**Game purchased at Gamersgate.com; developer provided free Steam key for Black Edition update**
After several hours playing the original game of Medieval Battlefields (MB), the Black Edition offers pretty much what the developers describe: “…plenty of improvements and major bug fixes. Game looks and plays better overall, there are new visuals and existing artwork is improved. The units are rebalanced, single-player AI is improved and the mechanics now display added functionality. Battlefields and maps are enhanced. Multiplayer system, account creation and networking are upgraded and considerably more stable. There are added Steam achievements, Steam Cloud functionality and soon-to-be-implemented Steam trading cards.”
The product has a cozy boardgame feel to it, and most strategy gamers will have little need for the online manual, except perhaps to check some of the Siege rules in the game. Movement and combat is reminiscent of Panzer Corps (PC), with a few differences. First, there is no defensive support from adjacent units like artillery or AT in PC. What I’ve always disliked about PC is the numerical (1-15) representation of unit strengths. In MB, strength is based on a percentage of 1-100, so there is more variability in combat losses. Also, there are no combat predictions to hold your hand, as in PC.
Although the game is simple and straightforward, there are fortunately plenty of options to extend replayability. English, French and Vikings with 9 different units – although not dramatically different performance-wise. Also, each of the 9 buildings that construct units can be upgraded twice. So theoretically, one player can have 27 units with slightly different stats on the game board at one time. Swordsmen, Halberdiers, Crossbowmen, Knights, Archers, etc. must be used as historically. It is possible to compare your unit’s stats with a competitor’s to determine what bonuses will be in effect before combat.
“Fast-paced” is a good description of the gameplay, and the designers fortunately chose TBS rather than RTS. Players must decide whether to go for villages, farms and other structures which will gain them income or capture the opponent(s) castles(s) while defending their own. There are fortification bonuses available and castles can also be recaptured by their original owners.
There is no fog of war, in part because it would cause AI scripting to be infinitely more complex, if not impossible. Instead, the AI(s) zero in on enemy castles first, bonus hexes second, and vulnerable enemy units third. This simplification makes for a much tougher artificial opponent. I watched two AIs play on a tiny map for almost 10 minutes before one finally got the upper hand. I believe this illustrates that the AI rarely makes mistakes.
There are 26 maps available from 8x8 up to one 24x24 monster. The 16x16 maps are ideal, and up to 8 players or AIs can take each slot and starting location. Depending on the set-up, this “simple” game can get quite complex with numerous armies vying for position and the battle constantly swaying back and forth. Larger games are most enjoyable and present the most challenge. Multiplayer would add further complexity, although as a single-player gamer, I did not attempt to start an MP game and cannot comment on the health of the lobby, etc.
I encountered no bugs or crashes, but I never had a problem with the older version either. What I would wish for most in a patch is more 24x24 maps and/or a map generator. Fortunately, there is a good variety of 16x16, but hey, we could use a few more.
Even with the intense competition among other $10 games on Steam, I feel a price of $8 to $12 is fair for this title. A $5 sale may come one day, but for now that would simply be unfair to the developer based on what has been created in the Black Edition.
