Launching last year to significant acclaim, fans of Paradox Interactive's Crusader Kings 3 have been waiting patiently to see what's next for the popular strategy game, with the studio revealing last month that something big was on its way. As promised, during PDXCon Remixed's Announcement Stream, the studio officially announced the game's first expansion, with the Royal Court DLC getting a cinematic trailer and an array of details.
The major add-on will center on an expansive new mechanic, with players able to visit their ruler's throne room and interact with their vassals, subjects, and other members of the court. According to Crusader Kings 3 Creative Director Alexander Altner, the throne room setting will offer a wealth of new systems, allowing players to further their "own political power and agenda."
It seems the expansion will focus on the dynamic characters and relationships that form through Crusader Kings 3's campaigns, as Altner claims that there will be court drama, displays of wealth, and the ability for players to make impactful decisions regarding the future of their realm. The latter will be a significant part of the new add-on, with the player having the ability to summon their ruler's vassals and hear their requests. It seems it'll make managing the demands and frustrations of the player's various lords a much simpler task.
Altner also confirms that players will be able to heavily customize their throne room, with the ability to add artifacts, decorations, and other displays of wealth. Doing so will actually come with tangible bonuses, as "more interesting guests" will want to come to a ruler's court if they spend time and money ensuring it's a sight to see. These guests have personal quests of their own that, when accomplished, will offer items that can be added to the player's court.
Finally, the expansion will entirely overhaul Crusader Kings 3's culture system, introducing two new features: Hybrid Cultures and Cultural Divergence. Altner didn't go into detail on exactly what these will change in the game, although the expansion's official Steam page does offer a few details. It claims that the Hybrid Cultures feature will allow players to merge cultures and the Cultural Divergence feature will allow them to split from their current culture and create a new one.
The expansion doesn't currently have a release date, although Altner does claim that it'll come after the free Azure patch, which is slated to launch later this summer. Following that, the creative director claimed that Paradox will be releasing dev diaries detailing all the features present in Royal Court, offering players a deeper look at the upcoming expansion. In the meantime, players can already enjoy a range of Crusader Kings 3 mods, including ones that bring the worlds of Lord of the Rings and Fire Emblem to the game.
Crusader Kings 3 is out now on PC.
Source: PDXCon Remixed Announcement Show, Steam