Stronghold’s next chapter - welcome to The Dark Ages. FireFly Studios is keeping quiet for now, but we should hear more soon
A new mainline game is on the horizon after years of remasters. Stronghold The Dark Ages is being built in Unreal Engine 5.
We may have just gotten Stronghold Crusader: Definitive Edition, but it looks like FireFly Studios might reveal a completely new game soon, not just another refresh of an old classic. Someone did a little detective work and found out some pretty interesting things.
Stronghold fans, get ready: The Dark Ages are coming
The Stronghold series is almost 25 years old now. In recent years, FireFly Studios has treated us to remasters of the first two games plus a mobile entry. Nothing to complain about – judging by the Steam reviews, players welcomed them with open arms. But the last full-fledged installment was 2021’s Stronghold: Warlords, which didn’t really hit the mark with fans or critics. So, it’s hard to blame FireFly for turning their attention to polishing up the classics everyone loves most. And just a reminder: the studio was acquired by Devolver Digital in 2021.
Over three years ago, the devs teased they were working on “a new mainline entry,” but we hadn’t heard anything since. Now, someone on Reddit has dug up a UK trademark (filed in April 2024) that reveals the name. The next Stronghold is going to be called The Dark Ages.
This new Stronghold is being built in Unreal Engine 5, which makes you wonder: will they go full 3D, or stick to the 2D/3D hybrid style we saw in Warlords? Die-hard fans might not be thrilled if the series completely abandons the classic isometric look we’ve known for years.
As for the name, The Dark Ages likely points to the period between the fall of the Roman Empire and the 10th century. From what we can tell, the core idea of the game probably won’t stray far from the original. Once again, we’ll be stepping into medieval Europe, famous for its iconic buildings and fortifications. For now, all we can do is wait for more info from the devs, hopefully we’ll hear something this year.
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Author: Olga Racinowska
Been with gamepressure.com since 2019, mostly writing game guides but you can also find me geeking out about LEGO (huge collection, btw). Love RPGs and classic RTSs, also adore quirky indie games. Even with a ton of games, sometimes I just gotta fire up Harvest Moon, Stardew Valley, KOTOR, or Baldur's Gate 2 (Shadows of Amn, the OG, not that Throne of Bhaal stuff). When I'm not gaming, I'm probably painting miniatures or admiring my collection of retro consoles.
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