Knights of the Crusades News

Hey Everyone,

We’ve been blown away by the support and feedback since launching Knights of the Crusades into Early Access. Your enthusiasm and insights have been invaluable, and we’ve been working hard to address the most pressing issues while adding some quality-of-life improvements.

Today, we're rolling out our first post-launch update, focusing on technical fixes, world map improvements, and some key quality-of-life changes that you’ve asked for. And starting next week we`ll be rolling our more content, features and art updates in accordance to our Roadmap: https://steamcommunity.com/app/3440120/discussions/0/592896011253361999/

With our first update we’ve tackled a problem preventing some players from starting the game on the first run, improved V-Sync functionality, and added camera speed adjustments to the options menu. Plus, you can expect smoother performance overall.

We’ve also made several improvements to the world map experience. You can now discard units during recruitment and demolish buildings during construction. Recruitment itself has been streamlined, and some minor visual glitches have been addressed. Additionally, the Diplomacy window now better reflects the nations closest to your kingdom.

We didn’t forget the UI! You’ll notice better click detection on units in RTS mode, improved tooltips, and clearer army strength displays. Plus, we’ve refined some quest notifications to make sure important info doesn’t get missed.

And now - for detailed patch notes, for Update # 1 (game version 0.24):

[h2]Game Engine Updates[/h2]

• Fixed a common issue with players being unable to start the game on the first run.
  
• Enabled V-Sync.
  
• V-Sync now properly limits frames with a 60 FPS lock.
  
• Added camera speed to the options menu, allowing players to slow down or increase scrolling speed.
  
• Various performance improvements.
  

[h2]World Map Updates[/h2]

• Players can now discard units from an army/town on the world map while the recruitment window is open.
  
• Players can demolish buildings in a town on the world map while the building construction window is open.
  
• Reworked unit recruitment on the world map - it no longer replaces one unit in the army with another.
  
• New messages appear when the army is full and the player tries to recruit.
  
• Players can no longer disband or replace the Knight Commander hero in the army.
  
• Improved the Diplomacy window list of nations - it now shows the nations closest to the player's kingdom.
  
• Fixed very slow-moving birds flying around the world map.
  
• Upgrading building on the world map - redesigned - requires stone and wood, and shows the cost of upgrade
  

[h2]UI Improvements[/h2]

• Improved click detection on units in RTS mode at the top part of the screen near the resources bar.
  
• Greatly improved the look of RTS mode tooltips for buildings and units.
  
• Unit tooltips on the world map now show the strength value of all units.
  
• Army strength is now displayed when an army is selected.
  

[h2]Campaign and Tutorial Updates[/h2]

• A new quest notification now appears if the player arrives at Constantinople without reaching 100 strength.
  
• The new quest has voice acting and is localized in all languages.
  
• In the New Order campaign, the player can no longer capture Antioch, Nicaea, and Jerusalem; these can only be given to Christendom.
  
• Using Monks' and Knight Commanders' abilities now shows proper pop-ups informing of low stamina or cooldown time.
  

At long last, take up your sword and ride into the holy lands — Knights of the Crusades has officially entered Early Access! The next chapter in our real-time strategy series brings a gritty, historically-inspired campaign where faith, ambition, and steel collide.



Knights of the Crusades takes you on a grand journey through the First Crusade and beyond—across the Holy Land, Spain, North Africa, and Eastern Europe. From a humble knight or captain, rise to power through tactical warfare, diplomacy, and conquest. Participate in iconic battles like the defense of Edessa or the Reconquista, and shape the fate of Christendom through your actions.



Engage in massive real-time battles with thousands of soldiers. Besiege mighty cities, fend off ambushes, and master the art of survival on brutal medieval battlefields. Build and upgrade cities, manage vital resources, and wield faith as a weapon—piety is your currency for divine favor, political influence, and avoiding excommunication. Every decision matters in this layered sandbox of war and power.



