Info about Stronghold 2: Steam Edition:

Official game description:
  
_Stronghold 2: Steam Edition_ allows players to experience true ‘castle life’ gameplay. Entertain your subjects or rule with an iron fist, dispensing medieval justice to overworked and malnourished peasants. With powerful barons jostling for power over a disintegrating kingdom, it is up to you to stem the tides of ambition and unite the land under the one true King! With an intricate economy, siege warfare, crime and punishment systems and classic medieval events, this highly anticipated sequel to the award-winning _Stronghold_ comes packed with new additions to classic Stronghold gameplay.
Key Features
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*   **Stronghold Reforged** – Enjoy Steam multiplayer, Workshop, achievements, visual enhancements, new maps and more!  
*   **Rule as You Desire** – Rehabilitate or simply execute thieving peasants using everything from gibbets to gallows!  
*   **Simulate Castle Life** – Duel inside buildings, hold lavish banquets or build a war economy and lay siege to rival lords.  
*   **Take the Crown** – Gain Honour by title, strategy or force and dominate the new ‘Kingmaker’ skirmish mode.  
*   **Craft Custom Maps** – Create and share custom scenarios via Steam Workshop using the in-game map editor.  
*   **Besiege Your Friends** – Battle up to eight players online in Kingmaker and Deathmatch game modes.
Steam Edition
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Building on the sim gameplay of the original _Stronghold_, Stronghold 2 allows players to rule as they please and still conquer each skirmish. Unhappy peasants turn to crime and must be punished, rival lords can raise entire armies on their title alone and sieges must be fought tooth and nail, with close combat taking place inside castle structures! Stronghold 2 Online extends this gameplay to competitive multiplayer for up to eight players over Steam, with offline skirmish mode also available against computer-controller opponents.  
Created exclusively for Steam, _Stronghold 2: Steam Edition_ comes with Steam multiplayer support, achievements, a new map pack, digital art book, soundtrack and trading cards. The Steam Edition also updates Stronghold 2 with full Steam Workshop integration, allowing to you easily create and share custom maps with friends. Recreate iconic real-life castles, battlegrounds from medieval history and scenes from your favourite fantasy epic!

Release date: 

Categories: City Builder, Strategy, Simulation, Resource Management, Multiplayer, Base Building, Economic Simulation

Feature scans:
- Steam Deck: score 90; verdict: Broken; summary: The analysis of user feedback reveals several critical issues affecting the gaming experience. Frequent crashes and control issues are the most significant problems, with multiple users reporting these issues. While there is positive feedback regarding the graphics and gameplay design, the frequent crashes and control issues severely impact the overall experience. Minor issues with game elements are also noted but do not have a substantial effect on gameplay.

- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Rich gameplay mechanics (weight 0.09): The game offers a wide variety of mechanics and possibilities, providing players with numerous options and strategies.
- Distinct visual style (weight 0.09): The game features a unique and self-ironic visual style that sets it apart from other games in the genre.
- Game still great despite issues (weight 0.09): Despite some issues, players generally agree that the game is still great and enjoyable.
- Praised music (weight 0.09): The music in the game is highly praised by players, enhancing the overall gaming experience.
- More complex production chains (weight 0.09): Players express a desire for more branched and complex production chains to add depth to the game.
- Stronghold 2 is great (weight 0.09): Players praise Stronghold 2 as a great game, highlighting its overall quality and enjoyment.
- Building redesign needed (weight 0.08): Some players suggest that certain buildings in the game could benefit from a redesign to improve gameplay or aesthetics.
- AI in multiplayer (weight 0.08): The original version of the game featured AI in multiplayer mode, which some players miss or appreciate.

Common complaints:
- Bugs and glitches (weight 0.95): The game has various bugs, including unit selection issues, units phasing through each other, and original bugs still present from previous versions.
- Constant attacks and population issues (weight 0.85): Players face immediate and continuous attacks by outlaws and wolves, along with constant population dissatisfaction.
- Poorly explained mechanics (weight 0.4): The game lacks clear in-game explanations and tutorials, forcing players to refer to external sources to understand mechanics.
- Gameplay balance and pacing (weight 0.3): The campaign is tediously slow, while non-military campaigns are too quick. The difficulty ramps up too quickly, requiring building spamming.
- New antagonists and enemy issues (weight 0.2): New antagonists appear suddenly and lack charisma or tactics. Enemies on ladders are immune to wall defenses.
- Inferior to Definitive Edition (weight 0.15): The game is considered inferior to Stronghold Definitive Edition, feeling like a rip-off despite its low price.
- Market and editing issues (weight 0.14): Players can sell disabled items at the market, and there is less detailed terrain editing compared to previous versions.

Gameplay feedback:
- Poor game balance (weight 0.36): Players report issues with game balance, including poorly managed production chains, continuous bandit attacks, and additional requirements compared to the first version of the game.
- Complex gameplay mechanics (weight 0.35): The game offers a variety of mechanics including building, resource management, and multiple game modes such as campaign and multiplayer.
- Inadequate tutorial and feedback (weight 0.33): The game's tutorial is considered poor, and there is insufficient feedback and guidance provided to the players.
- Slow campaign progression (weight 0.08): The campaign mode is criticized for being tediously slow, affecting the overall enjoyment of the game.
- Sudden antagonist appearances (weight 0.08): New antagonists appear unexpectedly, which can disrupt gameplay and frustrate players.

Performance notes:
- Frequent game crashes reported (weight 0.37): Multiple users have reported that the game frequently crashes, especially when alt-tabbing or during multiplayer sessions. These crashes occur even on high-end PCs, indicating potential stability issues.
- Various bugs reported (weight 0.08): Players have encountered different bugs, referred to as 'Prorva bugs,' which vary in size and impact. These bugs can affect the overall gaming experience.

Recommendations:
- Steam Edition Not Recommended (weight 0.22): Players do not recommend the Steam Edition of the game due to its lack of complete multiplayer features.

Other player notes:
No miscpoints

Emotions:
- Frustration (weight 0.5): Players experience frustration primarily due to technical issues such as frequent game crashes on Windows and poor performance. Additionally, the controls and AI are reported as non-functional, and the game suffers from numerous bugs, poorly explained mechanics, and outdated save files. The poor tutorial and insufficient feedback mechanisms further exacerbate these issues.
- Disappointment (weight 0.43): Disappointment stems from the lack of a modern interface and detailed explanations in the Steam Edition, as well as the loss of atmosphere and numerous bugs in the 3D transition. Players also feel let down by the game's pacing, difficulty, and the removal of AI in multiplayer, which they perceive as a disregard for long-time fans.
- Anger (weight 0.07): Anger is primarily caused by the removal of features in the Steam version, which players feel diminishes the overall quality and value of the game.}