Majesty 2 - The Fantasy Kingdom Sim (PC)
- Publisher:
- Paradox Interactive
- Developer:
- 1C
- Release Date:
- 2009
- Minimum System:
- n/a
- Type:
- Action
- Reality Factor:
- Fantasy
- Real Time:
- Real Time
- Combat Status:
- Militaristic
- Age:
- Ancient Times
3 movies
Majesty 2 - The Fantasy Kingdom Sim Preview
Paradox Interactive have been pretty busy this year, and their line up has been expanded to include the Majesty franchise, a humorous cult classic originally developed by Cyberlore Studios. The first Majesty was released back in 2000 and was a lower spec 2D title, that gave a unique and subtly ironic twist on the simulation/strategy genre.
A sequel was planned, but it was scrapped due to a lack of publisher support. Now it is 8 years later, and Paradox has picked up the IP and are planning their own portfolio based on this interesting franchise. Majesty 2 was first announced in April, and is slated for release during the first quarter of next year. In some one-on-one time with Developers 1C:Ino-Co, Strategy Informer was allowed to see a late-stage build, and quiz PR Manager Alexey Pastushenko as to how it was coming along.
The original idea of Majesty was to turn its chosen genre on its head, with the main theme being 'Indirect Control'. The player plays as the local sovereign or King, who exercises the same amount of power as a ruler would. Instead of the player building the town manually, they chose what buildings they want, and the town builds itself. Instead of the player training an army and ordering it around, the King must attract heroes and mercenaries to his town to form the army. This 'hired help' must then be kept content with monetary incentives, so that when your town is attacked they help defend, and when you want something done they will go ahead and do it. It is this kind of c ounter-cliché attitude that made Majesty such a hit, and Paradox are doing everything they can to make sure that is still predominant in their own title.
Town building has been improved, with a whole host of tools and buildings available to the player, from Blacksmiths that your recruited Heroes can buy equipment from, to Markets and Tax buildings. The 'flag' tool will become an important feature, as it has been contextualised to do different things depending on where it is placed. This tool can be used to encourage your heroes to go to a certain area, or try and force them to attack a monster who is assaulting the townsfolk. More tools will be available to the player in order to 'equip' their town, these range from upgrading buildings, to placing defensive towers, or even laying traps for enemy monsters.
A lot of the action in Majesty however revolves around your heroes. Heroes will protect your town, they will find loot for you, and generally keep you in power. In order to attract heroes you need money. Not all of the ways you can collect money have been revealed yet, but it will probably be along the lines of taxing and gold-generating buildings. Money can also be used to upgrade buildings, and place 'bounties' on certain enemies, ensuring that your mercenaries do their jobs. The hero system has actually been re-vamped for this game, including more diverse classes, more higher-tiers for classes, as well as new enhancements and improvements.
One of the interesting points about Majesty in general is that it is probably the only game around that has coded in a gameplay mechanic for a person's 'Ego'. This fact hasn't changed with Majesty 2. Not only do you have to provide the right incentives for your 'hired guns', but you also have to take into account the type and level of the target - You want them to go take out the fabled dark troll of Gorbesh? No problem. You want them to go quell a local rat infestation however? That's a little beneath them isn't it? This ideology has been coded into the game itself, and it should generate some pretty humorous occasions indeed. Heroes can also be formed into groups or 'raids' which adds another interesting dynamic as they have to interact and work with each other. If done well, this could be one of the highlights of the game as it would place you right in the middle of your own fantasy sitcom.
Another change that 1C has made is to shift Majesty 2 from 2D to 3D by improving the graphics model. A standard change, as most games these days have left behind the 2nd Dimension. Looking at the screenshots and of the Demo we were shown, it's looking very nice indeed, with decent rendering of both buildings and people, with a appropriate mix of shades and colours to give interesting environments.
So far, 1C and Paradox haven't released much else regarding what they have changed, but there have been changes. For example, for a copious amount of gold, the player may even be allowed to take direct control of a unit for a short period of time. (Controversial, I know.) There is also a portal system in place, which will allow the player to send their units to different locations quickly (again, at a cost). There will also be a more conventional transport system, possibly in the form of mounts or flying beasts. There will be four campaigns of 15 missions each, with an underlying story driving them, but 1C are keeping the details under wrap for the time being. A multi-player mode for up to 4 people via LAN will also be included.
