Castle Story is developed and offered by Storm8 Studios. It falls in to the category of casual game and it is only playable with stable internet connection on mobile devices. Players can download this mobile app for free on both App Store and Google Play. Like many other mobile casual games, Castle Story can be played for free but it contains ads and pop-ups. Players cannot shut down the ads because this game does not support an offline playing mode. It offers various in-game purchases, covering some important things players often need in game progress, such as the energy and many other decorative items. The game as its title suggests, contains two themes: it is obviously a castle-building game; meanwhile, it also incorporates an in-game storytelling. The general goal of Castle Story is to build your dream castle with fine details and craftsmanship, as well as prosperous supply on foods and resources. The game mechanism is quest-based. There are a number of sub-themes on gaming objectives and players make progress in those aspects by fulfilling various quests with different purposes. Those sub-themes include the personalized decoration of the castle, the exploration and discovery of the myth-riddled forest known as the “Glimmerwood”, the revealing of the mysteriously secretive stories of your past and the craftsmanship refinement of the castle. Each category of those themes involve its own set of quests. Some quests are decorative, some are more adventurous such as the rescue of trapped creatures and animals from evils and villains. There are also battles against the monsters. Besides, some quests drive the storytelling of the game. By fulfilling each quest, players can patch up pieces of a hidden story. What’s more, since kingdom building is the ultimate objective of the gameplay, players can often conduct good craftsmanship in the workshop. Plus, to ensure the prosperity of the castle and the fantasy kingdom, players also need to take on some farming activities to provide a stable source of food and produces. The interactive contents in the game are plenty, especially the decorative part of the game that offers a massive options for fine designs and details, such as the castle walls, gates, towers and many more. The mechanism of the gameplay lies in an energy-replishment system. In order to take on a new task, players need to display the required energy level as the prerequisite. It should be noted that energy takes time to refill, or it can be purchased in game with real currency. At the same time, quests are also timed. Players need to finish their tasks within the time period, otherwise they need to retry the quest again. A successful completion of quests can bring rewards that might contain the valuable “gems”to level up.

Game Review

Castle Story is a very relaxing casual game with pretty artistic styles and enjoyable gaming atmosphere. The control and gameplay are easy to follow and the goal of the game is rather clear. The game contents well balance the relaxation and intensity (quests involving battles and rescue etc.) Besides, a storyline is cleverly waved into the whole gameplay and the revealing process is fun and challenging. The downside of such game resembles that of many other free casual games. Developers need to optimize the app and its programming stability.