Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim
Encyclopedia
Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim is a real-time strategy
game developed by Cyberlore Studios
and published by MicroProse
for Windows
in March, 2000. MacPlay
released a Mac OS
port in December, 2000. Infogrames
released the expansion pack Majesty: The Northern Expansion
for Windows in March, 2001, and Majesty Gold Edition, a compilation for Windows bundling Majesty and The Northern Expansion, in January, 2002. Linux Game Publishing
released a Linux
port of Majesty Gold Edition in April, 2003.
s, landscapes dotted with ancient evil castles, and soldiers helpless against anything bigger than a goblin
. As Sovereign, the player must rely on hiring bands of wandering heroes in order to get anything done.
The game has nineteen single player scenarios but no overarching plotline. The Northern Expansion
adds new unit abilities, buildings, monsters, and 12 new single player scenarios. Freestyle (sandbox) play and multiplayer are also available.
s construct and repair buildings. Tax collectors collect gold from guilds and houses to finance the realm. Guards provide defense against monsters. Caravans travel from trading post
s to the marketplace
, where they deliver gold based on the distance they traveled.
Each scenario (or quest
) has a unique map. Even if the player chooses the same quest twice, it will have a map that, while retaining the general terrain of the region, is totally different. The map is initially shrouded in blackness, but all activity in explored areas can be viewed no matter how far away from a building or character it is, with no fog of war.
In certain quest scenarios, the player also has the ability to interact with other kingdoms. This mainly includes the use of a kingdoms services by the heroes of a foreign faction, although in certain cases, the player may choose to attack the foreign faction. In other, rarer instances, heroes may even switch sides between kingdoms in the event that their guild has been destroyed and their native kingdom can no longer offer them hospitality.
The basic building is the palace, and its loss means the loss of the game. Guilds and temples can be used to summon and house heroes (typically four per building), almost all other ones offer equipment or services (inns, royal gardens, etc.). Some guilds and temples may not co exist, and some buildings require certain buildings before they are available for construction.
The system of heroes in Majesty is similar to most other sim games. These heroes are not under the direct control of the player, but they can be influenced by reward flags to perform certain tasks, such as slaying a particularly troublesome monster or exploring an unknown area of the map. However, their cooperation is not guaranteed even then. Heroes have free will
, though some classes are more inclined to certain actions than other. (For example, a paladin
is more likely to attack a dangerous monster than a rogue
.)
Each hero has different favored behaviors as well. For example, paladins often choose to raid lairs, while rogues will steal, and elves will perform at inns. Furthermore, rewards influence heroes differently. Rogues will be the first to make an attempt at the rewards, followed soon after by elves or dwarves.
The powers and abilities of the heroes also move in a rock-paper-scissors format. Some monsters are especially weak against ranged attacks, while strong against melee or magic. Other monsters are especially strong against melee and ranged attacks, and magic makes killing them much easier. It is important to plan ahead and be able to defend your kingdom against different types of monsters, exploiting their weaknesses.
Individual heroes gain experience point
s and level up as they would if they were characters in a role-playing game
. Other hero attributes borrowed from role-playing games include ability scores and inventories. Though all heroes in a class share the same in-game sprite
and portrait
, they all have individual names, have unique stats, and varied levels.
, as well as numerous positive comments at LinuxGames
.
The game was reviewed in 2000 in Dragon
#269 by Johnny L. Wilson in the "Silycon Sorcery" column. Wilson sums up the game: "Majesty offers a very different feeling than the average strategy or roleplaying game in a fantasy world. It is similar to being a Dungeon Master
or playing a simplified version of Birthright
."
planned a sequel, Majesty Legends, but it was never officially released. The developer cited the lack of a publisher as the reason. In July 2007, Paradox Interactive
acquired the intellectual property
for Majesty
and released a sequel, Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim
, on September 18, 2009.
and released on January 20, 2011. The game is designed to run on iOS, Android and high-end Nokia Symbian devices. An iOS version is also available for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
game developed by Cyberlore Studios
Cyberlore Studios
Cyberlore Studios was a developer of computer games based in Northampton, Massachusetts. The company was founded by Lester Humphreys, Ken Grey, and Herb Perez. Since 1992, they produced expansion packs for MechWarrior 4, Heroes of Might and Magic II, and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness...
and published by MicroProse
MicroProse
MicroProse was a video game publisher and developer, founded by Wild Bill Stealey and Sid Meier in 1982 as Microprose Software. In 1993, the company became a subsidiary of Spectrum HoloByte and has remained a subsidiary or brand name under several other corporations since...
for Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
in March, 2000. MacPlay
MacPlay
MacPlay was the name used by a series of two American publishers of Macintosh computer games. No game has been published under the MacPlay brand name since 2004.- 1990 - 1997 Period :...
released a Mac OS
Mac OS
Mac OS is a series of graphical user interface-based operating systems developed by Apple Inc. for their Macintosh line of computer systems. The Macintosh user experience is credited with popularizing the graphical user interface...
port in December, 2000. Infogrames
Infogrames
Infogrames Entertainment SA was an international French holding company headquartered in Paris, France. It was the owner of Atari, Inc., headquartered in New York City, U.S. and Atari Europe. It was founded in 1983 by Bruno Bonnell and Christophe Sapet using the proceeds from an introductory...
released the expansion pack Majesty: The Northern Expansion
Majesty: The Northern Expansion
Majesty: The Northern Expansion is an expansion pack to the real-time strategy game Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim. It was developed by Cyberlore Studios and published by MicroProse for Windows in 2001. In January, 2002. Majesty Gold Edition was released for Windows bundling Majesty and The...
for Windows in March, 2001, and Majesty Gold Edition, a compilation for Windows bundling Majesty and The Northern Expansion, in January, 2002. Linux Game Publishing
Linux Game Publishing
Linux Game Publishing is a software company based in Nottingham in England. It ports, publishes and sells video games running on Linux operating systems. As well as porting games, LGP also sponsors the development of Grapple, a free software network library for games...
released a Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
port of Majesty Gold Edition in April, 2003.
Overview
Majesty, the self-described "fantasy kingdom sim", offers players a chance to test their creative and organizational skills in a fantasy role-playing environment. Players assumes the role of king in a fantasy realm called Ardania which features city sewers infested with giant ratRat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s, landscapes dotted with ancient evil castles, and soldiers helpless against anything bigger than a goblin
Goblin
A goblin is a legendary evil or mischievous illiterate creature, a grotesquely evil or evil-like phantom.They are attributed with various abilities, temperaments and appearances depending on the story and country of origin. In some cases, goblins have been classified as constantly annoying little...
. As Sovereign, the player must rely on hiring bands of wandering heroes in order to get anything done.
The game has nineteen single player scenarios but no overarching plotline. The Northern Expansion
Majesty: The Northern Expansion
Majesty: The Northern Expansion is an expansion pack to the real-time strategy game Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim. It was developed by Cyberlore Studios and published by MicroProse for Windows in 2001. In January, 2002. Majesty Gold Edition was released for Windows bundling Majesty and The...
adds new unit abilities, buildings, monsters, and 12 new single player scenarios. Freestyle (sandbox) play and multiplayer are also available.
Gameplay
The henchmen are free non-hero characters that are nonetheless essential to maintaining the realm. PeasantPeasant
A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...
s construct and repair buildings. Tax collectors collect gold from guilds and houses to finance the realm. Guards provide defense against monsters. Caravans travel from trading post
Trading post
A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....
s to the marketplace
Marketplace
A marketplace is the space, actual, virtual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie. the 'real world' in which products and services are provided and consumed.-Marketplaces and street markets:A...
, where they deliver gold based on the distance they traveled.
Each scenario (or quest
Quest
In mythology and literature, a quest, a journey towards a goal, serves as a plot device and as a symbol. Quests appear in the folklore of every nation and also figure prominently in non-national cultures. In literature, the objects of quests require great exertion on the part of the hero, and...
) has a unique map. Even if the player chooses the same quest twice, it will have a map that, while retaining the general terrain of the region, is totally different. The map is initially shrouded in blackness, but all activity in explored areas can be viewed no matter how far away from a building or character it is, with no fog of war.
In certain quest scenarios, the player also has the ability to interact with other kingdoms. This mainly includes the use of a kingdoms services by the heroes of a foreign faction, although in certain cases, the player may choose to attack the foreign faction. In other, rarer instances, heroes may even switch sides between kingdoms in the event that their guild has been destroyed and their native kingdom can no longer offer them hospitality.
Buildings
Base-building is comparable to other real-time strategy games of the period, but units are autonomous—a feature usually associated with construction and management simulation games—and possess attributes borrowed from RPGs. The Sovereign's actions are limited to constructing and enhancing buildings, using building abilities and spells, hiring heroes, and offering rewards.The basic building is the palace, and its loss means the loss of the game. Guilds and temples can be used to summon and house heroes (typically four per building), almost all other ones offer equipment or services (inns, royal gardens, etc.). Some guilds and temples may not co exist, and some buildings require certain buildings before they are available for construction.
