King's Bounty: Armored Princess

 PC
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 272 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 229 out of 272
  2. Mixed: 34 out of 272
  3. Negative: 9 out of 272
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  1. BountyFan
    Nov 25, 2009
    10
    This game is brilliant; as was the first one. The gameplay, balancing and story are all top notch. As a translation from Russian, the humour and interesting plot transfer perfectly into English. (Contrast that with a translation from a typical Japanese title and you realise the contempt those publishers have for the western market!). One of the best games I
  2. Alex
    Dec 12, 2009
    7
    If you are a huge fan of King's Bounty this is worth picking up, but in total it is a much less satisfying offering than the first game. The game features a number of quality of life and balance changes, the biggest of which is a fast travel system (as the content in armored princess is organized into continents, approximately 1 chapter per continent), the ability to fly on the world If you are a huge fan of King's Bounty this is worth picking up, but in total it is a much less satisfying offering than the first game. The game features a number of quality of life and balance changes, the biggest of which is a fast travel system (as the content in armored princess is organized into continents, approximately 1 chapter per continent), the ability to fly on the world map (acquired about half way through the game), and a reward for allowing drastically lower level enemies flee. Unfortunately the difficulty curve is just as punishing, if not more so than the first game. If your playing normal or above difficulty expect the game to become unplayable before you get the second of 8 stones. Even if you struggle through certain units and spells can allow the enemies to cripple you financially even if you beat them (spells like armageddon and geyser in particular). Another annoying aspect of the game is the balance, or lack there of between the classes and spell schools. Distortion magic has the vast majority of the most useful spells, including both buffs, movement spells, and damage spells (geyser) that trivializes the other two schools. Similarly of the three classes the mage is vastly underpowered do to the unfortunately poor scaling of spell damage (and a lack of talents that are generally usefull). The items in the game are also problematic, far more items than in the original game are parts of item sets that give additional bonuses by wearing all the items in the set. Unfortunately the random item spawns for sale makes completing sets relatively rare (in beating the game 3 times on Easy I have yet to see all the peices of the princess or virgin set in one play through). Finally a certain item related to the plot line which you basically need to obtain to beat the game unfortunately forces you to use the new Lizardman units. Chosing units is one of my favorite parts of king's bounty and I strongly disliked having my choices basically taken away from me. While I am a big fan of King's Bounty and have put in quite a bit of time with armored princess if I could I would go back and stop myself from buying it for 45$, the lack of balance and the limited new resources (most the art/engine is simply recycled from the first game) makes this game a solid buy for fans at a 20-25$ price point.… Expand
  3. JeffS.
    Dec 30, 2009
    9
    An outstanding game in almost every respect. A beautifully realized overworld and deep, tactical combat very reminiscent of Heroes of Might and Magic 3. Wonderful music, brilliant graphics, and an enjoyable storyline. The difficulty settings are also true to their namesakes as well. Easy will appeal to casual players, Normal should be just challenging enough for most players, us veterans An outstanding game in almost every respect. A beautifully realized overworld and deep, tactical combat very reminiscent of Heroes of Might and Magic 3. Wonderful music, brilliant graphics, and an enjoyable storyline. The difficulty settings are also true to their namesakes as well. Easy will appeal to casual players, Normal should be just challenging enough for most players, us veterans are truly challenged by Hard, and Impossible may very well be impossible, I'll find out on my next play-through. It is worth noting that the items and units that will be available to you change on every play through - this means you can't know what to expect on each play-through exactly, but my experience has been that you can't truly be screwed over by this factor as some have stated - it simply means you may need to vary your tactics and switch up your armies as the game progresses to adapt to changing circumstances. All the same, I found that even on Hard there's no fight that you can't win with thoughtfulness and fight-appropriate unit selection. Some may find the storyline dry due to its almost entirely text-based nature, though frankly I rather appreciated the writing for what it was - even translated the dialogue is witty and engaging. Even at full price on Steam, I felt I got every penny's worth out of this game.… Expand
  4. thomass
    Jan 4, 2010
    9
