Castle Strike

Despite Germany's love of strategy games, they're not renowned for their ability to make them. Castle Strike is a prime example, boasting excellent features and demerits in equal measure.

Set in medieval times, this 3D RTS casts you as one Thorwald Rabenhorst, a young hero who must overthrow his family's archenemy and comedy beard-sporting Alrich von Drachenfels.

At first glance, there seems to be more than enough here to entice even the most jaded of strategy-lovers. The 3D engine generates lush, believable worlds, while the fully zoomable and rotating camera means you can appreciate them from all angles. You can construct awesome castles, lay siege to enemy strongholds with catapults, trebuchets and cannons, and use the terrain to gain a strategic edge. Certain weapons offer huge advantages when used against specific troops and you can even line your archers on castle walls.

Sounds perfect? Sadly, no. Castle Strike simply doesn't satisfy nearly as much as it promises to. The camera has a tendency to misbehave, leaving your troops obscured by mountains during battles and your workers hidden behind city walls. What's more, the linearity of the missions negates much of the game's strategic subtlety, while selecting troops is clumsy. And don't even get me started on the painfully inept and inadequate formation settings.

Castle Strike may have the heart of a great 3D RTS, but its failings render it frustrating. There's no shortage of ambition here, but with the likes of Warrior Kings around, this comes a very distant second.