Tl;dr it seems that Stronghold's design philosophy after SH2 has been "take an existing feature and either remove it or make it worse." Remember when mills didn't cost 200 wood? Me too!

Likes:
The campaign was nice.
Units have abilities now.
Healers.

Dislikes:
Overall worse than the OG Crusader.
Castle building feels unrewarding.
Weird changes to the economy.
Poor production value for a 2014 game. Graphics are meh at best, no new tracks, bad voice acting.

There's too much I dislike that it has soured me on what I do like about this game. Unit abilities are a nice addition to your arsenal of strategies. I like that trebuchets can be packed and unpacked. The campaigns are like the first Crusader: short and barebones, but still challenging. I like the small touch of having sheep farms instead of pigs when playing as Muslim. And this is the first Stronghold game that has healers. Unfortunately, they can't heal the damage done by the game's design.

Building castles in Crusader 2 feel almost childish, like you're making them in a sandbox. I can't believe I'm saying that about a Stronghold game! Stairs are too large and don't look good. Instead of being on towers, siege engines are now mounted on wooden platforms that can somehow stay stable at that height. And don't get me started on the walls. In SH2, they cost more, but are immune to regular troop attacks. Crusader 2 took that away and said f*** you. Here, walls don't come cheap, yet the enemy can demolish them at the drop of a turban. What's the point of building a castle, then? It's not like we get a large variety of towers or traps to choose from.

Other aspects have been changed for seemingly no reason. No more siege towers and laddermen, so there goes one of your options for sieges. No more tanners. Iron used to be valuable. Weapon workshops only produce one thing because... streamlining? But this is bad design because being able to switch production is useful. Late-game, when you have less of a need for archers and spearmen, you can switch to crossbows and pikes instead of replacing your workshops. What, did they think players are too stupid to click an extra button?

And why change the popularity system? It worked fine in earlier Strongholds. If it goes down, your popularity decreases gradually, so you have time to adjust. Now whenever you see red, you have to take care of it immediately or your peasants start leaving. It gets distracting when you're supposed to be defending or laying siege.

The graphics don't seem to have gotten much of an upgrade compared to Stronghold 2. Things look a bit bright and gaudy, a far cry from the tastefully drawn landscapes of the original. In-game models are basic. I would give this a pass if it meant better performance, but sadly that isn't the case. The UI and 2D art is not bad, but could be better. Using Papyrus as your main font is just... no. The CGI rarely looks good. Richard (the guy on the cover of the store page) actually looked better on the cover of the OG Crusader.

Worse, they replaced the original voices for the Rat and men-at-arms from Legends, and the difference is night and day. The new lines sound like they're reading from a script, lacking character or distinctiveness. Overacting has been a signature of Stronghold since the first game. While characters tended to one-note and underdeveloped, they were still memorable for having unique voices and punchy delivery. They even removed the peasant lines. That's how un-Stronghold this game has gotten.

And instead of improving the AI, they cheat and spawn troops out of nowhere. At least Crusader Extreme lets you destroy the outposts to stop the relentless enemy hordes. Assassins have bugged movement. The occasional lag and crash bring this game down further.

It's such a shame because I wanted to like Crusader 2. I thought it would be a faithful recreation of the original Crusader in 3D, or even Stronghold 2 in the desert. Instead, I got a slightly better Stronghold 3.

Tl;dr it seems that Stronghold's design philosophy after SH2 has been "take an existing feature and either remove it or make it worse." Remember when mills didn't cost 200 wood? Me too! [b]Likes:[/b] The campaign was nice. Units have abilities now. Healers. [b]Dislikes:[/b] Overall worse than the OG Crusader. Castle building feels unrewarding. Weird changes to the economy. Poor production value for a 2014 game. Graphics are meh at best, no new tracks, bad voice acting. [h2]In depth[/h2] There's too much I dislike that it has soured me on what I [i]do[/i] like about this game. Unit abilities are a nice addition to your arsenal of strategies. I like that trebuchets can be packed and unpacked. The campaigns are like the first Crusader: short and barebones, but still challenging. I like the small touch of having sheep farms instead of pigs when playing as Muslim. And this is the first Stronghold game that has healers. Unfortunately, they can't heal the damage done by the game's design. Building castles in Crusader 2 feel almost childish, like you're making them in a sandbox. I can't believe I'm saying that about a Stronghold game! Stairs are too large and don't look good. Instead of being on towers, siege engines are now mounted on wooden platforms that can somehow stay stable at that height. And don't get me started on the walls. In SH2, they cost more, but are immune to regular troop attacks. Crusader 2 took that away and said f*** you. Here, walls don't come cheap, yet the enemy can demolish them at the drop of a turban. What's the point of building a castle, then? It's not like we get a large variety of towers or traps to choose from. Other aspects have been changed for seemingly no reason. No more siege towers and laddermen, so there goes one of your options for sieges. No more tanners. Iron used to be valuable. Weapon workshops only produce one thing because... streamlining? But this is bad design because being able to switch production [i]is[/i] useful. Late-game, when you have less of a need for archers and spearmen, you can switch to crossbows and pikes instead of replacing your workshops. What, did they think players are too stupid to click an extra button? And why change the popularity system? It worked fine in earlier Strongholds. If it goes down, your popularity decreases gradually, so you have time to adjust. Now whenever you see red, you have to take care of it immediately or your peasants start leaving. It gets distracting when you're supposed to be defending or laying siege. The graphics don't seem to have gotten much of an upgrade compared to Stronghold 2. Things look a bit bright and gaudy, a far cry from the tastefully drawn landscapes of the original. In-game models are basic. I would give this a pass if it meant better performance, but sadly that isn't the case. The UI and 2D art is not bad, but could be better. Using Papyrus as your main font is just... no. The CGI rarely looks good. Richard (the guy on the cover of the store page) actually looked better on the cover of the OG Crusader. Worse, they replaced the original voices for the Rat and men-at-arms from Legends, and the difference is night and day. The new lines sound like they're reading from a script, lacking character or distinctiveness. Overacting has been a signature of Stronghold since the first game. While characters tended to one-note and underdeveloped, they were still memorable for having unique voices and punchy delivery. They even removed the peasant lines. That's how un-Stronghold this game has gotten. And instead of improving the AI, they cheat and spawn troops out of nowhere. At least Crusader Extreme lets you destroy the outposts to stop the relentless enemy hordes. Assassins have bugged movement. The occasional lag and crash bring this game down further. It's such a shame because I wanted to like Crusader 2. I thought it would be a faithful recreation of the original Crusader in 3D, or even Stronghold 2 in the desert. Instead, I got a slightly better Stronghold 3.