    Armored Princess is totally addictive, if a bit quirky in its humor and difficulty curve. The genius of the game is that the limited numbers of units force the player to gradually change their armies throughout the game: from generally human-filled armies to mixes of dragons, lizards, demons, and elves. Thus the game never grows stale: certain units will complement each other, and part of Armored Princess is totally addictive, if a bit quirky in its humor and difficulty curve. The genius of the game is that the limited numbers of units force the player to gradually change their armies throughout the game: from generally human-filled armies to mixes of dragons, lizards, demons, and elves. Thus the game never grows stale: certain units will complement each other, and part of the fun is seeing which five units can cause the most damage at a particular point in the game. A drawback to AP is--in my view--the randomization, which (though it encourages replayability) also means you can get extremely punishing opponents early in the game. (I nearly gave up on my Paladin around level 12 or 14; but after the early 20's, the game got a *lot* easier.) So: a completely gorgeous, addictive game that could have used a few more good ideas (having to constantly restock armies requires more micromanagement than I enjoy).… Expand
  5. Bjorni
    Dec 5, 2009
    9
    Awesome game, atmospheric, brilliant gameplay and amazing music score. I just wish there was a difficulty between Easy and Normal. The first one is far to easy and the latter way too hard, if you're not an old timer Heroes pro or something...
  6. JoeBido
    Jan 27, 2010
    9
    Wonderful world and epic story this make this game good, but add to this very entertaining fights and u get great game. The only disadvantage for me is that you cant play a quick scenario or something like that - only full campaign.
  7. jamie
    Dec 5, 2009
    10
    The first King's bounty was great. It still lives on my hard drive. It's everything that Heroes V should have been and wasn't. ( Heroes V was dumbed down. Looks NICE. Plays like crap. It's just about who has the biggest army, no strategy at all.) With King's Bounty, it's all about strategy... Armoured princess is even BETTER than King's Bounty. It's The first King's bounty was great. It still lives on my hard drive. It's everything that Heroes V should have been and wasn't. ( Heroes V was dumbed down. Looks NICE. Plays like crap. It's just about who has the biggest army, no strategy at all.) With King's Bounty, it's all about strategy... Armoured princess is even BETTER than King's Bounty. It's as if they took the first game, race tuned it, and let it go. Anyone who loves strategy should play this game. I've been playing nothing else for the last 2 weeks. I'm having a blast; every time you replay all the artifacts and troops are redistributed so you have to develop new strategies- you cannot play the same way twice, if you do you'll get ground down to nothing. The graphics are colourful, the game has never crashed in two weeks of continuous play, there are new elements of gameplay (Spoiler: Anybody like the idea of flying across the lands??) and there is an entire new creature set - the lizardmen. My Christmas came early !!!!! Thank you, King's Bounty developers... (PS Also give eleven legacy a try - another great underdog...same kind of thing, also very clever...)… Expand
  8. Tick
    May 29, 2012
    9
    I enjoyed this game. It was fun, and as long as you don't Kite enemies (self discipline), there is not much I'd knock about this game for what it was trying to do. It's a great time killer, pleasant graphics. I really enjoyed it. Late game I got a little over-powered, but I like that feeling. The only detractor I can think of is you can encounter fairly tough guys early on, but you get toI enjoyed this game. It was fun, and as long as you don't Kite enemies (self discipline), there is not much I'd knock about this game for what it was trying to do. It's a great time killer, pleasant graphics. I really enjoyed it. Late game I got a little over-powered, but I like that feeling. The only detractor I can think of is you can encounter fairly tough guys early on, but you get to deal with them later. Also if you play like an idiot you can mess up your game and may have to start again. Overall I really liked this game… Expand
  9. NYX94
    Jul 30, 2014
    10
    one of the best games to come out in this genre to date. Immersive game play, long hours of game play, very re-playable with the randomly generated enemies and treasures. I think this game really added to the the second installment (The legend). the graphics are beautiful and some are hand drawn which gives it that awesome feel. and for those who say this game is hard I don't know what toone of the best games to come out in this genre to date. Immersive game play, long hours of game play, very re-playable with the randomly generated enemies and treasures. I think this game really added to the the second installment (The legend). the graphics are beautiful and some are hand drawn which gives it that awesome feel. and for those who say this game is hard I don't know what to do, you probably should read the manual, because not all games are murder simulators (COD,BF, ETC.....)… Expand
  10. dontlike911
    Feb 25, 2020
    10
    This game is brilliant; as was the first one. The gameplay, balancing and story are all top notch. As a translation from Russian, the humour and interesting plot transfer perfectly into English. (Contrast that with a translation from a typical Japanese title and you realise the contempt
  11. DantheMan
    Apr 23, 2011
    7
