Stronghold 2 is a very good idea of a game and the sequel is better then the first stronhold. I bought this game 2 weeks ago and have not stopped playing it since. Correction, I have not VOLUNTARILY stopped playing it since. Even though this game was built very good and had a very solid idea the people at Firefly Studios created a very big problem with crashes. Not to say that it crashes all the time but i have yet to play through a single player or multiplayer game without it crashing on me ONCE. I held this review off until the patch came out and since the patch is out here's my review. The gameplay in this game takes a bit to get used to and may require a person to read the manual a couple times over to get a real good handle on it, but once you do, you're solid. The one good thing that Firefly Studios did was it made it simple enough to play, they didn't try to confuse you with multiple buttons to push for multiple actions or send you off to the middle of nowhere right in the middle of hell. So a big thumbs up to Firefly Studios on that aspect. The graphics though get a smaller thumbs up because as long as you keep the camera zoomed out the graphics look spectacular. Though on the other hand the graphics don't look that bad zoomed in they just don't look very polished, grainy actually. Also if you can bare the mediocre graphics while zoomed in you will easily enjoy the fully animated workers or peasants that do what they do. The only true reason to zoom in is to watch your loser criminals get punished by a torturer after your judge gets done ignoring there plea. The sound in this game gets a very good score because lets face it, there wasn't much to worry about. The music is from the medieval period which is still heard today and the rest of the sounds are birds, wolves, people and water. Like i said, wasn't much to worry about they just had to go out to times square for a few hours and press record and they would have had it all. Now the campaigns in this game are quiet fun if you choose the war route and can save constantly in case of another crash, which is inevitable until a better patch comes out. The wars are quiet fun and filled with anxiety, nervousness and laughter...yes i said laughter because once you know you will win dumping the rocks over the wall and watching them fall on the unsuspecting victims is just too fun. The peace route is a bit boring but i urge you to play it first because it will take you through the makings of a very good kingdom and how to make one. Now even though the peace route is boring don't think you wont have problems, the game will send wolves, small raid parties or other mischevious people to come and cause some fun for you, but there's no worry as long as you have enough archers and knights you'll be perfectly fine. So for anybody who likes castles, medieval war, and torturing criminals please have fun and go out and buy this game. Though until Firefly Studios brings out a later patch (still crashing on v1.1) then i suggest you wait to get a coupon for $10 off. So have fun my mere peasants.
I have been playing Stronghold and Stronghold Crusader since they came out all those years ago and I loved them. So it was with great anticipation that I picked up a copy of the new version, installed it and sat back ... Read Full Review
Stronghold 2: Man the parapets If you’re not of the age to remember when living in a castle was the day to day business, then Stronghold 2, from firefly studios, will be the closest thing you can get to without litera... Read Full Review
