Stronghold: Definitive Edition News

[h3]The time is NOW, Sire! The long march is finally over and your forces have finally arrived at our divine destination - Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition is out now with a 10% launch discount![/h3][p][/p][h3]--> Behold this glorious love-letter to the golden age of strategy games with a freshly-forged launch trailer
[/h3][carousel][/carousel][p]The fan reception to Stronghold: Definitive Edition in 2023 showed us the hunger in the community for more games that take the cult classic games of the past, leaving the gold while elevating the old. The tremendous outpouring of love has pushed us to make this definitive edition of the fan-favourite Crusader the best it possible can be, adding more features, fixes and content than anyone could have expected. We can't wait to see how fans take this reimagined classic and make it their own. [/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p]Every bit of feedback across our demos has helped to inform the final game, allowing us to craft this expanded remaster hand-in-hand with the community. This player-first development focus has helped to shape this into a love letter to the golden age of isometric strategy games, one that will continue after launch with a robust roadmap of updates and DLC.

The fundamental game will feel like an elevated version of the classic experience for returning fans and new players alike. With improvements and expansions to practically every core feature and beyond: reworked visuals, higher fidelity audio, new units, new AI Lords, new modes, 10k units cap, co-op, new missions, larger-than-ever maps, 8-player Steam multiplayer, Steam Workshop support, QoL improvements and more![/p][p][/p][p]Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition is the culmination of almost a quarter century of development experience, fan support and technological advancements. Better-looking, smoother-running and bigger in all ways possible, Stronghold Crusader: DE is the ultimate way to take a trip down memory lane.[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][h3]Critical Reception[/h3][p]Inverse (9/10) -- "This Definitive Edition is a genuinely massive update that improves the game in a handful of crucial ways. It’s taken one of the best castle builders of all time and transformed it into something truly definitive."[/p][p][/p][p]Finger Guns (9/10) -- "Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition sets a gold standard of what should be expected of remasters."[/p][p][/p][p]4Players (8.5/10) -- "Stronghold Crusader Definitive Edition offers the core of the RTS masterpiece in a beautiful, fluid, and improved form."[/p][p][/p][h2]Stronghold Crusader DE is out NOW on Steam with a 10% launch discount![/h2][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]Seen a bug? Got feedback? Please submit issues both large and small through the Firefly Studios support site. Between this and our planned post-launch roadmap we are dedicated to fixing any significant issues players are having and the more reports we get the faster and more effectively we can do that :)[/p][p] [dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p]

[h3]Good Day Sire! Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition is just under two weeks away from its launch, so what better time than now to share all there is to know about its post-launch plans![/h3][p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]Following the positive reception of the two public demos and in keeping with Stronghold DE’s post-launch, we're announcing two major post-launch content updates for Stronghold Crusader DE. These will take the form of an Autumn and a Winter Update, both releasing this year alongside two paid DLCs.[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p][/p][p]The free initial Autumn Update will feature a series-first economic campaign as well as a brand new CPU commander. Five missions will challenge players to complete a series of economic objectives, leaning heavily into the city builder gameplay mechanics of the legendary castle builder series. The new computer-controlled character can meanwhile also be played as friend or foe, selectable in the game’s offline skirmish and online multiplayer modes. Last but not least, three new maps will also be added, one for skirmish, another in Free Build mode and a balanced multiplayer battlefield.[/p][hr][/hr][p][/p][p][/p][p]Following this content drop, the game’s free Winter Update will add perhaps the greatest player request so far: the ability to customise CPU opponents, castles and campaigns! Players will be able to create the rivals or allies of their dreams (or nightmares), design their defences and then place all of this into custom mission scenarios created by the community.[/p][p] [/p][p]If that wasn’t enough, the Winter Update continues this community-first trend with the addition of a second co-op trail of missions. The 10 missions found in the first co-op trail not enough for you? Well, dare to brave the challenges of this new trail and you just might come out victorious. Once again a new map pack of three maps will be added to the overall pool, keeping things fresh for players after launch.

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][h2]Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition launches soon on July 15th. Wishlist now to be the first to know when it goes live![/h2]

[p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p][p]Good tidings, Sire! Steam Next Fest is now live and with it our second public demo for Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition. Showcasing the latest fixes, a full Sands of Time mission, Historical Campaign challenge and allowing you to freely try out Custom Skirmish mode before the game’s July 15th launch, this is our most content rich demo yet! So if you haven’t yet given it a try or think you can rise even higher on the leaderboards, now is the chance to prove your mettle…[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Crusader: DE was designed with your feedback in mind and at the very top of that list were features like a proper coop mode. In past games we have offered coop in the form of team-based skirmish play and - In the case of Stronghold Crusader 2 - The ability for two players to control the same castle. In Crusader: DE we have gone a step further and designed a full 10 mission skirmish trail, allowing two players to cooperate and defeat the AI across a selection of new maps… With one or two classic battlefields thrown in there for good measure![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Featuring the game’s new AI opponents, units and more, this mode takes full advantage of everything Crusader: DE has to offer. In addition to all of this, we are pleased to announce that - Even though it's called a ‘Coop Trail’ - Solo players won’t be left out in the cold. If for whatever reason you are unable to buddy up with another human player online, the trail is fully playable with the help of one of our 20 AI characters! Battle alongside everyone from The Snake to The Sentinel, as you conquer this fresh take on classic skirmish trail gameplay.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Nothing forges stronger bonds than conquering challenges together. Whether it’s reuniting with distant pals, bonding with a new crusading comrade or finally teaming up with the Lord of Rats himself, the series-first coop mode for Stronghold Crusader: DE will be your chance to create new memories across fresh battlefields![/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][p]
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[h2]Great tidings Sire![/h2]

[h3]The brand new demo for Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition is now available for all!

Play the new demo and see some of the gameplay improvements and upgrades that truly bring this classic RTS into 2025 - including larger-than-ever maps, massive unit counts, leaderboards and more!



Stronghold Crusader: DE is being constantly improved with many player-requested changes including larger-than-ever maps, 10 thousand units in-game and more! All additional feedback from this demo will help make the final game the best version it can be. So get conquering![/h3]

[h2]Play the demo today![/h2]

[h3]Good morrow, my liege! [/h3]After 150,000 demo downloads, three times as many as Stronghold: Definitive Edition... We have channelled thousands of your Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition feedback forms into new player-requested enhancements!



Ahead of the game's July 15th launch, today we dive into some of these community-requested features, confirming key information on maximum unit counts and more in our final ‘Feature Spotlight’ development diary.

As some of Crusader’s most knowledgeable and experienced players, your feedback on our upcoming Definitive Edition has been invaluable. So naturally suggestions and ideas discussed online were studied in close detail, ahead of the game’s reveal earlier this year. Your Crusader: DE feedback was then examined after January 20th through the demo’s feedback form.
Many features have been requested by players since January.



These include raising the overall troop count to a whopping 10,000 soldiers in a single game, to match that of Stronghold Crusader Extreme, which we can confirm today. We have also made the addition of a few Islamic buildings and related workers for the game’s Arabic and Bedouin Lords, as well as many vital bug fixes. The latter addresses specific exploits and issues discovered by the game’s most dedicated players across more than 20 years of play.



From map sizes up to four times the size of those available in the original, through to custom toggles for skirmish mode and online leader boards, we are striving to tick every possible box for fans of the original game. A Definitive Edition should include absolutely everything possible that players want out of Crusader and that’s what this final version of our game intends to deliver!

[h3]Wishlist Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition today![/h3]