    This takes the King's Bounty: The Legend and builds upon it in creative ways. Nevertheless, strip off the fluff and you are left with game play that is in essence the same as before. The question then becomes "how much of that can you handle before you get bored". In many ways this is a better game than KB: TL from both a technical and a game play perspective. The talent trees make moreThis takes the King's Bounty: The Legend and builds upon it in creative ways. Nevertheless, strip off the fluff and you are left with game play that is in essence the same as before. The question then becomes "how much of that can you handle before you get bored". In many ways this is a better game than KB: TL from both a technical and a game play perspective. The talent trees make more sense. No glitching on Windows 7 64 bit. But the story of this game is also more serious in tone and much of the fun of the original game came from it's irreverent attitude. Armored Princess has more spit and polish but fundamentally doesn't try to reinvigorate the franchise. If you loved KB:TL and wanted more the same, that's the good news. But if you were hoping to see where the developers would go next, it's a bit of a disappointment. I can't help but agree with the one Critic Review that says that this is great game if you are fan of the genre but that everyone else can pass it up. That makes rating the game difficult. If you love the stuff it's worth a 10. But if it's not your cup of tea it's worth nothing. As someone who enjoys it, but only for a change of pace, I'm giving it a seven.… Expand
  12. DrGulag
    Apr 9, 2012
    5
    A tedious game to say the least. King's Bounty is basically Heroes of Might and Magic without town building. Mediocre soundtrack, generic story and repetitive battles since you can only win them by using your pet dragon. You will always be the underdog and Armored Princess is pretty much a survival mode before you can activate your dragon. The game does look nice but feels like a grind.
  13. laertan
    Feb 6, 2020
    8
    Awesome example of how developers actually can recreate old classic game. They were able to not break at, but make it better - that's not smth you see every day! Great battles, nice music, funny dialogues (I played it in russian, dunno how good is english adaptation). Game is more friendly to casual gamers then previous part of this franchisee. Also flying is nice. Whenever you can addAwesome example of how developers actually can recreate old classic game. They were able to not break at, but make it better - that's not smth you see every day! Great battles, nice music, funny dialogues (I played it in russian, dunno how good is english adaptation). Game is more friendly to casual gamers then previous part of this franchisee. Also flying is nice. Whenever you can add flying to your game without breaking balance - do it.… Expand
  14. bancandrei
    May 14, 2020
    4
    Tried several times, but just couldn't get into it. And I am a big fan of the Heroes of Might and Magic series which this has many things in common with. I guess main problem is that the sense of growth comes slower and it doesn't have the benefit of unlimited replayability of random maps.
  15. Randomsanity
    Mar 17, 2011
    9
    Most underrated game I have ever played. Turn-based strategy RPG at its finest. If you are a fan of the HOMM series this game will blow you away. Be warned that it can be a rather difficult game, but that simply makes it all the more rewarding. Combat is very smooth and balanced. Many improvements from The Legend, but many of my favourite features were also removed.
  16. Magnethead
    Mar 18, 2014
    8
    Still a great game just like the original but a few flaws prevents it from reaching the same astronomic heights. If you're focused and into strategy, you'll find the second half of the game too easy. By the end, only the boss fights are hard (they are hard, though) and the rest can feel a bit like a grind. You can create some fun tactics and setups but the AI just doesn't seem to be ableStill a great game just like the original but a few flaws prevents it from reaching the same astronomic heights. If you're focused and into strategy, you'll find the second half of the game too easy. By the end, only the boss fights are hard (they are hard, though) and the rest can feel a bit like a grind. You can create some fun tactics and setups but the AI just doesn't seem to be able to match them by the end. The story is still great and the humor is right up there with it. Overall, should be played but it's not as flawless as the first.… Expand
  17. suneater
    Dec 11, 2012
    6
    Real-time Heroes of Might & Magic clone with less focus on castle defense and more RPG elements. Very derivative but has a long main quest with a large world map. More exploration and plot-heavy than HoMM, but not much else is original about it. Armored Princess has a lot of new features so I'd recommend just getting this one over the original since they're almost the same game. CompletelyReal-time Heroes of Might & Magic clone with less focus on castle defense and more RPG elements. Very derivative but has a long main quest with a large world map. More exploration and plot-heavy than HoMM, but not much else is original about it. Armored Princess has a lot of new features so I'd recommend just getting this one over the original since they're almost the same game. Completely average and muddled with uneven difficulty, this might be worth picking up if you're a fan of HoMM.… Expand
  18. krstnlndsy
    Jul 17, 2013
    5
    The first time I played it, I thought it was terrible. Bad story line, clunky game-play, too much needless dialogue, etc. etc.
    Reading the other reviews here, I'm willing to give it another shot.
  19. Gixian82
    Jun 23, 2014
    10
    As a die hard fan of Heroes 3 I was always looking for a similar type of games and I found the King's Bounty series. Before, I played the campaigns of Heroes 3 data discs (the ones in the original games are boring and not worth it) every year, again and again, but I will play them much less now, as Kings Bounty is superior for me.