Start your crusade as a minor noble or rogue warband, and ascend to lead a legendary order—whether you form your own Holy Order or command the Templars. Customize your doctrine, structure, and legacy. Shape a world that reacts to your choices across a massive dynamic map filled with cities, pilgrim routes, shifting alliances, and relentless holy wars. Your legacy is forged in blood, faith, and fire.



Over the next few months, I’ll be rolling out weekly updates that expand the game in every direction. Campaigns will get richer stories and historical events, nations will become far more distinct in how they look and play, and core systems like religion, naval combat, and trade will evolve dramatically. I’ll be putting a lot of focus on making every culture feel unique, with new units, building sets, and mechanics for Pagan, Orthodox, Muslim, and Western Christian factions.

You will find detailed roadmap posted here:

https://steamcommunity.com/app/3440120/discussions/0/592896011253361999/



Grab your friends (or rivals) and join us on our Discord here, where we’re chatting strategy, lore, and future updates with our players every day.

We'll also be active on the Steam forums and in the in-game chat all week — come say hi, or send your armies. We’re ready.

Hey Everyone,

We`ve been gettign a lot of questions about what`s new with Knights of the Crusaders and how it compares to Medieval Kingdom Wars and our other games, so I wanted to take a moment to address some of the most common questions about this

And as they say, a picture is worth a thousand words—so we’ll compare the same locations and situations from both games with side-by-side pictures. First picture will be MKW, and second KotC. And in order to keep this as lighthearted as possible - there are some weak attempts at humor below...

And for our players who have played MKW in the past and feel that KotC might be too similar - I believe these comparisons often come from how many games we all play these days. Over time, it’s easy to forget what MKW was really like...


[h2]World Map - France[/h2]
Okay, you got me—it’s almost exactly the same. I can barely spot four differences between these MKW and KotC screenshots myself—showing the same location in the south of France.

[h3]MKW[/h3]


[h3]KotC[/h3]



[h2]World Map - South of Spain[/h2]
Let’s take this up a notch—there are at least seven differences between these pictures.

***Hint: there’s an extra naval army in the center


[h3]MKW[/h3]


[h3]KotC[/h3]



Same hamlet of Almeria on the Spanish southern coast in KotC and MKW.

***At least I finally figured out what the "Bloom Level" setting is for—baby steps.



[h3]MKW[/h3]


[h3]KotC[/h3]



[h2]Additional Details[/h2]
I plan to expand on this post later this week with a lot of additional information on gameplay and more screenshots. Maybe even a side-by-side video.

Meanwhile, if anyone has any questions - please don’t be shy, I’ll be happy to answer any and all questions - no matter how tough.

And I’m very excited to share our big engine update with you shortly. It reworks a lot of the weaker sides of Kingdom Wars games from the very foundation. Things like tasking units, pathfinding on walls, resolution, visual issues, starting the game for new players, and so much more.

Hey Everyone,

The all-new Knights of the Crusades demo is now live!

We’ve made massive improvements since the winter version of the demo... This updated demo includes better visuals, unique are for western and Muslim nations, more refined mechanics, and a much stronger campaign experience. Expect objective-driven gameplay, voiced events, historical choices, and an entirely new level of immersion.

If you tried the old demo, this is your chance to see how far we’ve come. If you're new - welcome to the Crusades.

Try the demo now and let us know what you think! Your feedback helps shape the final version as we march toward Early Access launch.

Everyone,

We're excitedly counting down the days until launch—Knights of the Crusades is entering Early Access in just 4 days!

To celebrate this exciting milestone, we're hosting a special giveaway packed with fantastic prizes, including tons of full game keys for KotC and our other games, plus maybe an additional surprise or two to make your upcoming crusading journey even more epic.

This is your chance to secure your own free copy of the game and dive straight into the action ahead of everyone else.

Don't miss out—join the giveaway now, rally your friends, and prepare to forge your legend in the Holy Land!





Hey