King’s Bounty: Warriors of the North Release Date Announced / Pre-Order Available
 

1C Company announces the worldwide release date for King’s Bounty: Warriors of the North. The next chapter in the multi-award winning RPG/adventure saga will be available to all on October 26, 2012.

The game will come in two editions, the standard edition and the special Valhalla Edition, which includes:
• Valhalla Armor Set
These unique in-game items are an armor set the hero can collect in the course of their journeys. Combined together these artifacts give additional a strong boost to the character’s attributes.
• Digital artwork and wallpapers

Digital bonuses: Ultra-high resolution artwork depicting an epic battle of Olaf and the Valkyries against undead hordes, and wallpapers available in all popular desktop resolutions.

The King’s Bounty: Warriors of the North pre-order is now available at Steam, Amazon, GameStop, GamersGate and many others. Each shop offers additional bonuses for pre-orders.

OMG OMG OMG OMG YES YES YES YES! :-D 10 day

Very good :)

Any dates/info for UK retail editions?

We will post the dates as soon as they are defined.

Oh, excellent. Can you at least give a rough idea of when they'll be? Late-2012, Early-2013 - that sort of area.

Just wondering if I'd be able to get a retail edition as a Christmas or Birthday present or if I'd have to get it myself.

Thanks!

2 editions? not another game in many editions :(
So it's either preorder or no special item set. not very nice.

You can buy the edition containing the item set after the release as well, but without the discount.

Dwagginz, we'll post the info about UK retail editions as soon as we have it. Please note that retail versions will require Steam too.

just pre-purchase King's Bounty: Warriors of the North in steam, and i can download game's manual in pdf format. Is this intentional?

Ugh, do I get the GameStop version or the Steam Version? Aieeeee!

How did you manage to do that? I would love to read it to kill some time :-D

Steam's not a problem for me, though I do hope it's clearly labelled on the box as needing Steamworks (doesn't bother me, but I have bought games which didn't mention it and whilst I'm fine with Steam, I found that a little bad).

But thanks. I'll keep an eye on this board.

Dishonored, XCOM, Walking Dead Episode 4, and now, Warriors of the North! October has been the best (and most painful on the wallet) month I can remember in years.

Happy to get a confirmation of the release date, hooray!

Yes, you can download the manual right away, even from the store page.

We will post the dates as soon as they are defined.:)
http://www.rdox.info/01.jpghttp://www.rdox.info/02.jpghttp://www.rdox.info/8.jpghttp://www.rdox.info/9.jpg

Do want game but DO NOT want Steam account.
Have bought multiple dvd copies of previous games in this series, will NOT be buying any that require Steam account.

I didn't see the retail version listed on Amazon.com? Will there be an option for the Valhalla version for retail?

There will be retail versions of course, but the will use Steamworks as well.

I understand, I was just wondering when I can order it from Amazon.com?

Also, totally hypothetical, but if Steam were to go out of business tomorrow...would the physical copy of Warriors of the North be unusable?

Depends if Gabe Newell's statements were correct or not. It's been said that if Steam were to close, Valve would distribute a patch to allow it to work offline - I presume that means it would also include the ability to install games.

Well, I just preordered it on Steam. Can't be bothered with the free gift, Fantasy Wars, but at least I get the extra in game bits (Valkyrie pack).

So I guess I'm back off to play the new XCOM for another week before Oct 26th :cool:

I can't find the item in Amazon but the release notes say preorder is available there. The bonus in Gamersgate is Kings Bounty 1 (already have it) and in Steam is Fantasy Wars (already have it). Any other place with preorder bonus other than the valhalla stuff which I think is common to all?

While I love Steam and have over 300 games in my Steam account I think people resent having their only option to play the game be tied to a Steam account.

I know it is a relatively painless process but some people do not want to use that service.

while I own The Legend and Crossworlds on Steam I also bought a second copy on GOG.com of The Legend because it was a DRM-free installer. That is something us PAYING customers value, pirates don't care what DRM you use.

So not only have I bought a second copy from GOG.com but if you would also release Crossworlds on GOG.com I would buy it in a second. Literally, I will spend the money all over again to have the game DRM free even though I use and enjoy Steam.

