Kingsburg Serving the Crown Reviews – Page 4
4/5 rating based on 50 reviews. Read all reviews for Kingsburg Serving the Crown for iPhone.
Kingsburg Serving the Crown is paid iOS app published by Tiopi S.R.L.
Crashes when loading
CMM63
The game crashes on ipad1 during the load screen. It looks I am not the only one with this experience. This is for V1.2. Please fix asap.
Not worth $5
Thesweetfamily
The game simply doesn't have enough strategy. It is basically a solitaire game. You try to get the most points (banners), and nothing you do impacts your opponents (or vice versa). You all have the same buildings to choose from and what they build has no impact on you. You do compete for the same resources, but that isn't even that strategic (you just take whatever is available). When you have to protect against invading armies, it is the same army attacking each of you equally and your performance has no impact on others. My second issue is that the AI players are way too easy. I lost the first game (there is no tutorial, just an old-fashioned instruction booklet), but I have won every game since (half of them by double the next highest score). I am playing against 3, 4 and 5 players, trying different colors and using different building strategies, but I keep winning. I'm not that good, but I don't really pay attention to what they are doing different (again, because it doesn't impact me). Beautifully drawn game, but not worth $5.
Meh
ArctcBoreas
It's a fine substitute for the real game, though there are some issues: My strategy hasn't changed and I win almost effortlessly as the AIs will only hoard resources and are not competitive in terms of points. It's less exciting when there is no race for points. It doesn't count properly in winter. I have lost buildings and huge amounts of points because it can't add. It must count the farms as -2, that is the only logic I can find. And it's awfully annoying when you should win and you lose.
Good implementation, but expansions wanted
The Velvet Donkey
This is a good implementation of Kingsburg, and I have yet to encounter any of the complaints mentioned in earlier reviews. The game is in need of one or more expansions from the "To Forge A Realm" expansion set, however. First and foremost, the soldier tokens make the game much more predictable for those who prefer to rely less on the outcome of the white die in winter. The governor cards would be a close second, as they add an element of personalization to the different players. The expanded track rows and alternate tracks would be welcome additions, and I can take or leave the yearly events, some of which are too cruel. I would also like to see an iPad implementation for the game, and for the end of year soldier review right before monsters arrive to adjust for the farms, and if you've peeked at the monsters, to calculate any specific bonuses against them.
Continues to crash
BioSludge
Please read all the other reviews regarding the crashes on the first gen iPad are still here.
Poor UI
NovamationCEO
This is the rare game that's both easier and faster to play in real life. The game itself is great fun, but the user interface hampers at every turn. You must choose a starting resource before reviewing the available buildings. The function of the buildings is hidden in a not-skippable pop-up (I realize it's difficult to be both hidden and unavoidable, but they found a way), requiring far too much clicking to get simple information. There is no board overview whatsoever, making choosing an advisor a tedious guess-and-check game -- and, perhaps worse, eliminating any strategy for dealing with other players. Do I make a move to block my opponent from getting that critical wood this turn? Who knows? Unless I've memorized all 18 spaces of the board, I don't know what he might possibly have access to! Many reviews have criticized the multiplayer solitaire aspect of the game. It doesn't have that characteristic in real life, but they've created that feeling by removing your ability to have meaningful and informed interaction. One star reviews are for apps that don't work. This works, but I can't recommend any part of it. Kingsburg the game has been long since made, tested, and refined. All the app needed to do was add a digital UI; that's been done so poorly it makes the game itself less enjoyable. The AI is also pretty middling, for what that's worth.
Great game, bad app
The Scott
Kingsburg is a great game, but this app needs a lot of work, maybe even a rebuild from scratch. For one, it crashes and freezes constantly. Plus, it just feels like a rough draft. This is not a streamlined, polished app like Ticket to Ride or Agricola. There's a lot of bloat and a lot of mess. Aside from the fact that the app doesn't really work, the design is poor overall. If you're not familiar with the board game, the rules may be a little bit difficult to follow. And if you are, you'll be plagued with constant reminders of what everything is. Every turn. Every time. You can turn these off, but then the game tells you nothing at all. So, your two options are to know the rules by heart, or have the game constantly telling you the rules. Additionally, if you turn off these "hints," they just come back the next time you open the app--or the next time it crashes. Things that must be fixed to make the game playable (besides the crashing): *Permanent option to turn off hints, but still have text explaining what phase/round it is (King's favor, etc). *Needs a way to see what advisers are available by number, instead of having to guess and/or memorize what each number gives you. It's hard to plan when you just have to see what number matches what advisor over and over again. *Needs to be something showing me what resources I have on the province and advisor screens. It's cumbersome to have to switch between all the screens constantly. *Needs to be a way to skip the reconnaissance animation. Once you've seen it, there needs to be a way to skip it if I don't want to see it over and over. Wish list: *Network play, both online and local. I love Kingsburg the board game, but honestly, this thing is not worth $5. It's possible to make a magnificent, well-made board game app--lots of other games have proved it--and charge a premium for it. This simply is not it.
Update ruined it for me
Alythe
(A year and a half later and STILL waiting for an update? Ridiculous!) Prior to updating in Jan of 2012, I loved this game and would have given it at least 4 stars (was still hoping for online multi-player)... More recently, it crashes every time I try to load it on my 3rd generation iPod. I tried deleting and reinstalling, but it didn't help. Frustrating to say the least! It's been like this for months now -- wishing this problem would be fixed!
Too many rules. Ridiculous.
thespaciousmind
Dont bother. Lots of instructions, hard to follow, too many rules. Don't bother. Deleted.