Having both the tools and the dedicated fan base, Majesty 2 comes with a brand new story and revamped visuals destined to capture both the eyes and the hearts of RTS players everywhere. It is only fair to say that the narrative is not taking itself too serious, but succeeds in creating the fairytale atmosphere this game is all about. The action takes place in Ardania, where a line of kings ruled with wisdom and strength, making sure that their subjects live a happy and careless life.

Since most of the problems that plagued their kingdom were solved and all the evil creatures were dealt with, king Leonard grew restless, thinking his name will be quickly forgotten after his demise. Summoning a Demonlord to prove himself against, looked like the right path to choose, but unfortunately this foe proved to be more than a match for him and his guards. You are the only descendant of the royal bloodline and as a result it's your duty to reclaim the throne and vanquish the demon from these lands.

Fortunately you've got a competent advisor to guide you each step of the way, and the tutorial is explicit and detailed enough to make sure that you'll never be overwhelmed by unanswered questions. The campaign set is comprised of 16 missions that are gradually unlocked, revealing more challenges that should put your skills to test, due to a rather steep learning curve. The interesting thing about Majesty 2 is that the difficulty resides not in mastering the game mechanics, but in coming up with a solid strategy to overcome a string of seemingly insignificant problems.

First of all, the cornerstone of your base is the castle around which you are building both military and commercial structures and encourage citizens to settle and build peasant houses. Since the available resources are inadequate in the early stages, over expanding is the shortest way to collapse. Sewer entrances will be scattered around any flourishing town, causing constant attacks from rats that are swarming through these dark places and in the absence of an adequate defensive system, defeat is certain. While the rats themselves are more of a nuisance, their constant harass can weaken the defenses making your town vulnerable against more deadly foes.

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Wolfs and bears are also attacking your settlement, but at least their dens can be destroyed, putting an end to the threat, whilst sewers and graveyards are invulnerable. Instead of instructing your forces to eradicate these pests each time they decide to strike, one should take into consideration building a defensive tower. Despite the relatively low damage they inflict, these defensive structures are good enough to keep the critters at bay and prevent them from inflicting any damage on your buildings. Towers can also be constructed offensively, but since their price grows with each structure of the same type being erected, soon enough they become virtually unaffordable.

The purpose of each mission is to destroy an enemy edifice or to slay a vicious monster, so in order to do that you'll be forced to assemble a strong strike force. Guilds are providing you with resolute soldiers and a couple of upgrades for each of them, while more advanced structures as the blacksmith with allow you to research major upgrades. Each guild can only train up to three soldiers, but as they fight and triumph they level up and can learn superior spells or fighting techniques.

Constructing a second identical guild is possible at least in theory, but just like towers, building more structures of the same time is extremely expensive. It's better just to construct one guild of each type, and train a mixed army or rogues, rangers, warriors and wizards, then focus on leveling them up fast. Heroes will level up after each accomplished mission and as you progress with the campaign, their role will be increasingly important, but losing them in battle comes with a high resurrection cost as well.

Resources are the backbone of most strategy games, but in Majesty 2 they only play a marginal role, since they can't be harvested or acquired by trading. Instead, the wealth of the kingdom comes from its citizens, who pay taxes and from buildings that research desirable items your soldiers will purchase. To maximize the profits, you can also set up trading routes and send caravans, but they are extremely vulnerable to attacks and must be guarded at all time. If everything is carefully planned and works smoothly than the flow of cash should be steady, allowing you to focus more on the military side.

Micromanagement will never become an issue in Majesty 2, as troops can't be individually controlled, but instead they are only motivated to take a certain action by pledging an alluring ransom. The system is easy to pick up and revolves around a couple of flags that can be places in both uncharted areas of the map and enemy territory, each with its own purpose. You can decide between attacking an enemy building, defend a friendly structure or explore a distant area, but one thing you should always have in mind is setting the appropriate bounty.

The AI is very competent and your heroes will rarely risk their lives for insignificant prizes and are even capable of deciding between similar missions, depending on difficulty and bounty. Furthermore, troops trained in different guilds may have resentments against each other, such as elves and dwarfs which will never fight alongside.  Beside choosing between these sides, one should be willing to spend a few moments grouping similar heroes into parties to facilitate progress, by using their abilities in the best way.

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Conclusion:
Perhaps Majesty 2 is not going to change the way people see strategy games, but at least it has this original approach, delivered by a challenging and yet delightful product that is bound to make a good impression. Only time will tell if this unique concept will win new adepts, or if the more traditional ways of wagering war shall prevail, but at least for the moment this game offers a unique experience that shouldn't be passed.

Gameplay: 79

By putting micromanagement and resource gathering aside, Majesty 2 allows the player to focus more on the bigger picture just like a king, who should only be concerned with the grand challenges and not personally instruct each subject in combat or deal with mercantile issues. The missions are a bit repetitive but the quests are still intriguing and thanks to a competent AI on both sides, each scenario remains compelling, keeping the players wired and anxious for more.

Graphics: 81

Some people may find the graphics a bit too colorful and cartoonish, but frankly I am delighted with the way this game looks, creating the appropriate atmosphere. Buildings and units alike are carefully crafted and although they are not particularly rich in details, there is no reason to complain either. Fights are rather short but intense and even though you've got no real control over the way they unfold, it's fun to witness the vibrant action and cool animations.

Sounds: 79

The tutorial is not a lengthy one, but since the narration is slow and emphatic you are sometimes tempted to let go and descend into the tale. Units are not very talkative, but the few lines they utter are mildly amusing, while the music fits in nicely and constantly shifts accordingly to the action.

Multiplayer: 80

If you find the campaign set insufficient and believe that you're ready to push your limits, then trying the online experience is a must. Majesty 2 is demanding enough in singleplayer, but while this allows you to deploy trial and error tactics, facing a human opponent takes the challenge to a whole different level. Outsmarting your opponent requires in depth knowledge of the game and rigorous planning about the way resources should be spent, since you'll only have one chance to triumph.

Hardware: 81