    If you can sacrifice the caste building and resource    As a die hard fan of Heroes 3 I was always looking for a similar type of games and I found the King's Bounty series. Before, I played the campaigns of Heroes 3 data discs (the ones in the original games are boring and not worth it) every year, again and again, but I will play them much less now, as Kings Bounty is superior for me.

    If you can sacrifice the caste building and resource collecting from HOMAM games in exchange for WASTELY SUPERIOR tactical battles with a lot of challenge, King's Bounty games are what you are looking for.

    Of the KB series, Armored Princess is the best one available.    … Expand
  20. Barby
    Oct 10, 2019
    9
    A rich interface in which you choose one Princess: warrior, mage or paladin (a mix of both); to explore a table top world, detailed to the absurd. During the adventure, exploring on a horse, walking, and later flying, you will be recruiting different kind of fantasy troops to fight in turn based strategy; gaining items to improve your princess. The graphics are simple but extremelyA rich interface in which you choose one Princess: warrior, mage or paladin (a mix of both); to explore a table top world, detailed to the absurd. During the adventure, exploring on a horse, walking, and later flying, you will be recruiting different kind of fantasy troops to fight in turn based strategy; gaining items to improve your princess. The graphics are simple but extremely detailed, making that world, a pleasure.… Expand
  21. Broyax
    Apr 15, 2017
    6
    Le coeur du jeu, le système de combat au tour par tour est particulièrement réussi. Tout aussi réussis sont les (mignons) graphismes, la (jolie) musique et l'interface (presque) exemplaire. Ces lauriers étant tressés, force est de reconnaître que l'histoire est niaise, les dialogues sont stupides et que les combats sont (un peu) trop prédominants ! L'ensemble reste cependant sympathiqueLe coeur du jeu, le système de combat au tour par tour est particulièrement réussi. Tout aussi réussis sont les (mignons) graphismes, la (jolie) musique et l'interface (presque) exemplaire. Ces lauriers étant tressés, force est de reconnaître que l'histoire est niaise, les dialogues sont stupides et que les combats sont (un peu) trop prédominants ! L'ensemble reste cependant sympathique dans le genre (de plus en plus rare) du RPG stratégique au tour par tour.… Expand
  22. PolishGamer
    Mar 14, 2019
    10
    One of the best games ive ever played. Graphics are really good, gameplay is fantastic, classes are well balanced etc. Random generated enemies and resources make this game more replayable and it's nice to check out all classes. I think this with is one of the best games of time and i think you should play, if you dont what are ya doing?! play it!
  23. Babutto
    Jan 18, 2023
    8
    It is a solid game.

