future update. However as we have promised Multiplayer functionality for Stronghold: Warlords at launch for over a year now, releasing without it wouldn’t be fair to players.

3c2c1929c95d06b177134de84839bd348a7aab71.png


We want to thank you for your continued support and patience. Delays are never desired by any studio - especially this close to the announced release date - and we can only apologise for the disappointment it causes. It is however necessary if we want everyone to have an excellent, full experience with Stronghold: Warlords when it launches on March 9th, 2021.

In the meantime we have reactivated our old Warlords demo on Steam for anyone who missed it last year. Please bear in mind this build is from August 2020 and thus does not feature the polish, final feature set or roster of playable units you can expect from the game at launch.

To play the demo version please follow this link for full details on how to download it on Steam.

033173ca4487c7b0877b4caa214c994d120f2829.png


If you'd like to discuss the demo with fellow fans and developers at Firefly you can do that by joining the Official Stronghold Discord.

Thank You,
Firefly Studios
 
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fantadomat

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Crusader 1 was the best, after that the changes they made to the series were for the worse (like building limits etc). Legends was pretty good too, Crusader 2 is just a reskin of Crusader 1 lol.

They've been making the same game ever since the original Stronghold, but they never managed to capture the same fun and charm as in the first two games.
Hmmm the first one was a good start but the series never when anywhere. The games are just too simple and basic,the AI is also retarded. Has anyone even lost outside of the limited sieges where you have to cheese your way to victory? The franchise had potential,but they ended up stagnating and doing the same thing for 5th-6th time now.
 

Feyd Rautha

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Crusader 2 is just a reskin of Crusader 1 lol.
sort of but they also cut some features like being able to be a good or a cruel lord. I liked how you in the first game were able to either build cages and torture devices or choose to be good by building gardens and playgrounds.

Also, I never understood why they didn't fix the cavalry combat. Cavalry should be able to charge infantry and run them down.
 

Fedora Master

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I played a few of the early missions and I have to admit that its not bad. Feels very old school RTS-y somehow. That said, I've not played Stronghold since the original came out. So far it doesn't seem bad. The maps are extremely small however.
 

fantadomat

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Feels very old school RTS-y somehow
That sounds very bad lol. Original RTS gams were not good,they were pretty shit. Mostly empty levels and two generic starting positions. RTS have come a long way since the early days.

Now if you mean the golden age of RTS aka star craft,AoE2,Red Alert2 etc...then that is a whole different thing.
 

Aemar

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Extremely poor sales so far, according to Steam Spy (<20k copies).
 
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Thac0

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Uh, I am cautious.
I watch Merchant for his card game content, not for his reviews, but usually he isn't terribly far off with those either.
 

thesheeep

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It really does make you wonder what happened to the people that pulled the first two games off so well.
It is as if moving to 3D broke something in the developers and suddenly they cannot even pull off pathfinding or basic siege mechanics any more.

At least this time it's better than the last few entries, I guess :lol:
 

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https://www.pcgamer.com/stronghold-warlords-review/

STRONGHOLD: WARLORDS REVIEW
Can the latest entry in the struggling series rebuild its strong foundations?

The original Stronghold holds a special place in my heart. You build a medieval barony, surround it with a labyrinth of impassable walls, and stave off waves of attackers while keeping the serfs living within happy, well fed and well taxed. It had real character too, with a lovely soundtrack, snappy unit soundbites and memorable villains.

I tend to think that the series’ decades-long endurance despite often lukewarm player and critical reception speaks to an enduring hope that it one day goes back to that simple principle of building and protecting your castle against relentless waves of attackers—that maybe the next Stronghold will finally be the one to both take us back and move us forward.

Stronghold: Warlords isn’t that game. In fact, it’s the most sprawling entry in the series yet—largely abandoning the principle of building a feudal gauntlet for waves of enemies in favour of a more traditional RTS setup featuring larger maps and symmetrically placed enemy bases. In other words, it’s more Age of Empires than Stronghold, but without the technological progression, or scouting, or distinct factions, or scuffles over resources. It’s also set in the far east, where you pick from four historical real-life leaders of China, Japan, Vietnam and Mongolia.

The titular Warlords system is the twist here. Between your base and the enemy’s, there are several smaller estates on the map held by neutral warlords. Defeat these warlords, and they’ll join your side, sending you resources, letting your troops shelter in their mini-forts, and even launching attacks on your enemies.

It’s a decent idea in principle but falters on a couple of levels. Firstly, it means that your main keep which you so meticulously bolster with walls, ballistas, towers, hidden gunpowder traps and fire arrow launchers doesn’t see a ton of action. Most of your time in a skirmish will be spent scuffling over these warlord forts that you don’t have any hand in building or designing except for preset upgrades that you buy with diplomacy points. The climactic sieges do happen eventually, but they’re not at the heart of the game like they used to be.

You can use diplomacy points to sweet-talk warlords to your side instead of fighting them. I found that once I was deep into a game, with each remaining team having piled up these points, I’d get embroiled in an endless tug of war on the diplomacy screen with the warlords endlessly flip-flopping between my team and an enemy’s. The diplomacy is both simplistic and fiddly, and the last thing I want to be doing while defending on one front and besieging on another is clicking a big button on a menu to make a number go up.