Your customers, the guys really into strategy games, are mostly the people who will buy your games. The people who will pirate this game are not the people who are going to be spending $30 on it, trust me.

The funny thing is that by offering a more convenient service you actually increase the value of your product. You already see I am willing to buy a game over again just for that feature of convience, I can install it on my work computer, any computer, I don't require an internet connection or an activation, there are times that comes in handy. I am not giving this game to people and if someone is interested I can let them play it and you may convert another player into a fan who will want to buy your other games. So you think you are protecting yourself by using DRM, even very good DRM like Steamworks, but really you are lowering the value of your product. There is some more complexity behind this I know but you should try and see what people actually value in your games, what they are willing to spend money on.

I've already pre-ordered Warriors of the North the moment I woke up groggily this morning and bleary eyed saw that it was availble for pre-order, I knew it was a day-1 preorder for me. I am looking forward to playing this game so much, I am now running through The Legend again as a run up to Warriors of the North. I am so excited.

MG, thanks for your thoughtful post. I am one of the folks you refer to. I have never purchased (leased?) a title from Steam and doubt I ever will, for various reasons. I certainly understand that many customers have had a good experience with them, but I'm not willing to purchase from them, given their current business model.

I purchased my original copy of KB:CW from Impulse and a second copy of KB:TL from GOG, primarily so I don't have keep the original CD-ROM in my computer. I would happily purchase KB:WotN from Impulse, if offered. I have no issue with activation limits, so long as I can recover them by uninstalling the game - it's the other DRM/Steam issues I choose not to accept. And I likely would purchase a backup via GOG, if KB:CW or KB:WotN are offered there.

I certainly understand why developers are concerned enough about piracy - especially when a game is first released - to want a DRM option. But as a buyer, I choose to opt out of such games. If 1C releases the game later without DRM, I'll snap it up. Unfortunately, that means I have to wait, and 1C will likely get less money from me (later releases are usually discounted), but that's the company's option. They aren't doing anything wrong by offering only Steamworks, but they are limiting their pool of potential customers.

To those who do get the game - enjoy!

Steamworks isn't a DRM, it is a bigger thing like framework. It contains Steam DRM, but much more importantly it allows achievements, leaderboard, storing saves in the cloud, that kind of stuff.

Steam DRM is actually one of the less intrusive DRM solutions available now. We decided not to add any third-party DRM like Tages, Proactive or one of others to the game (some titles on Steam have a third-party DRM and some don't), so if you're anti-DRM you can be assured we're not trying to limit a freedom of legitimate buyers while trying to minimize piracy.

As it was already mentioned many times, after installing a Steam game and running it you can switch Steam to offline mode and you won't need to connect to Internet to play. Of course achievements and other online features like cloud stuff won't work, but you'll be able to play the game wherever you want, on a laptop in a middle of a forest if you'd like to. Personally I find this cloud saving very convenient, you can play on different PCs and have your progress synchronized. Of course Steam also means automatically delivered updates so don't forget to connect to Internet sometimes to make sure you won't miss them:)

Steam is third-party DRM, and it's about as intrusive as a bulldozer knocking down one of your walls. First-party DRM is, say, Ubisoft's UPlay system.

And the offline mode is, as far as I remember, about as stable as... something very unstable. The automatic updates also mean you're stuck (as in STUCK) if an update breaks the game because you can't roll back, you can't choose your version and so on. You're giving up your freedom for features that you might not ever use (I've got Cloud Saves turned off because it's malfunctioned before and I almost lost 10-20hrs of progress on Saints Row the Third, not to mention the issues Dungeons of Dredmor appears to have with Steam Cloud at times).

It's probably the most "acceptable" form of DRM behind single-activation/online-activation SecuROM, but it's not exactly the Holy Grail of Content Protection.

