Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition Review –...

FireFly Studios brings back the iconic Stronghold Crusader to the year 2025 with an inspired definitive edition. It isn’t just a typical remaster that capitalizes solely on nostalgia; they are adding something new to it, and fans of the game will want to try it out.

Stronghold Crusader Brought Back the Glory Days of Old School RTS

While I didn’t play Stronghold Crusader back then, I was one of the biggest RTS fans out there, playing everything I could find in the local game store. I started playing Starcraft 1 when I was five years old and never looked back. I grew up playing these games like Rise of Nations, Dune 2000, Warcraft 3, Battle Realms, and any Command & Conquer title.

Playing Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition still evoked the same nostalgia, as I learned the ropes of building a base and amassing an army.

It was quite punishing at first, even for someone like me who still occasionally plays RTS games like Starcraft 2. The start was brutal as those AIs really move and strike fast. Things move quickly, and the game won’t hold your hand, forcing you to learn through your failures, which really brought the nostalgia back.

Do you focus on mass-producing one type of food or ration and start building an army? Do you set up a tower to focus on defense while you try to build on your economy? Are walls even worth it?

You start asking yourself tons of questions because in Stronghold Crusader, there aren’t restrictions on constructing buildings. There are no tech trees or building requirements – you are free. That’s what makes the game unique. That freedom provides the game with numerous avenues to explore when playing a specific stage or level.

However, that also puts a lot of pressure on you to be fast. By fast, I mean fast to the point where you are always doing something meaningful, especially at the start of the match. Since there are so many things to do, you can easily get lost on what to do next.

The extra layers on a battle-centric game really give Stronghold Crusader that extra punch. Even if you have the basic necessities of an army, food, and coins, you also have to design your stronghold. As someone initially unfamiliar with Stronghold Crusader, this feature grabbed the biggest attention.

For your city or stronghold to grow, you’ll need the necessities and housing, or Hovels, for your population. You can build gardens, chapels, apothecaries, wells, flowers, and much more. While these may seem purely cosmetic, they actually contribute to the happiness of your population, giving you more opportunities for growth or even the chance to raise taxes.

Apart from keeping your faction happy with all the amenities, you must still build for war. Giving your people a church isn’t cheap. Walls are a significant factor in defense, and they require a substantial amount of resources to build. You’ll play around and balance these things apart, and it could be different in each game.

Once you get a hold of the basics, you’ll want to get down on Stronghold Crusader’s new Co-op Trails mode, which features a long campaign you can do with someone else or a friend. The folks in FireFly Studios were generous enough to lend us multiple copies of the game to test it out, and here’s how it went.

Stronghold Crusader’s New Co-op Trails Adds a Must-Try Chaotic Mode to Play with a Friend

First, the AI was predictable but out of control compared to the other skirmishes. Since it’s a 2v2, plans become more strategic, and the AI is so aggressive that it messes things up pretty quickly.

You can always expect the enemies to attack you with the same group of units constantly, but with some slight changes to your position, we noticed that the enemies can easily switch it up.

After being constantly attacked by a mob of slaves, archers, and knights by one AI, the other AI suddenly reinforced those attacks with Horse Archers and more Knights after consistently using those same units to attack my other teammate, this change was probably triggered when I suddenly tried to get more space in the middle of the map.

Things like these make the Co-op Trails much more chaotic because while they are predictable (those constant but similar attacks), the situation can get chaotic in an instant. Each Co-op Trail is more chaotic than the next as the cap increases, and it’ll surely give you hours and hours of more mayhem.

The Verdict

FireFly Studios brings back the best version of Stronghold Crusader to date, giving Stronghold and old-school RTS fans something to look forward to. The game focuses on what defined the iconic RTS back in the early 2000s, giving players the freedom to focus on several aspects of the game and prosper. A fast-paced RTS with some added flavor to base management mechanics – and of course, those cheeky and awesome voice lines. While it is challenging to compare this game to modern RTS games, I’ll score the game based on its remastered features, additions, and the overall feel of a classic RTS.

Stronghold Crusader Promo Shot 3

Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition

Stronghold Crusader’s Definitive Edition not only stays true to the classic RTS more than two decades ago, but it also brings new features, characters, and modes to bring the best version of the game to year 2025. For the $19.99 price tag, it is worth it for both fans of Stronghold and classic RTS games. The co-op trails also makes it more enjoyable to play with a friend.

Pros

  • Wonderful remastered artwork, design, and voice overs.
  • Addicting base-building mechanics for an RTS.

Cons

  • AI could use some work.
  • Units need more balancing.
  • Most stages are quite similar.

A copy of this game was provided by the publisher for review. Reviewed on PC