Majesty 2 looks like it is on track to be another solid title for Paradox. Everything that made the original game fun to play seems to still be there, and the developers have added their own personal touch to it as well. There's still a good few months before release, so hopefully more details will emerge, perhaps even a demo. Definitely one to look out for.
A sequel was planned, but it was scrapped due to a lack of publisher support. Now it is 8 years later, and Paradox has picked up the IP and are planning their own portfolio based on this interesting franchise. Majesty 2 was first announced in April, and is slated for release during the first quarter of next year. In some one-on-one time with Developers 1C:Ino-Co, Strategy Informer was allowed to see a late-stage build, and quiz PR Manager Alexey Pastushenko as to how it was coming along.
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The original idea of Majesty was to turn its chosen genre on its head, with the main theme being 'Indirect Control'. The player plays as the local sovereign or King, who exercises the same amount of power as a ruler would. Instead of the player building the town manually, they chose what buildings they want, and the town builds itself. Instead of the player training an army and ordering it around, the King must attract heroes and mercenaries to his town to form the army. This 'hired help' must then be kept content with monetary incentives, so that when your town is attacked they help defend, and when you want something done they will go ahead and do it. It is this kind of c ounter-cliché attitude that made Majesty such a hit, and Paradox are doing everything they can to make sure that is still predominant in their own title.
Town building has been improved, with a whole host of tools and buildings available to the player, from Blacksmiths that your recruited Heroes can buy equipment from, to Markets and Tax buildings. The 'flag' tool will become an important feature, as it has been contextualised to do different things depending on where it is placed. This tool can be used to encourage your heroes to go to a certain area, or try and force them to attack a monster who is assaulting the townsfolk. More tools will be available to the player in order to 'equip' their town, these range from upgrading buildings, to placing defensive towers, or even laying traps for enemy monsters.
A lot of the action in Majesty however revolves around your heroes. Heroes will protect your town, they will find loot for you, and generally keep you in power. In order to attract heroes you need money. Not all of the ways you can collect money have been revealed yet, but it will probably be along the lines of taxing and gold-generating buildings. Money can also be used to upgrade buildings, and place 'bounties' on certain enemies, ensuring that your mercenaries do their jobs. The hero system has actually been re-vamped for this game, including more diverse classes, more higher-tiers for classes, as well as new enhancements and improvements.
 |
 |
|
One of the interesting points about Majesty in general is that it is probably the only game around that has coded in a gameplay mechanic for a person's 'Ego'. This fact hasn't changed with Majesty 2. Not only do you have to provide the right incentives for your 'hired guns', but you also have to take into account the type and level of the target - You want them to go take out the fabled dark troll of Gorbesh? No problem. You want them to go quell a local rat infestation however? That's a little beneath them isn't it? This ideology has been coded into the game itself, and it should generate some pretty humorous occasions indeed. Heroes can also be formed into groups or 'raids' which adds another interesting dynamic as they have to interact and work with each other. If done well, this could be one of the highlights of the game as it would place you right in the middle of your own fantasy sitcom.
Another change that 1C has made is to shift Majesty 2 from 2D to 3D by improving the graphics model. A standard change, as most games these days have left behind the 2nd Dimension. Looking at the screenshots and of the Demo we were shown, it's looking very nice indeed, with decent rendering of both buildings and people, with a appropriate mix of shades and colours to give interesting environments.
 |
 |
|
So far, 1C and Paradox haven't released much else regarding what they have changed, but there have been changes. For example, for a copious amount of gold, the player may even be allowed to take direct control of a unit for a short period of time. (Controversial, I know.) There is also a portal system in place, which will allow the player to send their units to different locations quickly (again, at a cost). There will also be a more conventional transport system, possibly in the form of mounts or flying beasts. There will be four campaigns of 15 missions each, with an underlying story driving them, but 1C are keeping the details under wrap for the time being. A multi-player mode for up to 4 people via LAN will also be included.
Majesty 2 looks like it is on track to be another solid title for Paradox. Everything that made the original game fun to play seems to still be there, and the developers have added their own personal touch to it as well. There's still a good few months before release, so hopefully more details will emerge, perhaps even a demo. Definitely one to look out for.
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how many versions are there altogether?