    Pros.:
    - Revamp of the old franchise.
    - Development of the overall gameplay.
    - Story.
    - Neat to play and go through everything.

    Cons.:
    - Sometimes it feels the game forces you to spend time on it instead of speeding up the progress.

    I was also surprised it was a Russian game. Very cool.
  24. Alexb1096
    Aug 27, 2020
    9
    BREVE RECENSIONE (ITALIAN):
    Gioco non adatto a tutti, con qualche difetto ed elemento migliorabile ma molto originale e divertente.
    Innanzitutto bisogna dire che si tratta di un gioco di diversi anni fa, quindi graficamente e a livello di animazioni risulta molto superato. Nonostante ciò lo stile è "cartoonoso" e quindi risulta abbastanza piacevole ancora adesso (giusto l'HUD, anche se    BREVE RECENSIONE (ITALIAN):
    Gioco non adatto a tutti, con qualche difetto ed elemento migliorabile ma molto originale e divertente.

    Innanzitutto bisogna dire che si tratta di un gioco di diversi anni fa, quindi graficamente e a livello di animazioni risulta molto superato. Nonostante ciò lo stile è "cartoonoso" e quindi risulta abbastanza piacevole ancora adesso (giusto l'HUD, anche se classico degli RPG, mostra i segni dell'età).
    La colonna sonora invece è semplicemente stupenda, riesce a creare un'atmosfera unica e a differenza di molte altri casi è "memorabile", ovvero non funge solo da sottofondo ma rimane in testa.

    La storia è piuttosto banale, ci sono creature che mettono in pericolo il nostro regno e dobbiamo potenziarci per riuscire a sconfiggerle. Lungo il nostro percorso ci sposteremo da un'isola all'altra di un arcipelago, scoprendo molti paesaggi e creature differenti.

    Infine chiaramente devo parlare del gameplay, l'aspetto migliore del gioco.
    Innanzitutto noi potremo controllare la protagonista liberamente nel mondo di gioco e interagire con oggetti, personaggi e negozi.
    Questi ci permetteranno di ottenere missioni, per accumulare risorse e arruolare nuove creature nel nostro esercito.
    I combattimenti infatti risulteranno essere a turni tra due piccoli eserciti, il nostro e quello capitanato dall'unità che avremo attaccato (o che ci avrà attaccato). Qui potremo muovere le nostre unità nella griglia, usare le loro abilità e studiare la strategia migliore. Inoltre la protagonista potrà scagliare incantesimi, che sono numerosissimi e molto vari.

    L'idea di gioco è molto originale, l'unico difetto secondo me sta nella poca libertà effettiva di azione in quanto la potenza dei nemici (visibile prima dello scontro) ci obbligherà a combatterli praticamente sempre nello stesso ordine, per evitare eccessive perdite nel nostro esercito.

    In conclusione il gioco è fatto bene ed originale, ma non è per tutti. Se a uno piacciono i giochi di ruolo e i giochi di strategia (anche se gli elementi di entrambi i generi non sono troppo approfonditi) allora deve provarlo.

