Stronghold 2 Poll: What is your favourite trap?

Current Results

Did You Know?

On this day in history, 13th February 1014, Henry II (Bavaria), King of Germany and Italy - is crowned Emperor of The Holy Roman Empire, today. Read more »

Article of the week: Archduke

Another title that developed in the early Middle Ages, an Archduke developed in Germanic Nations (around the later9th Century). It was below an Empero … Read more »

Latest News

Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition Demo Available

Posted on 20th Jan 2025

Greetings Lords and Ladies,

Firefly Studios has revealed their plans to release Stronghold Crusader as a definitive edition on July 15th, 2025. 

An alpha demo is already available on for grabs if you want to try the current build (access on Steam, 1.6 GB size).

Much like Stronghold 1, this "re-release" aims to provide an experience close to that of the original game, with redone graphics and added content on top. SHC:DE promises to add the following:

  • 4 new AI characters
  • 8 new Bedouin mercenary units
  • 4 Sands of Time skirmish trails
  • a cooperative skirmish trail to battle alone or with a friend against the computer in a series of missions.

In the demo, you can select from two preset skirmish missions with limited tech. There is also a high score list if you want to track your progress.

It is strictly underlined that contents are liable to change in a later version, and the demo does not represent the final product.

[Fixed] Failed to Initialize the Engine' Error (Windows 11)

Posted on 27th Dec 2024

Since the 24H2 update rollout for Windows 11, the Vision engine games (SH3, SHC2, SHW) have a tendency to throw the error message in the title upon startup. The Windows update has been reported to hinder many games from functioning properly, and Firefly has also confirmed that they are working on a possible fix.

January 13, 2025 Update:

Firefly Studios has rolled out an official patch for all three games, resolving the issue. Simply update your desired game through Steam's built-in updater to receive the changes. You can then re-enable full screen mode from the in-game options.

The workaround detailed originally should not be needed anymore. Should the update not resolve the issues, please contact Firefly's official support with the error.

In case of further questions or need for assistance, please directly message us!