Crusader Kings

by Strategy First

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000691K3
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: September 2, 2003
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #44,283 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Crusader Kings is a unique historical role-player that puts you into a feudal society fraught with dangers. Travel to medieval Europe between 1066 and 1419 A.D. -- here you will build a dynasty. Gain wealth and favor from the nobles, while earning Prestige and Piety. Unlike other strategy games, the goal here is not to expand your territory but to expand your reputation. Use everything from diplomacy to warfare to create a respected royal line.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not cancelled, February 23, 2004

By 

Griswel (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Crusader Kings (CD-ROM)

The game has not been "discontinued" at all, and according to Johann (lead programmer) on the Paradox forum, should go gold in March 2004 and ship late March or early April 2004.

Not sure why Amazon won't offer it, could be a Euro-$ conversion problem.

But it has not been discontinued, and looks to be a great game for those who like deep strategy like Europa Universalis, Hearts of Iron or Victoria.

Epilogue:

I bought the game when it was released in Europe. The version here I am sure is 1.03 which is very stable and represents an imporvement over an already fun game.

In CK you play any one of numerous Kingdoms, Duchies or one of an vast supply of Counties. Want to play Ireland> Start as Duke of Meath (recommended) or Ulster (much harder) and do not upset William the Conqueror.

Marry your children off well and you could end up with claims on much of Europe. You play a dynasty, not a geograpic place, so make sure you have an heir and a spare. When looking for a bride for your #1 son, I'd suggest getting a very bright girl (to get bright grandkids) over a girl with connections, but the choice is up to you.

Like nearly all Paradox games, CK offers virtually unlimited replayability. Although you cannot play Muslim dynasties, you can play families from Ireland to Poland, from Sweden to Sicily.

CK is a fun game. After you're done you can convert your savegame into a scenario for Europa Universalis 2 (you need version 1.08). So you could conceivably play from 1066 until 1819 between the two games. That's plenty of time to conquer the known world.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars May become great if it is ever finished., September 17, 2004

By 

M. Powers (Springfield, IL) - See all my reviews

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Crusader Kings (CD-ROM)

The idea of a historical strategy game set in the Middle Ages is very appealing, but the implementation should have been better.

The game feature a variety of bugs, most of which can be grouped into two categories--design flaws and crashes. Crashes are the most annoying, since the game has a relatively long loading time (on a 1.6Ghz AMD). So even with autosave on, I sometimes had to abandon the game for a few days because of the frustration of having to reload it over and over again. Worse yet, one of the bugs caused the game to crash while autosaving, resulting in corrupted save files, and no ability to reload.

In addition to the crashes, the game also features several major design flaws. The most serious one is the ahisorical (and not particularly fun) way of implementing the Mongol invasions. At present, the Hordes will always do one of two things: conquer the entire map or get completely wiped out.

Many people at the Paradox (the developer's) forums reported these bugs and many other bugs, so I am definitely not the only one who has experienced them. Problems like these are almost always the result of faulty code, and not the user's hardware. It is reasonable to expect software to function properly on a system that meets (and exceeds) the advertised requirements. This software does not do that, at least not in the present version (1.03).

The game has plenty of enjoyable qualities, but the various bugs often make playing it a frustrating rather than enjoyable experience. Paradox usually releases a series of patches for a game, gradually fixing it. If you wait for patch 1.05 or 1.06 before you buy it, you will probably be getting a great game.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, will get even better, May 20, 2004

By 

hus_carl (Alaska, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Crusader Kings (CD-ROM)

There's already a very good review of the game that describes what the gameplay is like, so I won't get into all of that. This review will concentrate on the bugs involved. I initially started playing the game after the 1.01 patch came out, and have now upgraded to 1.02. Though many people had CTDs on the 1.00 version, I have not had a single CTD on the newest patch. And my computer seems especially prone to CTDs. Purely anecdotal evidence, but I think any CTD problems have been fixed.

Most of the remaining bugs relate to gameplay issues. For instance, how the game determines which noble controls the pope does not work as its supposed to. Some character traits of the noblemen/women and their courtiers never show up: hare-lip, hunchback, stutter, and more. The AI never seems to go on crusade and leaves all the Muslim-bashing to the player. Regional titles do not exist as they should. (for instance, the game calls the lowest level of playable noble a Count in England instead of an Earl) Your courtiers will not get married on their own, but with the 1.02 patch you can no longer arrange marriages for them. Many other issues also need fixing.

With all of that said, however, my score of four stars relfects the game as it currently stands, version 1.02. This is the first game I've played that attempts to simulate the feudalistic relations of medieval Europe with any success. A lot of the game involves challenges such as rebelling vassals, finding suitable marriage partners, and knocking off your nasty younger brother so that he doesn't interfere with your son's inheritance. When all the bugs are fixed, the game will deserve a 5 stars in my mind. And Paradox, the developer, certainly will continue tweaking the game. They just came out with a new patch for their flagship game, Europa Universalis II. Since the game is three or four years old, this at least shows their commitment to getting things right.

One final note: Crusader Kings will be released in North America sometime in June, but the game can be purchased now at Paradox's website: www.paradoxplaza.com. You'll pay about $45 including shipping because of the crappy Dollar-to-Euro exchange rate, but will get the game at least two weeks sooner. I ordered directly from them and received the game four days later. From Sweden to Colorado, that's pretty good time! Certainly better than Super-Saver Shipping! ;)