The Stronghold series stands out in the landscape of real-time strategy games. The original chapters remain much loved, while the following ones were received more coldly, and some did not convince players much because they were too far from the spirit of the precursors. 2021's Stronghold: Warlords has received more than a few criticisms for this very reason, despite the overall good quality. As Firefly Studios has decided to go back to basics and revisit the first episode., giving it a modern look and adding new content. In the Stronghold: Definitive Edition review we will find out if building pixel art castles is worth it.
Contents
Before talking about this edition of the game, let's briefly recap the main elements of the game. Stronghold: Definitive Edition is a real-time strategy game set in the Middle Ages, in which you will have to collect resources to make the population prosper and found cities, to take care of all aspects (economic, social, industrial, etc.) . Hire military units and build enormous fortresses to defend yourself against enemy troops. In some scenarios the perspective is reversed and you go to the other side, that is, you have to besiege a fortress using siege engines and other tools to conquer it. In this sense The Definitive Edition does not change the original game one bit, so much so that there were also some archaisms in the game's interface that could be revised and removed. The AI itself is virtually identical to how it was in 2001, to the point that the original missions play out exactly the same way as they did back then.
Therefore, the greatest innovations refer to the graphic part and the content.. Let's start with the latter, of which all the originals are reproduced, plus some additions. Thus, the main campaign is still present, with its twenty-one missions, and all the siege maps, to which the Gem Campaign has been added, dedicated to veterans who already know Stronghold inside out, and the Castle Road, in the one you can besiege. historical strengths and that resumes a mode already present in the game.
Of course, it is still possible to play freely in sandbox mode, without worrying about enemies and wars, dedicating yourself solely to building the castle, which is the most beloved part of the game. It should be noted that multiplayer has been reactivated and it is therefore possible to engage in some skirmishes with human players, although the servers are not very full at the moment.
As already mentioned, the The gem campaign is particularly challenging, so much so that before tackling it we had to replay some maps from 2001 to review how some mechanics work. Indeed, the maps are more complex, the enemies more aggressive, the resources are fewer and, in general, mistakes are costly. Already in the first mission, in which you have to reach a certain point on the map with a handful of troops, facing an enemy army decidedly larger than ours, you can lose very quickly if you move at the wrong time or if you proceed too much. lightly.
In short, new players would do well to dedicate themselves to the rest of the content first to familiarize themselves a little. That said, the satisfaction you feel when you've built a castle with double walls and all the resources placed inside is still great. It is to the point that we allow ourselves to be captured by the game again, like twenty years ago, without even realizing it.
The Stronghold: Definitive Edition formula works, just as it did back then. Of course, today there is a greater need for some comforts, but as there is not much better, particularly in the way of integrating the construction system of the castle with all the others, we can be satisfied knowing that we find ourselves in front of a classic .
Remastering
From a technical point of view, the work carried out by Firefly Studios is in line with what has been seen in other similar projects. So not only do we have an increase in selectable resolution, but also a general improvement in units and animations, the latter looking decidedly smoother than the original Stronghold. Soon, Much more in-depth work has been done than seen in Stronghold HD in 2012.. In general, however, the developers tried not to lose the original feel, which is practically unchanged. So the graphics still look like they come from a 2001 title, despite having been updated, so as not to create imbalances for those looking for exactly that experience. Sure, some modern players may find it repulsive, but it seems like that's been taken into account.
The same philosophy was followed for the expanded footage and art, which doesn't even attempt to deviate from the original style. The objective is clear: capture and satisfy the protagonists of the 2001 episode by any means possible. In this sense we are faced with a more than successful game, which does not aim to revolutionize anything, but only to revive some pleasant memories of the past, to the point that even the terrifying ones Spanish dubbing (we all like it, come on). And Stronghold: Definitive Edition is exactly how it should be taken, that is, as a postcard from a bygone era, from a time when real-time strategy players still had some ideas to propose and were not afraid to be complex .
Conclusions
Tested version PC with Windows digital delivery Steam Price 14,99 € Holygamerz.com 8.0 Readers (11) 8.2 your voteStronghold: Definitive Edition is exactly what it promises to be: an updated version of the same game that became the leader of an entire subgenre in 2001. The experience is more or less the same, with the new campaign that extends the playing time a bit and native mod support that opens up countless future scenarios. That said, this is an honest operation that sells at a very low price and achieves what it sets out to do. A successful package for nostalgic people who want to continue playing the old Stronghold, but in a more modern package.
PRO
- The gameplay worked then and still works today.
- The technical update is good.
- A lot of content at a very low price.
AGAINST
- In the end, that's the game.
- A more decisive update to the interface would not have gone amiss
