Stronghold & Chill returns this week with in-depth discussions, revelations and behind the scenes stories of programming within game dev as Aaron interviews Jack Massey, Junior Programmer here at Firefly Studios. Learn what it takes to cut it in the video game industry as we learn the ins and outs of being a programmer, the bread and butter of a video game studio. Stronghold & Chill aims to bring the developers at Firefly Studios and it’s communities closer together, so make sure you’re subscribed to us on YouTube to catch brand new episodes with our other developers!

This week we’re back with another episode of the Stronghold Showcase! This new series sees Firefly Studios highlighting hidden gems from Steam Workshop, Stronghold Heaven and other Stronghold fan sites giving new life to classic titles. Whether you’re seeking a fresh Crusader skirmish map on which to battle friends or a brand new siege scenario to test your mettle in Stronghold we have you covered! Selecting maps from Firefly Studio’s legacy titles with active map making communities and easy access via Steam Workshop or Stronghold Heaven, Aaron showcases a series of awesome custom maps to dig your teeth into until Stronghold Next surfaces:

• MINAS TIRITH
• LABYRINTH
• RIVERSTONE WOODS
• COOL MAP
• YEVON ISLAND

Do you have a multiplayer battlefield, siege scenario or cosmetic map you think deserves to be in a future episode? Comment and let us know! We’re constantly on the lookout for cool fan-created content and love spotlighting lesser-known creations that go under the radar.

Matt doesn’t know what to do with his hands, Paul does and Andreas keeps messing up his lines… It’s must be the Firefly Studios end of year outtakes! We take you behind the scenes to everything from how we’ve been improving retention and begging for subs through to what has come to be known as the ‘Hubba Bubba Saga’.

Watch as we fail time and time again to produce useable footage with two whole months’ worth of company outtakes. There’s swearing, sweating and everything in between as we pull back the curtain revealing our inner workings and ‘creative process’.

We hope you enjoy this bumper dose of outtakes and look forward to many more in 2019!

Ever wondered what inspired Firefly Studios to tackle the intricacies of medieval ‘castle life’ with the Stronghold series? Well look no further! This week Aaron guides you through the studio’s creative journey in a new video, realizing a virtual feudal society in its series of medieval castle sims.

Learn how Simon and the original Firefly developers selected which specific feudal industries, services and traditions would make it into the original Stronghold way back in 1999. Find out why your peasant populace were made to be mostly blithering fools as Simon recalls the various torture devices littered throughout your castle.

This is the penultimate episode of our European ‘Inspirations Behind Stronghold‘ series, with our next and final episode featuring the varied siege equipment and castle defenses featured in our strategy series. So make sure you follow Firefly Studios on YouTube to catch our final episode in the series and look forward to more eastern Crusader-themed videos in 2019!

This week we’re back with another episode of the ‘Inspirations Behind Stronghold‘, delving into the medieval history behind some of the world’s most famous castles and how they inspired the Stronghold series. We travel from Scotland to Spain visiting commanding keeps and majestic castles as we go, showing how the likes of the Tower of London and Wartburg were translated to our final in-game challenges. Then we dive into Stronghold 2: Steam Edition to see exactly how these real world fortresses helped inform our own designs and intricate A.I defenses.

From Stronghold HD to Stronghold Next this YouTube exclusive episode of our Community Spotlight series brings with it another testing community map, that Game of Thrones x Stronghold Kingdoms crossover you’ve all been waiting for and a look at one of the best strategy YouTubers around, Lionheartx10!

We also answer a boatload of fan questions from whether Stronghold Next will feature naval combat to what games our developers play in the studio. Want to be featured in a future episode? Then make sure you head over the the Stronghold Facebook Group and submit your question there!

• CREATOR – lionheartx10
• VIDEO – ‘Stronghold Kingdoms‘ by Adrianonline1
• MAP – ‘Ciervo’s Island Siege‘ by Ciervo

Once again thanks to the Stronghold community on YouTube, Facebook and elsewhere for making such awesome maps, music and videos. We are huge fans of your work at the studio and remember as long as you keep making it, we’ll keep ‘spotlighting’ it!