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Stronghold Crusader

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Revision as of 12:28, 7 January 2023 by Plok (talk | contribs)
Stronghold Crusader
Stronghold Crusader cover
Developers
Firefly Studios
Publishers
Retail Take-Two Interactive
Retail Gathering of Developers
Retail (Extreme) Gamecock Media Group
Retail (Collection) 2K Games
HD Firefly Studios
Release dates
Windows September 27, 2002
macOS (OS X) November 1, 2012
Reception
Metacritic 78
Taxonomy
Monetization One-time game purchase
Modes Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing Real-time
Perspectives Bird's-eye view, Isometric
Controls Multiple select, Point and select
Genres Building, RTS
Themes Medieval, Middle East
Series Stronghold
Stronghold Crusader on HowLongToBeat
Stronghold Crusader on IGDB
Stronghold Crusader on MobyGames
Stronghold Crusader on Wikipedia
Stronghold
Stronghold (2001) 2001
Stronghold Crusader 2002
Stronghold 2 2005
Stronghold Legends 2006
Stronghold Crusader Extreme 2008
Stronghold 3 2011
Stronghold Kingdoms 2012
Stronghold Crusader 2 2014
Stronghold: Warlords 2021
Stronghold: Definitive Edition 2023

Warnings

The macOS (OS X) version of this game does not work on macOS Catalina (version 10.15) or later due to the removal of support for 32-bit-only apps.
GameSpy online services have been shut down (see Network for solutions).

General information

Official Firefly Studios game page
Official forums
Stronghold Heaven - A fan site for the game
GOG.com Community Discussions for game series
GOG.com Support Page
Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Disc check (requires the CD/DVD in the drive to play)
SafeDisc v2 DRM in the original release, SecuROM v7 DRM in Extreme. The HD patch removes the DRM for both.
Windows
GamersGate
Icon overlay.png
Stronghold Crusader HD
Windows
Gamesplanet logo.svg
Icon overlay.png
Stronghold Crusader HD
Windows
GOG.com
DRM-free
Stronghold Crusader HD. Comes bundled with the original retail release.
Windows
macOS (OS X)
Green Man Gaming
Icon overlay.png
Stronghold Crusader HD
Windows
Humble Store
DRM-free
Stronghold Crusader HD
Icon overlay.png
Windows
Steam
DRM-free after installation through Steam client (notes may include more details)
Stronghold Crusader HD
Windows
Steam
DRM-free after installation through Steam client (notes may include more details)
The Stronghold Collection.
Windows
Amazon.com (unavailable)
DRM-free
Stronghold Crusader HD.
Windows
All versions can be upgraded to Stronghold Crusader HD for free with the HD patch (adds widescreen support, bug fixes, retail Warchest edition content, and the Extreme content for the 2002 release users).
Free demo versions of the original and Extreme releases are available from GameFront.

Version differences

Stronghold Crusader is the original 2002 release.
The version of the game from the Stronghold Warchest compilation (bundled with Stronghold (2001)) includes exclusive AI lords and a second skirmish trail.
Stronghold Crusader Extreme is a 2008 variant which includes the Warchest version of vanilla Crusader and a special executable which contains its own skirmish trail, as well as gameplay changes like auto-training units and a support power charger.
Stronghold Crusader HD is a 2012 version of both Crusader and Crusader Extreme which is updated with widescreen support and bug fixes. Free upgrade for owners of previous versions.

Essential improvements

Official HD patch

The official patch will upgrade a retail copy of Stronghold Crusader or Crusader Extreme to Crusader HD, with all content featured in the latest build. The latest version, 1.4.1, can be downloaded here.

Unofficial Crusader Patch (UCP)

This patch offers a range of updates, from small balancing-tweaks to all new features. Its download and source code can be found here.

Skip intro video

Delete/move/rename video file
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\binks.
  2. Delete, move or rename intro.bik.

Game data

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Stronghold Crusader\crusader.cfg
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Stronghold Crusader Extreme\crusader.cfg
Steam Play (Linux) <SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/40970/pfx/[Note 1]

macOS (OS X) }}

Save game data location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Stronghold Crusader\Saves\
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Stronghold Crusader Extreme\Saves\
macOS (OS X)
Steam Play (Linux) <SteamLibrary-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/40970/pfx/[Note 1]

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
GOG Galaxy
OneDrive
Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud

Video

Video settings (HD version)
Video settings (HD version)

Graphics feature State WSGF Notes
Widescreen resolution
Resolutions up to 2560x1600.[1] For the original release, install the official HD patch.
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)
Windowed
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Borderless fullscreen windowed
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Vertical sync (Vsync)
60 FPS
120+ FPS
Depends on game speed; up to 90 FPS
High dynamic range display (HDR)
See the glossary page for potential alternatives.

Input

Keyboard and mouse State Notes
Remapping
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
Mouse input in menus
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support
Controller types

Audio

Audio settings (HD version)
Audio settings (HD version)

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
Music, FX, speech
Surround sound
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
Simplified Chinese
French
German
Hungarian
Italian
Japanese
Polish
Brazilian Portuguese
Russian
Spanish
Ukrainian
HD version only

Network

Multiplayer types

Type Native Players Notes
Local play
LAN play
8 Versus
Online play
8 Versus
GameSpy services have been shut down;[2] see GameSpy for workarounds.

Connection types

Ports

Protocol Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP 2300-2400, 47624
UDP 2300-2400
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes State Notes
vorpX
2D
2D with dgVoodoo 2, no vorpx profile required for 2D.

Issues fixed

Game fails to launch on Windows 10

Install DirectPlay

Missing tactical powers on 1360x768 (Extreme)

Stronghold Crusader Extreme Tactical Powers.png
The tactical powers bar is not displayed while playing on 1360x768.
Change the resolution[3]
  1. Set a lower resolution before starting the mission.
  2. Change to 1360x768 during the mission.

Notes

The steps must be repeated for each mission.

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
DirectDraw 7.0
OpenGL
OS X only.
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows
macOS (OS X)
This 32-bit-only macOS game does not work on macOS Catalina (10.15) or later.

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Audio Miles Sound System 6.1c
Cutscenes Bink Video 1.2h
Multiplayer GameSpy

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) 98, ME, 2000, XP
Processor (CPU) Intel Pentium II 300 MHz
System memory (RAM) 64 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 850 MB
Video card (GPU) 4 MB of VRAM
DirectX 7.0 compatible


Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Notes regarding Steam Play (Linux) data:

References