The new patch is the first for Firefly Studios’ Stronghold 3 to focus almost exclusively on multiplayer content. The big features in the patch are the long-awaited Siege Towers, which can be placed against walls and filled with troops, as well as Laddermen, who place ladders alongside enemy walls for units to swarm up and get inside the enemy keep.

Also included in the patch are an automatic resync feature seen in earlier games from the series, which helps keep multiplayer matches smooth, as well as score rebalancing, increased starting goods, and redesigned maps. Smaller changes include an ‘Attack-Move’ command, a one-click work deactivation button, and hotfixes.

My best friend in high school was a huge Stronghold 2 fan, and I remember many a long sleepover curled up in the fort under her air hockey table, back-t0-back at different computers with a bowl of popcorn between us, battling it out. I think I’m going to have to give Stronghold 3 a try this summer partly for nostalgia’s sake, as well as the spirit of a little friendly competition.