I had problems with the auto update thing as well when Skyrim would release a new major patch and suddenly my game crashes ever 10 mins. No way to roll back and now way to install the previous stable version by reinstalling it. Have to wait days or weeks for either a fan fix or another update and hope it fix's it. That was very frustrating. I also really dislike their refusal to give refunds on games that are completely broken but that's more personal.
Mostly I can not stand having to have another program have to launch and be running just to play a different one. It eats resources and as minor as it is I really don't like having to wait several second or mins to start my game because a different program has to update, or realize there is no internet and so have to restart in offline mode. Many of these things are minor but there is enough of them that unless a game is really good I'll just pass or wait.

So while I really wish I could buy this game I'll pass, If a gog.com version comes out I'll buy that right off. Same if a gog version of Crossworlds comes out. Until then I'll wait.

Could be wrong, but can't you only start Steam's offline mode if you're online?

You can disable auto-update on steam, so what the problem ? Also you can ask to a refund if the game don't work.

The only problem with steam is the price : they're more expensible than other platform.

Extremely unreliable - there are reports of games forcing you to update them even if you have updates turned off. And no, not really. Aside from extreme circumstances, the only time you'll ever get a refund from Steam is when you cancel a pre-purchase before release. I've tried getting refunds for broken games, and it just isn't possible. They might do it once or twice per account, but on the whole? No, Steam don't do refunds.

That depends on your location. As someone in the UK, Steam can be more expensive than Origin or GamersGate, but there are games on GOG that cost more than their Steam versions or ones on GamersGate that are more expensive than those on Steam. Prices vary between retailers.

In addition to what Dwagginz said: What about the games you bought as Retails form other publishers than Steam and that have to updated via Steam. Do you really think that Steam will refund this? Or any other seller where you bought the game, months before?

Steam might be a good thing in a lot of cases, but can be a pain under certain circumstances (mostly when third parties (publisher, etc.) who use Steamworks) are involved).

Greetz

J.B.

Correct. You can ONLY start offline if you did it while in online mode. So if you lose connection and forgot to go offline, well, you can't play.

Also, all very true about waiting time, forced updates that can ruin your game (same happened to me for Fallout NV after 50 hours playing, an update broke it for me and I was not able to play again for weeks, until a FAN-made fix came out...)

Look, I understand why some people like Steam and do not understand these problems. I sometimes can use a very fast, ALWAYS online connection and I don't even notice Steam. Everything is quick, fast, smooth.

But to play I have to use a very slow and unreliable connection most of the times, and then my life become very complicated. I play to enjoy life, not to have even more problems and frustration.

In sum, I adore this series, played them all and loved them all, and I have always pre-order and played full price to support them. But this move to Steam only is just... wrong.

Developers need to get in their head the NO DRM works. Most people are honest, and will support their game. Pirates will steal their game anyway. Look what’s happening in Kickstartert and GOG. I love GOG, I snatch every good game from there even if I have already a copy. You can save your digital copy and install it anywhere, anytime, no problems.

Kings Bounty armored princess+crossworlds distribution
 

Hi,
I have a suggestion regarding kings's bounty armored princess with the addon crossworlds.
I have bought both games a long time ago, but what me bothered was the annoying DRM on crossworlds (a limited number of installs possible)

I know the first kings bounty game (legends) is available from gog.com
my suggestions is that 1c will after the release of warriors of the north also distribute kings bounty armored princess + crosswords, or perhaps kings bounty platinum (legends + armored princess + crossworlds) through gog.com

I know publishers dont always like to use DRM free platforms, and gog used to be called 'good old games' as distributers only wanted to use gog with their older games - but hey, next week princess+crossworlds is no longer the latest kings bounty. A good oppertunity to start using gog for this good old game.

I already own the games, but I think using gog for kings bounty platinum will be great for new fans.

This was a bug that they fixed some time ago; there is no need to speculate try it yourself - start a game - pull your ethernet cable and then exit the game and try to run it again. Should work fine.

My guess is they will do this but it might take 6 months or a year. So if you don't mind the wait it is a fine way to do things. I have quite a few games via gog (including witcher 2) but I also have many games via steam and quite frankly I (personally) been happy with steam. The one thing I do like about gog is ease of running their games on linux via wine; but i prefer steam's update mechanism over gog (which can be a bit painful esp due to lack of notification of updates).

