Stronghold Crusader 2

Critic reviews

• GGameSpot

  Jeremy Signor · Oct 01, 2014

  6.0

  Make no mistake, Stronghold Crusader 2 is foremost a multiplayer skirmish game. ...Stronghold Crusader 2 understands the art of the troop blob, but that alone doesn't make it a good game. Its lack of interesting units, underdeveloped castle-building options, and terrible tutorials hold the game back. Blob warfare is still fun, and directing an army never gets old. But man cannot live on blob alone.

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• HGHardcore Gamer

  James Kozanitis · Oct 01, 2014

  5.0

  A game with the mechanics of both Total War and Sim City can be good, but Stronghold hasn’t executed the core mechanics of either well enough to fit the bill. Taking the magic out of an often-fantasy-filled era is not the true crime here; it’s that Stronghold fails to improve upon the formula of its previous titles. FireFly lives up to its promise of producing a better-looking version of its first games, but that’s all they live up to.

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• PGPC Gamer

  Dan Griliopoulos · Sep 24, 2014

  6.4

  Like castles, great games needs strong foundations. The core problem with the new Stronghold games appears to be that the engine isn't fit for purpose. These castle blocks don't want to sit in or on the smooth terrain and bugs are regular. The position detection is still poor - it often takes multiple clicks to repair a castle wall, and targeting the right castle section with a catapult can be tricky.

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• GRGame Revolution

  Paul Tamburro · Sep 23, 2014

  8.0

  Stronghold Crusader II is a game that will steal hours of your life if you let it. While it isn't as expansive as Civilization 5 nor as action-packed as Company of Heroes 2, its position nestled between the two is a welcome change of pace for the genre and one which is well worth experiencing. Firefly Studios hasn't quite made a new classic RTS game here, but they were extremely close.

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• GWGame Watcher

  John-Paul Jones · Sep 22, 2014

  8.0

  Stronghold Crusader 2 might not be the most visually accomplished strategy game out there or have the best narrative or even the most well-judged difficulty curve, but such things will matter little to those who take the time to embrace it. For old, war-tested Stronghold players Crusader 2 is a triumphant evolution of the game that they’ve held dear for the last twelve years. For the rest of us though, there is perhaps no better time to see what all the fuss is about.

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• CCGMagazine

  Doug Mercer · Oct 02, 2014

  7.0

  Ultimately, Stronghold Crusader 2 is a lot of fun and I plugged many hours into it, often times not realizing how long it had actually been. However, as the hours ticked on, I found myself noticing what I mentioned above. I found myself enjoying it so much due to its similarities to other RTS series, Age of Empires in particular, a game that was last seen almost as long ago as the first Stronghold Crusader. Yes, the graphics are better as are the battles, but I couldn’t help but feel that my enjoyment of the game was perhaps somewhat rooted in nostalgia.

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