The combat itself feels good for the most part. Siege equipment is varied, ranging from trebuchets that can fire not only rocks, but fire and diseased animals into enemy forts, to laddermen and mantlets that protect your incoming troops from the inevitable arrow barrages. Seeing a city burn and crumble before funnelling troops into it is still a joy, and I had a few highlight reel moments with the gunpowder-loaded oxen that I’d send on kamikaze death-runs into poorly guarded siege equipment.

Regular melee, cavalry and ranged troops are joined by far eastern classics like samurai, warrior monks, horse archers and ninjas—who can scale walls without ladders. Fire lancers meanwhile, can burn entire regiments with their medieval flamethrowers. These pyromaniacs shriek maniacally when you select them, making you question whether the least mentally stable soldiers should be wielding the only weapons also capable of damaging your own troops. It’s a solid lineup, offering more tactical variety than past iterations while retaining some of the whimsy that the series at its best had.

Back on the homefront, you’ll need to keep the people happy with food, clothing, tea and temples if you want to crank up those taxes. It’s strange that you can only gather resources from within the rather limited building boundaries of your solitary keep, as it means that you need to procure most of your resources through warlords under your command or the market, where you can buy and sell all goods in the game. That means no fighting over resources on the map, which makes games that bit less strategic.

Despite the teething awkwardness, I did get into a groove with this economic system, setting surplus resources to auto-sell once they hit a certain point while auto-buying those I lacked so that they always stayed at a minimum threshold.

You can choose whether you’re a popular ruler or a feared one through buildings—a theatre on the one hand; public torture equipment on the other. Each approach grants its own bonuses, and rounds off a pretty satisfying city-builder element that’s a pleasure to watch when working efficiently. Oxen carry iron from mine to stockpile, farmers work the fields, and little people scurry between shacks and pagodas illuminated by ambery hanging lanterns, offering soundbites on the state of things when you click them (so usually whining about taxes, in my case). Managing and designing your fiefdom was always a strongpoint of the series, and Warlords upholds that tradition.

It’s taken a while to get round to talking about the campaigns, which no doubt will be on the minds of those who remember the original game’s run of medieval vaudeville villains (medievaudevillains, if you will) and kooky cutscenes. But really there’s not much to tell here, with the campaigns falling for that RTS trap of serving as expanded and often mundane tutorials for the main events: skirmish mode and multiplayer.

There are five reasonably lengthy campaigns set across east Asia, each casting you as a real-life historical ruler of the respective region. Each one has a slightly different angle—from galloping around the plains of Mongolia as Genghis Khan to Thuc Phan’s quest to become king of the Au Lac kingdom in the jungles of modern-day Vietnam.

There’s plenty of hours here but not much substance—no cutscenes, no big personalities to pit yourself against, and no mid-mission twists. The faction leaders and their rivals are avatars more than characters, only rarely popping up in the corner of the screen to grimace and scowl at you.

The campaign missions often restrict the units and buildings you can use, forcing you to really try and make the most of limited resources. These restrictions also give the impression that the factions somehow play differently from one another, but once you start playing skirmish mode—the meat and rice of the game—you find that each one is much the same: identical units and identical buildings except for the bright neon colour banding around them. Even if it was the case that somehow the architecture across several asian nations thousands of miles (and thousands of years, based on the rulers) apart was identical, it doesn’t feel satisfying in a genre that’s most interesting when there’s some asymmetry and distinctions between the combatants.

By leaving behind the safety of its castle walls, Stronghold has ventured out into a field where Age of Empires still reigns supreme. It’s a tough ask, especially when at the time of writing it seems that autosave isn’t working and performance unstable and prone to crashes. It doesn’t feel quite ready for the kind of game it wants to be.

Stronghold: Warlords still shines during sieges, when piles of enemies collapse beneath swarms of arrows, ladders and ninjas cling to walls, and soldiers fly out of towers toppled by catapult fire. There’s enough customisation in the skirmish mode that you can manufacture these gruelling attritional standoffs, but much of the game between these feels too thin. I’m still waiting for the day when this series reels things in and builds on its sturdy siegecraft foundations, instead of diluting them with generic RTS trappings and other systems that don’t quite click.

THE VERDICT
67

STRONGHOLD: WARLORDS
A decent if generic strategy game that lacks the big personality and siegecraft of earlier entries.
 

fantadomat

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They should just return to 2D.
Ahh honestly RTS needs more RPG elements like side quests,campaign progression,interesting map design. Star craft 2 the terran campaign did kind of right. It is shame that it didn't had the writing backbone to back it up,the rest of the game was shit. Also it should have been the final campaign at last. In the whole SC story line terrans were just a punching bag. Should have made them a final campaign where the earth fleet just arrives and nukes all the degenerate xenos.
 

thesheeep

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Ahh honestly RTS needs more RPG elements like side quests,campaign progression,interesting map design. Star craft 2 the terran campaign did kind of right.
In theory, yeah.
But we're talking about a team here that cannot even reproduce its own game - since what, 20 years now.
Don't start demanding advanced things from such a team...

They should just return to 2D.
As I wrote, it does seem that going 3D somehow broke the developers.
However, it's more of a joke because it really doesn't make sense.

The game, for all intents and purposes, is still very much 2D. Everything obviously still happens on a grid, as it did 20 years ago. Most RTS games are like that in that the entire game logic is still very much 2D-based.
The 3rd dimension that they added isn't really utilized in any way other than graphics and possibly part of the physics.

What's actually holding them back is a very interesting mystery to me.
 

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