Paradox Interactive Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim review

Most RTS games require you to give your units precise commands.

In Majesty 2, your heroes have their own AI and you’ll have to make it worth their while if you want anything done. You don’t have direct control of individual units, but can instead set Attack, Protect and Explore flags on buildings, locations and units. You’ll have to set a reward, too. Although low-level heroes will happily risk their lives for a pittance, it takes some serious funding to get the attention of your most powerful troops.

To hire heroes, you’ll need to build guildhouses for each class. Different classes prefer different tasks, and not all of them get along. For instance, rangers are more likely to explore new territory, while warriors are drawn to combat, but elves and dwarves can’t be used in the same mission. More character classes open up in later missions, along with the ability to group heroes into an adventuring party.

Each of the 16 missions follows a similar pattern. Initially, you’re given an opportunity to explore the map and build up your resources. The money you need to hire heroes comes from your local economy, so you’ll have to build markets, smithies and trading posts to sell goods. These will attract peasants, who’ll be taxed automatically. You’ll also need to guard towers while your heroes go off in search of gold. Soon you’ll encounter your main foe – defeat them to reach the next mission.

We were disappointed to find that we couldn’t continue playing in our little towns after we’d achieved the main objective. There’s no open-ended sandbox mode, either. Still, missions are challenging enough to keep RTS fans busy for hours and the indirect control system makes for a different tactical challenge.