Crown Wars: The Black Prince
A medieval turn-based tactics game against a black-magic cult.
Crown Wars: The Black Prince is a 2024 turn-based tactics video game developed by Artefacts Studio and published by Nacon. Set during the Hundred Years' War, the game follows a French noble who must stop a cult using black magic to manipulate the conflict for its own purposes. It is notable for blending tactical combat with a strategic castle-management layer reminiscent of XCOM, and for its procedural generation of quests and campaigns.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Crown Wars: The Black Prince
- Developer
- Artefacts Studio
- Publisher
- Nacon
- Platforms
- PlayStation 5 / Windows / Xbox Series X/S
- Released
- WW · May 23, 2024
- Genre
- Turn-based tactics, tactical role-playing game
- Modes
- Single-player
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
During the Hundred Years' War, a secret society employs black magic to steer the conflict. Players control a French noble who opposes the cultists. Beyond the cult, five other factions vie for power: the French under Charles V, the English led by Edward III and commanded by Edward the Black Prince, the Bretons split between French and English loyalties, the Navarrese under Charles II of Navarre, and the Castilians, who wield prototype firearms but are beset by civil war. Players build and train forces, then dispatch them in turn-based tactical battles. Weapon types have unique properties—halberds can strike multiple opponents, and longswords bypass armor. Six character classes are available, and recruited characters can be customized via skill trees. The castle can be upgraded in a strategic layer similar to XCOM. Quests and the campaign are procedurally generated and subject to time limits; players must consider mission availability when deploying squads, and injured characters may be unavailable while healing.
Reader's Guide
Crown Wars: The Black Prince received mixed reviews on Metacritic across all platforms. TechRadar, after a review in January 2022, criticized the voice acting, keybinding, and limited animation variety, but praised the strategic elements and the premise as a solid base. Digitally Downloaded felt the game largely ignored the Hundred Years' War, calling it a generic XCOM clone with a medieval skin; they reported exhaustion from long quests and an inability to connect with the game, partly due to poor voice acting. GamingBolt described the gameplay as 'a lot of fun' but let down by a weak story and poor voice acting. The game's significance lies in its attempt to merge XCOM-style strategic and tactical gameplay with a historical fantasy setting, though reception indicates that execution issues—particularly in narrative and voice performance—prevented it from achieving broader acclaim.
Did You Know?
- The game features six character classes and skill trees for customization.
- The Switch version was planned for release in December 2024.
- Quests and the campaign are procedurally generated with time limits.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Crown Wars: The Black Prince?
It is a 2024 turn-based tactics video game developed by Artefacts Studio and published by Nacon. Set during the Hundred Years' War, it follows a French noble who must dismantle a black-magic cult that is secretly manipulating the conflict for its own ends.
What are the core gameplay mechanics in Crown Wars: The Black Prince?
The title pairs grid-based tactical combat with a strategic castle-management layer often compared to XCOM's structure. On top of that, quests and entire campaigns are procedurally generated, so no two playthroughs follow the same sequence of challenges.
What platforms is Crown Wars: The Black Prince available on?
The game released on May 23, 2024, for Windows PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S.
What is the story of Crown Wars: The Black Prince?
Players step into the shoes of a French noble tasked with stopping a cult that uses forbidden black magic to steer the Hundred Years' War in its favor. The narrative weaves through five distinct factions—French, English, Breton, Navarrese, and Castilian—alongside the cultist antagonists.
What makes Crown Wars: The Black Prince stand out among other 2020s tactics games?
Its blend of XCOM-style castle management with procedurally generated campaigns gives it a replayability hook many peer titles lack. The medieval Hundred Years' War backdrop, populated by five playable factions plus the cult, also lends it a historical flavor that is relatively rare in the turn-based strategy space.
More in Turn-Based Strategy Games of the 2020s 1-17
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