Playing Kingdom: Classic after Two Crowns

Kingdom: Classic for a while was all we had from the Kingdom series (now on its third version), but now serves as a sort of proof of concept for what would be elaborated and improved on in New Lands and furthermore in Two Crowns. However, even though it is essentially outdated today, it remains a rock solid game. Kingdom: Classic is elegant in the simplicity of its gameplay and systems in an act that transcends age or relevance.

This shrine is vital for the continued existence of your kingdom, it allows you to get walls that are worth a damn.

The story of Kingdom is more or less nonexistent, what matters is that you're a dispossessed king or queen who is tasked with rebuilding their shattered kingdom and transforming the local vagrant population into productive members of your little bastion. There is an element/aura of environmental storytelling which is occasionally quite captivating. I found myself stopping at the vagrant camps and taking in the gloomy and hopeless atmosphere there. All of this was accomplished without any subtle changes or other cheap techniques of building dread, just the almost blind stumbling of the entirely silent beggars. by their roaring fire. The Greed as a foe are essentially Speedy Gonzales in zombie blob form, and they're here to steal all of your gold, tools, as well as your unfortunately gold crown in a frenzy of avarice. They aren't very strong, but they come swiftly in large numbers, and the larger ones are devastating. One can only imagine the cataclysm of their entry into the world, but at the same time there's an element of innocence to them, they only want to grab the shiny stuff.

They're baa-ack...

The tagline for the game is 'Build, Expand, Defend', and this perfectly encapsulates the gameplay. It's also a far slower game than it feels at times, and its pretty easy to overplay when you're on a roll (as I frequently did) and get your villagers massacred. Coins serve as both your principle resource and your hit points, and anything that gets you more is a good thing, though carry too much and you'll hemorrhage the coins that can't fit into your sack, potentially losing some for good. The various things you can spend your coins on in this game are pretty expensive coming from Two Crowns, but it shouldn't be long before you're practically throwing it away. Also the visuals are pleasing to the eye and are quite unique despite being pixel art, so that's a plus I'd say.

From humble beginnings your kingdom will prevail! Or just collapse like your previous attempts, it happens.

Though it is an incredibly solid game, there are a few problems with it, though these mostly are a commentary on its age. First, though it may not seem like it when you're just setting up your camp, there isn't a heck of a lot of content here to work with, and what little there is isn't explained at all. I'm aware that the game is based on player discovery, but playing this now it feels as if this was a tactic to mask the lack of content (Though the nature of the gameplay does limit what they're capable of including). Also, each camp you build (rebuild?) is the exact same, though maybe the location of the farmer vendor and the workshop are switched. While this potential turn-off isn't really addressed in either New Lands or Two Crowns (though there are differing conditions on the islands that force you to change your style and adapt), the issue of content is improved in spades.

In short, though Kingdom: Classic certainly shows its age, it is nice to see where the Kingdom series found its start and that its problems are being addressed. It's definitely worth several hours, though veterans like myself will likely find it rather easy (at first). I would recommend Two Crowns or New Lands over this right now as they are objectively better, but if you'd like a taste of what Kingdom is all about, and without having to clear several islands to unlock the full toolkit (like in Two Crowns) you can't go wrong with the original.

This was the attack that did me in. You hate to see it folks.