Crusader Kings III is a strategy multiplayer RPG developed by Paradox Development Studio. It is an engaging mix of intriguing plots and dramas. The game is so immersive you can hardly take a minute to breathe. Just like its prequel, you sit at the helm of affairs in a medieval kingdom. Your job is to expand the kingdom and keep it prosperous. 

Your tools are unchanged: diplomacy, intrigue, and of course, warfare. The beginning starts you with a tutorial, but you can always access it throughout the game. While you can drill your fun from an exciting journey of dynastical dominance, a dysfunctional family is enough to keep your blood running faster than normal.

Big On Characters

If you’ve played other Crusader Kings games, you should know how big the game is on character development. The game’s unpretentious plot revolves around nations, but the emphasis on characters floors the former without question. The characters are full of life, with individualism and dreams. You’re going to have entire episodes of drama trying to adopt and raise them.

The characters have varying personalities, with an endless list of adjectives to describe their number in Crusader Kings III. But these traits didn’t just fall from heaven; they are traceable to one altering event or the other. Some are hereditary, while some stem from an abusive event in the character’s childhood. 

One great thing about the character dynamic is that you can deliberately breed certain characters. This breeding allows you to arrange marriages between characters with traits that you love. That way, they pass the desirable traits to their offspring – who you then adopt. The longer a character lives, the more complex their traits become. However, there is always a general direction these characters go. So you can easily tell a brash villain from the opposite. 

Even more enjoyable about these characters is the incredible way they appear. They are 3D-animated, with their unique characteristics reflected in their appearance. These appearances do no stay constant throughout the game. As they get older and go through different episodes, diseases and senescence begin to affect the way they appear. It’s interesting to watch these characters take on challenges, beat all odds, and find their way to the top.

The World Is Yours For The Taking

If you folded your hands for a minute, your dynasty would come crumbling. So, there’s no time to waste. The king has to be properly equipped at all times and there are certain milestones you must meet. The good thing is that Crusader Kings III always has something for you – something that leaps you forward in your goals. While, many a time, you’ll be caught between making important decisions, a simple event like caring for a dog can be fulfilling. 

The game offers lifestyles, just like classes, that stand for the different skills in the game. Characters often lean towards particular lifestyles by reason of education. However, you can ignore that and just go ahead to choose a lifestyle anytime in the game. The only thing to lose is the character progression so far. Within lifestyles, there are specific areas you can major in. That way, you can rake in incredible bonuses and XP.

Progression hinges more on the twists and stories instead of quests like you’ll find in many traditional RPGs. The fact that the lifestyles each give you something different is simply amazing. In my first playthrough, I went with the intrigue lifestyle, and it was enthralling. There are so many secrets to uncover, so many mysteries to unravel. Also, when the spawns set in, you become what you never believed you were.  You don’t stay the good guy forever. The intrigues are so complex; you’ll have to keep spinning. 

Your Stress Level Controls You

Surviving Crusader Kings III is all about making decisions – never-ending ones. One decision leads to another, and then another. If these decisions had no severe consequences hanging on their tails, there’d be no worry. But here, they could either make or mar you. When you make wrong decisions, that is, decisions that contrast your personality, your stress level builds up.

If you’ve had issues with the no-consequence actions in most RPGs, then Crusader Kings III is absolutely enjoyable. You just can’t stand up and make certain decisions without suffering from them. Here’s a game replete with karma.

A Lovely Geographical Thrill

The simulated universe of Crusader Kings III is nothing but thrilling. It’s large, stretching from Europe to Africa and then all the way to Asia. It makes nonsense of the small fragments of land in the previous installment by giving you expansive terrains. These areas are unique in their own right, with terrific buildings and geographical peculiarities.

To maintain and grow your dynasty in Crusader Kings III, there are many battles you’ll have to fight. The enemies must become vanquish, and employing the services of knights is an excellent way to get. Knights start as ordinary court members but quickly – by their ambition – grow into powerful forces in the dynasty. If you’re not careful, they could be usurping your authority in no time. 

A Final Look

Crusader III doesn’t let you relax for a minute, with one story leading to another. It looks like the wrong edges of Crusader II was properly chipped while the holes were filled. The game is the most intriguing Crusader Kings installment so far.  The more you play the game, the more you discover interesting systems and twist. You’ll never get bored.