Blending Diablo's horror with Age of Empires' real-time combat, Band of Crusaders just got a new demo

Band of Crusaders is a game with a lot of moving parts. Taking visual inspirations from Diablo and religious iconography, and blending it with Heroes of Might and Magic-style exploration and Age of Empires' RTS combat, it's a strategy game quite unlike any other. There's base management, buildcrafting, boss battles - it's a delicious abundance of chaos that has to be seen to be believed. Virtual Alchemy CEO Dominik Sypnicki and art director Kamil Mickiewicz walked me through it all at Gamescom, and while my coffee-fuelled brain initially panicked at the sheer volume of content, I found myself falling in love with their wider vision of the game and its demon-infested 1300s Europe.

The land is awash with sin. Monstrous entities have overtaken this once-beautiful European landscape, tainting the ground with their corruption, washing away hamlets in tides of blood. Right from the onset Band of Crusaders feels like a medieval version of Diablo's Sanctuary, oozing malice and pure, raw style. You're cast as the Grandmaster of a knightly order who's charged with leading their company against the hordes of hell, and it's not going to be an easy fight.

As mentioned, Band of Crusaders is doing a lot. As Grandmaster you'll choose your troops, upgrade and manage your camp (which you can explore in first-person, by the way), and ensure that your fighting force is fit for battle. Sometimes you'll discover a rogue element - Sypnicki and Mickiewicz introduced me to a solider who, in an attempt to forget the horrors he's seen, is drowning his sorrows with drink. Your shoddy refuge feels like a real, living commune; one that's celebratory after victory, but broken in defeat.

Once you've chosen your troops and your loadouts (there's a whole skill system that really lets you tailor both your own build and that of your allies), you'll head out onto a huge, dynamic map that's littered with various POIs. You'll choose your next venture (but expect some trouble along the way) and head out to defeat your foes. Be careful, however, as there's a day/night cycle in play, and taking on the beasties after twilight feels like a recipe for disaster.

The level I saw pitted our crew against a particularly nasty witch, whose summoned monsters and eerie dark magic certainly dented our forces.  Combat plays out RTS-style, so you can split your troops up as you see fit to minimize casualties and maximize damage. There's also a tactical slow-mo option, which brings the action down a notch to allow you to change up the flow of combat. Given how quickly everything moves, it's an absolute gamechanger - especially when it comes to taking down gigantic, sin-inspired bosses.

While Band of Crusaders does have a lot going on, it comes together in a seamless, exciting adventure that tests both your tactical thinking and your management. It's unlike any videogame I've ever seen, and I'm excited to be able to dive back in.

Virtual Alchemy has just released a brand new Band of Crusaders demo, which is available for free on both Steam and GOG. You can check it out right here.

Of all the games I saw at Gamescom, Band of Crusaders was easily the most ambitious - especially when you consider that this is an indie studio (of course backed by NCSoft). While Europa Universalis has the pedigree and self-admitted complexity, Band of Crusaders feels like a game that, while perhaps a little frightening at first, has a wider appeal. As I ravenously await the next chapter of Sanctuary's woeful saga, 1300s Europe may just become my home away from home this holiday season.