The combination of those elements creates an ' emergent narrative' that has since become the trademark of the game and its (very) numerous add-ons (see below). Furthermore, several text events popping up throughout the game add flavor and unexpected situations to it. While trying to survive and prosper in medieval Europe, the player will have to take care of numerous aspects of everyday life : finding a worthy wife/husband (preferably a cousin), ensuring the preferred heir receives a proper education, making sure the spymaster is loyal, plotting the assassination of a close relative, among many other chores. This feature was prominently advertised in the ' 7 deadly sins' web series on Youtube prior to the game's release :

As long as the character played has a title and an heir of his dynasty upon death, the game continues until 1453 (historical date of the Turkish conquest of Constantinople).Īlthough falling under the Grand Strategy category of video games, Crusader Kings II is particularly appreciated by its fanbase for its roleplaying aspect : all characters have defining traits, which they can acquire or lose through their life, fleshing out their personnality and behavior, and influencing the opinion of others. The most prominent feature of the game being that if the character played dies, the game doesn't end, but instead has the player take control of their heir. Any kind of starting position can be chosen, from a simple count to an all-powerful emperor. The game allows the player to incarnate a medieval ruler, historical or not, and help him protect, develop and grow his territory. It is possible some of its content will no longer be up-to-date when you read it.

Īuthor's Note : This entry was created in March 2017, 2 weeks after the release of the 'Monks & Mystics' expansion.

It is, to date, the most commercially successful strategy game PDS ever produced, with over 1 million copies sold as of September 2014. A Linux version was also released on Jan.14, 2013. Medieval, roleplay, mass slaughter, crusade, chivalry, christianity, islam, vikings, aztecs, mongol hordes, deus vult, video game, ck2Ĭrusader Kings II (aka CK2) is a Grand Strategy game set in the Middle Ages, developed by Paradox Development Studio (PDS) and released in 2012 on PC (Feb.14) and OS X (May 24). Paradox Development Studio / Paradox Interactive

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