Sneaksie stated that KB:WotN won't have DRM beyond the requirements for installing and patching, and I take him at his word. So I'm guessing that 1C is using SteamWorks for other reasons, perhaps to simplify the patching and support process. Clearly it has been a pain for them to support multiple versions of the previous games with different patches. It's a trade-off: save effort and cost for support, but at the expense of losing or delaying purchases from buyers who won't use Steam.

I suspect they'll review the sales numbers and that will impact what decisions are made about future releases. In the meantime, as others have said, I'll play other games while waiting for a non-Steam version of this one. Whatever happens, I hope they keep producing games in this series.

Does Gamer's Gate Version Require Steam?
 

What about the Gamer's Gate version?

Does that require Steam?

I've gotten all 3 previous King's Bounty games from Gamer's Gate and didn't need Steam for any of those...

/C\/C\

ALL versions of WotN will require Steam. The GamersGate store page also clearly states that WotN will require activation on Steam.

To go back to the above discussion; I don't mind using Steamworks, but I'm not blind to its flaws, hence my points above. It doesn't affect my purchase of WotN - the lack of a confirmed, detailed retail release is doing that - but I'm not sure why it's particularly needed. Then again, I don't know why it was needed for Fallout: New Vegas.

I did disable the auto-updates and as Dwagginz pointed out it still forced updates on me. And there is still the problem of not being able to reinstall and choose which version i want.

And no they do not give refunds easily if at all. I bought a game from that was on sale for only $4. The game would not start at all, not on my nice computer, not on my older laptop. Both beat the min and recommend specs for the game but I could not get it to launch on either computer. I go and look at the forum's and see that a lot of people have the problem. I ask steam for a refund and they refuse, nothing I said would get me a refund. I also hate that I have to ask for everything via email with them because they don't want to have a call center. So then even simple things takes several days of email exchange to try to solve. Or if they do have a number its buried and not easy to find.

As for price I'm in the US so tend to be about the same as other places. I mostly used them for their sales.

I will point out that I generally have no problems running games with steamworks overall. If I receive a game code for steam as a gift I'll use it and play the game still. Other then the patching and refund thing most of my gripes with them are minor. I just don't feel like I should have to put up with all those things in order to play a game I paid for. I don't care about achievements, leaderboards or any of that other stuff so it's not worth it for me to have to put up with Steam just to get those things. And since this game has to compete with other games for my limited amount of money I do factor in the fact it has steamworks as a negative against it and so will end up buying something else that won't have it. Such as Torchlight 2 or Divinity 2 Directors Edition from gog (my second copy of divinity 2 because I wanted one with out a DRM).

I'm was really looking forward to this game, but having to use Steam to play it is a major turn off for me.
All the other releases were physical copies that did not require a Steam account, and it got 1C/the fans this far...why can't we keep that going?
With so many gaming options out there, I can spend my money elsewhere. Such a shame that 1C isn't even giving an option here. :mad:

They don't. The Steam support team is pretty small.

Torchlight II is Steamworks.

Why Steam can be problem for anybody?

Sorry mate, I know you are just trying to be helpful, and I don't question that this 'fix' might work in some systems. I have had the same problem exactly 2 days ago. Out of town, trying to use my laptop, forgot to put in in offline mode when I was online, not a SINGLE game worked after that... just the annoy message "Steam cannot connect to the server..."

And good luck trying to contact support. If and when they answer, they always re-direct you to the forums. Mind me, not a specific solution discussed in the forum, but the general forum. In other words, find your own damn solution if you like...

Now compare this 'wonderful' service to GOG. You buy the game, download it, and install right away. No updates, validation, commercials forced on you, never think of GOG again until I need to buy a new game. This is the service I like.

Let me use this analogy: I buy coffee every day, but I do not want to call the shop every time I want to drink coffee, and I don't want to listen to their sell-pitch every time I drink coffee, and I certainly don't want to being forbidden of drinking the damn coffee I legally bought simply because I did not use a procedure they imposed on me. Make sense?

Can you read? Repeated many times...

I consider the pros outweigh the cons as far as steam is concerned. No updates (gog) is no go for me. Every cd I've ever owned caused problems after a few years so I am happy I no longer have to use them. I understand the problems others have but for now it's either steam or nothing.

GOG has updates, but they're few and far between as the majority of their games are old releases that aren't being supported any more.

If you buy it off of Runic's website it doesn't require steam. Just a one time online activation. So you can get it from steam but your not forced too. A nice simple solution. Those who want steam get it, those who don't can get it without.

I will address your response. As I said I use Steam and do not mind purchasing games that use Steamworks. That being said Steamworks is DRM. It ALSO allows for those things you mention, in fact that is why I use Steam, for the convience and other services, such as matchmaking in some games, friends lists, overlay, in-game web browser, etc.

Some people don't want to think "If Valve goes out of business I lose all my games" or "If I can't get online I can't install my game".

Even with offline mode if you want to reinstall you must connect again. Even old style DRM that required a disc in the drive did not require you to ever have an active Internet connection to install.

That is why GOG.com is SO great. You can download the installer and then not worry about it. I have my server with a large RAID 50 array, so I keep all my GOG.com installers there. So no matter what happens, even if a nuclear war happens and the Internet is gone but somehow my computer still works I can install these games.

The reality is that Steam is not very onerus and I hope most people still buy your wonderful game. I already have! But just know that there is a market for the completely DRM free version of the game. I will GLADLY buy this game a second time if and when you release it on GOG.com.

Perhaps to celebrate the release of Warriors of the North you could go back and release Crossworlds and Platinum on GOG.com? I will buy my second copies!

Thanks guys,
Mygaffer

I have to say I have never had a problem with offline mode. In fact even if you lose Internet before you go into offline mode you still have 90 days, three months, before you have to connect again.

I know some people have reported problems, maybe that was with older versions of Steam, I know Steam is a LOT better now than when I first started using it in 2007.

I hope no one skips the game because of Steamworks but I understand if they do. As other have alluded to version control, offline access, privacy and security concerns with third party software, I get all of that. GOG.com is always my first choice but of course for now the reality is that we must settle for other things.

In fact to "settle" for Steam is about as good as you can really get barring a real DRM-free version.

Actually there is a non-steamworks version of TL2 that you can buy.

GOG.com has updates. When an update is released for your game it will tell you up your library a number, this is the number of games with new updates or content.

OK, well I am sorry for all these posts in a row! If a mod wants to condense them I would thank them.

Anyway, lets get the conversation back on topic! There are other threads for this DRM debate.

Who else here is concerned about the "Valhalla Armor" pre-order bonus? The tag line is that it will give you an "... additional a strong boost to the character’s attributes"

I hate it when pre-order items affect balance of a game. With New Vegas I deleted all those stupid packs, as they made the beginning of the game waaay too easy in a way that really took something away from the game itself.

I hope it is not the same with this armor set although I can always just not use it.

It will also be interesting to see if they just reused the maps from the The Legend or if they have redesigned them as well. I really did not like the island design of Armored Princess, it was just not as fun to explore a lot of smaller places compared to a few larger places. I suspect it is easier or faster to design though...

So I am hoping this is more like a full release than an expansion. Time will tell.

I'm sorry, what was that? Are you telling me when I buy the boxed version I need Steam???

gog has old games, and that's it. can you buy dishnored from gog today? batman AC? nope. I want to play a game today, not 1 year later, or 2, or 3...

all maps are new, of course. it's a 60 hour long game, not a merely 20-30 expansion.

I think you will find the valhalla bonus while you play, but not in the beginning, so you won't be too powerful from the get-go.

It is still far from perfect.

That was stated on the previous page, and I sit corrected.

Well, you can easily disable things in FO:NV, and I found those packs made the introduction a little smoother, particularly for melee playstyles. But I don't think it's been stated that this armour set will be there from release - in fact the description is that you'll find it over the course of the game, so it sounds to me like you'll probably have to buy it.

That's because GOG is not a vendor of brand new AAA titles (beyond their own releases), almost all of which come with some form of DRM. They are, however, increasingly becoming a launch platform for indie releases - Resonance, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga - Developer's Cut (only that specific edition) and a number of others have released on GOG alongside - or before - other platforms.

GOG has never been advertised as anything but a vendor of classic (and now EU/Rus games from a few years ago and indie games) games, so it's a bit of a poor argument to use against them.

That is generally the case with Steamworks games. Skyrim, Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War II, Saints Row the Third and a number of other games exclusively use Steam, regardless of the way you buy the game.

I don't care if it's poor or not because it wasn't meant as an argument against them. I like gog, it's just that they are very good for old games, not new. So, I don't see the point in this discussion related to gog. It's a discussions with no use in the end (about gog).

They're good for new games if a publisher uses them. 1C are one of the publishers who could definitely benefit from releasing new titles on GOG, including Warriors of the North ;)

I guess their revenues are higher if they use steam instead of gog (steam is better known) and maybe easier. Whatever their reasons are they won't change until 26, so if you want to play this game on lauch day.....

I've heard (no method to confirm) that steam is cheaper (than gog) for small publishers/developers as well as having better distribution.

I think like Mandea said its probably just about the level of awareness. I know when Jeff Vogel, who runs spiderweb software, started putting his games (Avernum, Geneforge, ect.) out on steam and for cheaper he got a big leap of sales. Steam does have a huge market and so is a good choice to have a release that uses it.

I still think I should have the choice of using it or not though. Some games I would use it because I had a lot of friends who had the game and so would like the chat function and other nice things. Others I would not because I have no need for them.

I will also point out that having steam attached to the game has broken the game on release before. Usually this gets patched and fixed but sometimes is does not. My roommate has a mac and some of the games he got off of steam he has to use workarounds just to play the game because of the steam interface causing problems.

Actually the do not only have old games. They used to, now they are expanding into new games. But somehow I get the feeling you are just wanting to attack GOG.com but I don't know why.

So I feel stupid for engaging with you on this when we are way off topic but yes, GOG sells new games and is working on getting more. Of course many publishers still cling to terrible DRM and so don't release their games on GOG as GOG requires no DRM.

If you want to argue FOR DRM good for you. Go buy some Ubisoft games and hope your wifi connection does not drop...

Hey, anyone have anything to say about the actual game? What about the Valkyries, looks like they take the place of a wife? I saw a screen shot that seemed to show that. It will be interesting, I actually liked the way the dragon worked much better than the rage spirits in the first game.

I will ask you the same question you asked earlier: DO YOU READ?
I've already said I like gog but you keep saying lies, not to mention you are offtopic. no one said anything about ubisoft. another troll.

Hey man why don't you calm down with the personal insults here? I won't even bother responding to you if you can't keep it civil.

If GOG is off topic, which I agree that it is, then why were you posting about it?

Also:
http://www.gog.com/news/gog_coms_pla...gets_some_news

There you go. It is not a lie that GOG.com sells new games. It is there in black and white. I can even list the new releases, like Legend of Grimrock, that they have for sale right now.

So if you want to get back Warriors of the North, great, so do I. If you want to address my posts, great, that is what a forum is for. But do not insult other members here and bring down the level of discussion we are having.

It's you the one who started it by putting words in my mouth and telling lies and now pretending it's the other way round.

And it's not me who started all this gog issue, so as I said, read what others had said.

I never said gog doesn't sell new games, I said they don't sell the new games I am interested in (those two examples of mine), so for me it's useless as far as new games are concerned. talking about gog and Wotn is a dead issue right now, but you don't seem to understand that. Maybe later they will sell it, but not right now.

I believe that's the case. I think I read it on this forum that there's five Valkyries, one of whom you choose as a 'major' slot (and you get a large bonus from her) and the other four take up the 'minor' slots, giving you smaller bonuses.

The game is very different than previous versions. It has valkyries but they are different than wives; you collect 5 of them; one of them can be named 'leader' and have some slight bonus from the collection. The key feature is they add rage skills (replacement to the dragon). As far as I can tell there are exactly 5; so you do not have to pick which ones you want; only which one you wish to be leader. As a by product there are 4 fewer equipment slots (than previous games). On the bonus you can feed your unwanted items to the Valkyries and they will grow stronger.