    VOTO: 9.5/10    … Expand
  25. nexus151196
    Feb 28, 2021
    7
    Достойная игра с элементами классической рпг. Музыка и картинка - очень приятные, геймплей - небанальный. Игра - лучше первой части, ведь тут есть милый дракон :)
  26. FRIST_008
    Jun 14, 2021
    8
    Принцесса в доспехах на максималках. Сами новые миссии чисто на 12ч макс. Если начинать играть после легенды о рыцаре, то можно вначале даже потеряться от обилия новых механик. Советую запастись гайдами по доп кастомному длс по оркам. Можно было смело эту часть называть второй. Но так вышло, что сначало ведь была принцесса, потом перекрёстки, а потом поход орков.Принцесса в доспехах на максималках. Сами новые миссии чисто на 12ч макс. Если начинать играть после легенды о рыцаре, то можно вначале даже потеряться от обилия новых механик. Советую запастись гайдами по доп кастомному длс по оркам. Можно было смело эту часть называть второй. Но так вышло, что сначало ведь была принцесса, потом перекрёстки, а потом поход орков.
  27. dimvla
    Apr 7, 2021
    10
    Exceptional
    A turn based masterpiece. It has immense depth and can be played with entirely different ways based on the character selected
  28. ertyz
    Jan 13, 2022
    10
    very interesting turn-based strategy
    very nice game if I need to compare among all other games by the way.
  29. Nick7000
    Mar 9, 2023
    7
    Ну, в общем то это все тот же the legend, не поменялось по сути ничего,
  30. LT_Gruber
    Dec 11, 2022
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. What a wonderful game!

    King’s Bounty: Armored princess is a fantastic sequel to The Legend. It has the same play style, a new story line that follows up The Legend perfectly and is full of new features, creatures, and tweaks in the game.

    The story is great. Once again it is a classic fairy tale where you must save the world from an evil tyrant, but it is still interesting and always made me wonder what will happen next. The different areas or islands you can visit in your own order is also a good idea and gives the game some freedom. You could still visit continents in The Legend but here, the choice is simply more spread out.

    The graphics are the same as King’s Bounty: The Legend but are still nice to look at, even today. The music has some new tracks and like I said in my review about King’s Bounty: The Legend, it is beautiful. Twenty points to the auditory department.

    The new tweaks in the game work very well. The locations of merchants and castles are now displayed on your map, so you know what to search for and on the mini map, small stars indicate goodies. But the best feature of all: Flying! No more walking trough the same long path again to reach your destination, just fly over it!

    Like always with the King’s Bounty series, the difficulty of this game is legendary.

    People say that this game is easier and more balanced then the first one. At first, I called bull. Every battle apart from the begin island Debir was a 90% troop loss and I needed to restock my army every time. Any enemy was lethal or invincible and I doubted if I could finish this one. With tactics, picking my fights wisely and trying to get as many leadership banners and side quests done as possible, I made progression. When I reached level 35, the game got much easier. This is because I got a lot of defense and attack upgrades, much more leadership and some nice goodies to help me in my quest. I managed to reach level 53 and the last part of the game was no problem for me. But I learned my lesson. If you screw up from the beginning (out of money or troops), do not even try, start again. So, in the end, this one is indeed easier and more balanced then the first game. Still, it is ridiculously hard.

    The battles where intense and the boss battles epic. I enjoyed all of them! Sure, it gets a little repetitive over time, but I do not mind. The fights can be won in many different ways, it is fun to experiment with the right tactics for each fight.

    In short, this game is an excellent sequel to King’s Bounty: The Legend and I think I found It ever better.

    I would surely recommend this game.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

28
#28 Best PC Game of 2009
70
#70 Most Discussed PC Game of 2009
29
#29 Most Shared PC Game of 2009

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. Absolute Games
    95
    The Armored Princess is only a quarter shorter than the original game. How long ago have you played a stand-alone expansion that takes 30 hours to beat it at a normal difficulty?
    Read full review
  2. Eurogamer
    80
    If you're going to play a King's Bounty game for the first time, make it The Legend - and I'd say that whether or not it was available so cheaply. If you're all done with that and crave more, then Armored Princess will not do you wrong.
    Read full review
  3. Vandal
    80
    King's Bounty The Armored Princess is a great game. It's a wonderful add-on to the original game, and offers few, but interesting new features.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »