Crusader Kings II
Medieval grand strategy about dynasties, politics, war, and succession
Paradox Development Studio · Published by Paradox Interactive · Released Feb 14, 2012
RPGSimulationStrategyFree To Play
- Reviews
- Very Positive
- 91% of 74K
- Recent reviews
- Very Positive
- 87% of 129 in 30 days
- Playing now
- 819
- peak 24h 1,038
- Steam Deck
- Playable
- Last update
- 4 years ago
- Sep 28, 2021
Metacritic: 82/100 (critic reviews)
What is Crusader Kings II?
A medieval grand-strategy sandbox where you rule a Christian lord and then successive descendants from 1066 to 1453. You manage vassals and laws, investigate plots, wage wars, navigate church politics, and expand a feudal realm while keeping the dynasty alive, alone or in multiplayer.
For you if...
- +you enjoy complex sandbox strategy and alternate medieval histories
- +you prefer dynastic politics to controlling a fixed nation
- +you want long campaigns in single-player or multiplayer
Not for you if...
- −you prefer action combat over political and dynastic management
- −you want a short, tightly guided strategy campaign
What players say
91% of 73,954 reviews are positive · 87% of 129 in the last 30 days
Players praise its dynastic sandbox, emergent family drama, replayability, and long-term plans through marriage and succession. The most common complaint is the large amount of paid DLC, with many saying the free base game feels incomplete; newcomers also criticize the weak tutorial and cluttered interface.
Screenshots and trailer
Crusader Kings II system requirements
As published by the developer.
Minimum
- OS
- Win7 64-bit
- Processor
- Intel® Pentium® IV 2.4 GHz or AMD 3500+
- Graphics
- NVIDIA® GeForce 8800 or ATI Radeon® X1900, 512mb graphics memory required.
- Memory
- 4 GB RAM
- Storage
- 2 GB
- Notes
- 3-button mouse and keyboard
PC version details
DRM, required accounts, controller support and Steam features.
- DRM
- None declared on Steam
- Controller
- Keyboard and mouse
- Platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Achievements
- 161
- Steam features
- Family Sharing, Trading cards
Steam Deck: Playable
- The launcher or setup tool may need the touchscreen or virtual keyboard
- Sometimes shows mouse, keyboard or non-Deck controller icons
- Some text entry requires manually opening the on-screen keyboard
- Some in-game text is small and may be hard to read
- All functionality is accessible with the default controller configuration
- Default graphics settings perform well on Steam Deck
Multiplayer and co-op
Languages
Text only: English, French, German, Spanish - Spain.
Tags
- Grand Strategy
- Strategy
- Medieval
- Historical
- Political Sim
- Simulation
- RPG
- Sandbox
- Multiplayer
- Diplomacy
- Singleplayer
- Replay Value
- Real-Time with Pause
- Moddable
- Free to Play
- Character Customization
Recent updates
- Sep 28, 2021 · Hotfix Patch 3.3.5.1
- Sep 16, 2021 · CKII Subscription Service Update
- Feb 8, 2021 · Patch for MAC users: OSX Big Sur
- Aug 28, 2020 · CK3 - August Update
- Jun 26, 2020 · CK3 - June Update
32 DLC available.
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