The system of heroes in Majesty is similar to most other sim games. These heroes are not under the direct control of the player, but they can be influenced by reward flags to perform certain tasks, such as slaying a particularly troublesome monster or exploring an unknown area of the map. However, their cooperation is not guaranteed even then. Heroes have free will
Free will
"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
, though some classes are more inclined to certain actions than other. (For example, a paladin
Paladin
The paladins, sometimes known as the Twelve Peers, were the foremost warriors of Charlemagne's court, according to the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. They first appear in the early chansons de geste such as The Song of Roland, where they represent Christian martial valor against the...
is more likely to attack a dangerous monster than a rogue
Thief (character class)
The Thief or Rogue is a character class in many role-playing games, including Dungeons & Dragons, Final Fantasy, World of Warcraft and many MMORPGs. Thieves are usually stealthy and dextrous characters able to disarm traps, pick locks, and perform backstabs from hiding...
.)
Each hero has different favored behaviors as well. For example, paladins often choose to raid lairs, while rogues will steal, and elves will perform at inns. Furthermore, rewards influence heroes differently. Rogues will be the first to make an attempt at the rewards, followed soon after by elves or dwarves.
The powers and abilities of the heroes also move in a rock-paper-scissors format. Some monsters are especially weak against ranged attacks, while strong against melee or magic. Other monsters are especially strong against melee and ranged attacks, and magic makes killing them much easier. It is important to plan ahead and be able to defend your kingdom against different types of monsters, exploiting their weaknesses.
Individual heroes gain experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s and level up as they would if they were characters in a role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
. Other hero attributes borrowed from role-playing games include ability scores and inventories. Though all heroes in a class share the same in-game sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
and portrait
Portrait
thumb|250px|right|Portrait of [[Thomas Jefferson]] by [[Rembrandt Peale]], 1805. [[New-York Historical Society]].A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness,...
, they all have individual names, have unique stats, and varied levels.
Reception
Majesty was generally well-received by the gaming press, with many reviews commenting positively on its unique combination of elements from different genres. The game's Linux port was also well received, with gamers giving it four stars and numerous positive comments on The Linux Game TomeThe Linux Game Tome
The Linux Game Tome is a website which provides a comprehensive list of games for Linux.- History :The site was started by Tessa Lau in 1995...
, as well as numerous positive comments at LinuxGames
LinuxGames
LinuxGames is a website that provides news about Linux gaming. It mostly announces information on new game products and release dates, although it also covers some important events such as QuakeCon and occasionally interviews important figures in Linux gaming such as Ryan C...
.
The game was reviewed in 2000 in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#269 by Johnny L. Wilson in the "Silycon Sorcery" column. Wilson sums up the game: "Majesty offers a very different feeling than the average strategy or roleplaying game in a fantasy world. It is similar to being a Dungeon Master
Dungeon Master
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Dungeon Master is the game organizer and participant in charge of creating the details and challenges of a given adventure, while maintaining a realistic continuity of events...
or playing a simplified version of Birthright
Birthright (campaign setting)
Birthright is a Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting that was first released by TSR in 1995. The setting based on the world of Aebrynis on the continent of Cerilia, in which the players take on the role of the divinely-empowered rulers, with emphasis on the political rulership level of gameplay...
."
Sequel
Cyberlore StudiosCyberlore Studios
Cyberlore Studios was a developer of computer games based in Northampton, Massachusetts. The company was founded by Lester Humphreys, Ken Grey, and Herb Perez. Since 1992, they produced expansion packs for MechWarrior 4, Heroes of Might and Magic II, and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness...
planned a sequel, Majesty Legends, but it was never officially released. The developer cited the lack of a publisher as the reason. In July 2007, Paradox Interactive
Paradox Interactive
-External links:*...
acquired the intellectual property
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
for Majesty
and released a sequel, Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim
Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim
Majesty 2: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim is a real-time strategy game developed by 1C:Ino-Co and published by Paradox Interactive. The game was announced on April 18, 2008 and was released on September 18, 2009. It is a sequel to Cyberlore's Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim.A Mac OS X version of Majesty...
, on September 18, 2009.
Majesty Mobile
Mobile "Majesty: The Fantasy Kingdom Sim" is developed and published by HeroCraftHeroCraft
HeroCraft is a Russian mobile game developer company headquartered in Kaliningrad and with offices in Saint Petersburg, Krasnodar and Donetsk.HeroCraft games are released on Java ME, Android, iPhone, BREW, Symbian OS, Windows Mobile, UIQ, UIQ v.3, Linux and Palm OS platforms...
and released on January 20, 2011. The game is designed to run on iOS, Android and high-end Nokia Symbian devices. An iOS version is also available for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.