Stronghold Crusader HD was released a long time ago back in 2002 for real-time strategy game fans. As an HD release, its graphics quality is better than the original version, which was popular enough that the game developer decided to release an expanded version of it under the title of Stronghold: Crusader Extreme in 2008.

Before the extreme edition, there was another one called Stronghold Warchest which contains additional characters, but it was distributed only in certain countries. All of these game editions are fun to play even though there are differences between them, but gamers who always thirst for challenges might like the extreme edition better because it has a higher level of difficulty.

Features and Highlights

Unlike its predecessor where the conflicts takes place in England, the main focus of Stronghold Crusader HD is the conflicts in the Middle East. It also has eight AI characters which you can find in the Custom Skirmish mode. While the AI leaves much to be desired, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it is easy to win the game. You still need a good strategy to defeat enemies.

The Custom Skirmish mode can be played in three modes: Standard, Crusader, and Deathmatch. Standard is where all players start out with minimal amount of resources, Crusader provides more troops, while Deathmatch is ideal for players who lack patience in stockpiling resources.

The Historical Campaigns in the game are divided in four scenarios, each of which has five campaigns. The scenarios include The Call to Arms, Saladin’s Conquest, The Kings’ Crusade, and Crusader States.

Each campaign of the scenarios has an objective. For example, the first campaign in Saladdin’s Conquest is where you are tasked to eliminate all hostile troops. In the second campaign titled “Kerak – Reynald’s Treachery”, the objective is to destroy the cathedral. In “Aleppo, the Consolidation of Power”, which is the third campaign of the same scenario, your mission is to eliminate the enemy Lord.

The starting units are also different in each campaign. For example, in the first campaign mentioned above, you start out with 10 Arab bowmen, 1 battering ram, and 116 slingers. In the subsequent campaign, you get three assassins in addition to a number of swordsmen and slingers.

Stronghold Crusader HD is mostly about wars, but you can also play without getting involved in the wars by selecting the Castle Builder. This is the mode that lets you build castles to your heart’s content without having to worry about sudden attack by enemies. Make them as big and beautiful as possible and share what you have achieved after putting hours of work to your media social or video channel.

Stronghold Crusader HD Free Download for Windows

Stronghold Crusader HD is an old yet still entertaining game, at least for those who loves classic strategy games. Its AI is not always intelligent but it’s not enough of a reason to make people stop playing it. There is so much fun to enjoy from this game even if you aren’t born with the talent to design excellent military strategies. You can click the link below to download Stronghold Crusader HD for Windows: