''CastleStorm'' is a 2013 game developed by

Zen Studios Zen Studios is a Hungarian video game developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software with headquarters in Budapest, Hungary and offices in the United States. It is known for its game franchises, ''Pinball FX'' and '' Zen Pinball'', ...

for

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, and

Wii U The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4. The W ...

. A remastered version titled ''CastleStorm: Definitive Edition'' was released in 2014 for

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013, in ...

and

Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was first released in North America, parts of Europe, Austra ...

. A

free-to-play "Free-to-play" ("F2P" or "FtP") video games are games that give players access to a significant portion of their content for free. The term "free-to-play business model" or simply, "free-to-play model", refers collectively to business models tha ...

mobile version titled ''CastleStorm: Free to Siege'' was released in 2014 for

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Android Android most commonly refers to: *Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human * Android (operating system), a mobile operating system primarily developed by Google * Android TV, a operating system developed ...

, and

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

. The game also received a

virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a Simulation, simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video gam ...

adaptation for

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, and

PlayStation VR The PlayStation VR (PS VR) is a virtual reality headset developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, which was released in October 2016. The headset works with the company's PlayStation 4 video game console and is forward compatible with PlaySta ...

. A sequel titled ''CastleStorm 2'' was released on July 31, 2020.

Gameplay

''CastleStorm'' is a

side-scrolling A side-scrolling video game (alternatively side-scroller) is a video game viewed from a side-view camera angle where the screen follows the player as they move left or right. The jump from single-screen or flip-screen graphics to scrolling grap ...

physics-based

real-time strategy Real-time strategy (RTS) is a Video game genre, subgenre of strategy video games that does not progress incrementally in turn-based game, turns, but allow all players to play simultaneously, in "real time." By contrast, in Turn-based strategy, tur ...

game with

tower defense Tower defense (TD) is a Video game genre, subgenre of Strategy video game, strategy games where the goal is to defend a player's territories or possessions by obstructing the enemy attackers or by stopping enemies from reaching the exits, usual ...

elements. The player plays a number of characters obtained from completing separate game "campaigns", starting with the default character, Sir Gareth who is introduced in the first campaign, Kingdom Quest. There are four separate campaigns featured in the game, all set in slightly different points of time, with the last being, "The Warrior Queen".

Plot

Sir Gareth, protector of the realm is fighting Vikings. The knights and vikings have had a longstanding peace, but it breaks when ancient crystal is stolen. It falls to Sir Gareth to rally the troops, retrieve the gem, and restore peace to the land.

Release

''CastleStorm'' was initially released for

via

Xbox Live Arcade Xbox Live Arcade (or XBLA) was a video game Digital distribution in video games, digital distribution service that was available for the Xbox (console), Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles. It focused on smaller downloadable games from both major publisher ...

(XBLA) on May 29, 2013 through publisher

Microsoft Game Studios Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...

. It was released as a self-published title for all subsequent releases, first being made available for

via

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two months later on July 29. Ports for

and

were released on November 5, 2013 in North America and on November 6 in Europe, with a

version following one month later on December 26. A remastered version of the title including both pieces of downloadable content was released for

and

as ''CastleStorm: Definitive Edition'' on September 23 in North America and September 24 in Europe. A port for

Nintendo Switch The is a video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. Released in the middle of the Eighth generation of video game consoles, eighth generation of home consoles, the Switch succeeded the ...

was made available on August 16, 2018.

Downloadable content

''CastleStorm'' received two pieces of

downloadable content content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can be added for no extra cost or as a form of video game monetization, enabling the publisher to gain ad ...

(DLC) entitled ''CastleStorm: From Outcast to Savior'', and ''CastleStorm: The Warrior Queen''. The first expansion was released for XBLA and Steam on July 31, 2013. The second expansion was made available the same year for Steam on September 25, and for XBLA on September 27. Both were released simultaneously for PlayStation 3 and Vita on November 26, 2013. ''From Outcast to Savior'' and ''The Warrior Queen'' were released for Wii U in 2014 on February 26 and March 13, respectively.

Adaptations

A mobile adaptation was released for

, and Kindle devices on May 8, 2014, as ''CastleStorm - Free to Siege''. A

adaptation of the title titled ''CastleStorm VR'' was released for

and

devices on July 7, 2016, and for

on August 1, 2017.

Reception

''CastleStorm'' received "generally favorable" reviews, while ''CastleStorm: Definitive Edition'' received "mixed or average" reviews, according to

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. It was praised for physics, visuals, and real-time strategy, but was criticized for a repetitive storyline and pointless missions. ''

IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...

'' favorably compared the title to ''

Angry Birds ''Angry Birds'' is a Finnish media franchise created by Rovio Entertainment, and owned by Sega. The game series focuses on the titular flock of colorful angry birds who try to save their eggs from green-colored pigs. Inspired by the game ''Cr ...

'' while criticizing its overly sensitive controls. ''

Push Square Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and oth ...

'' commented on the VR version of the game, stating that its overcomplicated nature lent itself well to those who liked multitasking.

Pinball adaptation

As the developer of the '' Zen Pinball'' series, Zen Studios also developed its own virtual

pinball Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails call ...

adaptation of ''CastleStorm'' and released it as part of the ''Iron and Steel'' pack for '' Zen Pinball 2'', ''

Pinball FX 2 ''Pinball FX 2'' (stylized as ''Pinball FX2'') is a pinball video game for Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Microsoft Windows (Windows XP, XP and higher) and is the sequel to ''Pinball FX''. It was developed by Zen Studios and published by Xbox Game Studi ...

'' and ''

Pinball FX 3 ''Pinball FX 3'' is a pinball simulator video game developed and published by Zen Studios and is the sequel to ''Pinball FX 2''. It was released for Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 in September 2017 and then released for the Nintendo S ...

'' in early 2015; with a remastered version released as a single table for ''Pinball FX'' on March 31, 2022. This table omits blood from the game due to censorship reasons and features 3-D animated figures of Sir Gareth and various Viking enemies, and is played entirely from Sir Gareth's perspective, with modes focusing on attack or defense against the Vikings, as well as celebrations in between battles.

Notes

References

{{Embracer Group 2013 video games IOS games Fantasy video games PlayStation 3 games PlayStation 4 games PlayStation Network games PlayStation Vita games Nintendo Switch games Tower defense video games Video games developed in Hungary Video games featuring female protagonists Video games set in castles Wii U eShop games Xbox 360 Live Arcade games Xbox One games Microsoft games Windows games Embracer Group franchises Zen Studios games Multiplayer and single-player video games Oculus Rift games Samsung Gear VR games PlayStation VR games