Build me a castle!
The original Castles was a surprisingly enjoyable bit of strategy fun, and despite looking a bit dated, it's still worth a look today. However, it's just as easy to get hold of this sequel which improves on its predecessor in pretty much every way, so you're probably better off going for this one, especially if you're a fan of Stronghold Crusader 2 and the like. You start out the game by choosing a medieval lord from a choice of five. It's then your job to do whatever it takes to take the Crown for yourself, and this involves everything from spying, to being diplomatic with your neighbors to all-out war with any rival who dares stand in your way. Once you've reached a certain amount of points, representing the support you have from the people, you can ask the Pope if you can have the throne, and once you've ascended it, the fun really starts. You have to hold on to it for several more months in order to win the game, but your rival are going to be bitter and will really give you a hard time. Castles 2 scores a lot of points for being a pretty deep strategy fun that is actually very easy to learn, thus making it attractive to newcomers and veterans alike. The interface is very easy to pick up and you'll be planning castles and launching sieges in no time, but despite this simplicity, there's a lot of tactical depth to discover too. The visuals aren't exactly glorious, but they do their job well enough and are certainly easy on the eye. This is perhaps not meaty enough for hardcore strategy fans but if you are looking for a good time, it makes for a solid choice.