"gog has old games, and that's it. "

Honestly, I think you are in the wrong here Mandea. This statement is pretty darn close to "Gog only has old games." And even if that isn't what you meant, it is what the most reasonable meaning of the words you typed is.

As for the Valkyries: Based on the manual, each one has a single skill, and then you have 4 others that you might pick up as part of the story, or may actually represent Olaf's own personal strengths himself, which would be kinda cool. Looking forward to seeing how that works.

It always a little scary when a game you love changes part of the formula. I have faith that this game will be better than ever, I know that the improvements from The Legend to Armored Princess/Crossworlds were all great.

Anyway else running through the old games in antipation of the next one? I am trying to beat The Legend again before Warriors of the North hits, I am not sure I will make it as I only have a few hours at night after work to play.

if you quote, quote everything. I gave two examples of new games in that post. it's a subtle difference, but it does change everything.
it doesn't matter in the end if you have to use steam as it seems to be the case.

"The King’s Bounty: Warriors of the North pre-order is now available at Steam, Amazon, GameStop, GamersGate and many others. Each shop offers additional bonuses for pre-orders."

how come despite the above claim, the pre-order is only on steam & gamers gate? will there be a pre-order for gamestop with the 10% discount as indicated? if so, it has to be tomorrow because it will be released the next day.

I think it means GameStop PC Downloads, which used to be known as Impulse. I just checked, however, and it's not showing on there for me, but it might be a regional thing (which Impulse/GameStop PC Downloads uses heavily). You're right about it not being on Amazon US, though.

Unfortunately the pre-orders on Gamestop and Amazon are not available due to 3d party issues. I can only recommend to use Steam or GamersGate instead.

Found out yesterday that this game existed, immediately pre-ordered it, and it comes out tomorrow! You have no idea how happy I am to get to play a new kb! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH

Can't wait. I prefer the smell of the paper.

Why is that?

Because that's typically the case with Steamworks games. Skyrim, Fallout: New Vegas, Saints Row the Third, Dawn of War II - all PC versions use Steamworks regardless of where you buy them.

For Katauri, it also benefits them as there's only one version of the game to patch, troubleshoot and so on - a Steam edition. They also only need to send patches, any content/expansions to Steam and can distribute codes to other retailers.

Simply put, it's more for Katauri's benefit than our own.

I just pre-ordered Warriors of the North on amazon.de for $25.99.

As to Steam, there are always ways to avoid these things - and I have clean conscience as long as I paid for my copy of the game!

I'd so like to play KB but...
 

I'll add my voice here in hope that 1C's sales dept might be interested - I too won't be purchasing this game, unless it does eventually get released as a standalone product (and I'd happily pay more for the privilege). The simplicity of being able to reinstall when a patch is bad or a drive dies is important to me, as is the ability to isolate my gaming machine from the network (and I wonder what the breakdown of the user base is for turn-based games of this ilk - I'd suspect we're more enamored of privacy among other things vs the bulk of Steam fans).

Also, I broke my practice of staying away from online-only games because I wanted to play HOMM VI (or whatever their marketing department renamed it) and after the horror of dealing with ubisoft I'd much rather do without! :)

Upps i kinda missed the release.
Oh well i really counted on !c to release game in may. .. now i have GW2 and GW2 >> all games ;p

Agree 100%!
Let all the digital downloaders play this game 6 ways of Friday, with no losses, mods, online armor, etc....but, at least, give the option of a stand alone physical copy. Home media is not dead yet!
I won't mind as I'll have my ever reliable HoMM 3, with over 1000 maps that game can last me, pretty much forever. :)

Retail Box Version
 

I bought the downloadable version from Steam, but I want to get this as a gift for my dad for X-mas. Is there a retail box version available anywhere? I would like to give him an actual gift he can open.

Thanks!

Sounds like you're a great son!

Good! Just wondering if I'd be able to get a retail edition as a Christmas or Birthday present or if I'd have to get it myself.:)