Before anything, let me tell you a bit about GSC's history.

This Ukrainian game developper, founded in 1995, was reputed for RTS (Cossacks) and FPS (S.T.A.L.K.E.R.) games. In 2004, they opened up a branch company named "GSC World Publisher", allowing them to publish games without being EA'd, I believe...
In 2007, they made S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, which was followed by 2 brilliant sequels in 2008 and 2009 respectively. They tried to port it into consol. However, due to a lack of manpower, they instead decided to make S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, but that game was cancelled since they were then on a financial problem. December 9 2011 would mark their official disclosure. Vostok Games was created not long after by the GSC staff members with their F2P game Survarium. On december 22 2014, after a controversy with another game developper that I won't name, GSC re-opened and announced what will become Cossacks 3.

As you can see, they just got out of bankruptcy, so before buying the game, I suggest you to not have very high expectations, a good load of deception will rise otherwise.

Onto the game, now:

Menu:

Quick and simple, compared to what we had back in Cossacks: European Wars, although it doesn't feel complete. In the square in the bottom-right corner of the menu was (probably) supposed to have a preview of the map we are about to play on. The flags no longer move (nit-picking), but we have even more colors than we used to, so we can mess around with all of them to see which one fits our taste the most. With the Season pass/deluxe content, we get to play as all the civs we know and love from the last 2 nations of Back to war and with the actual DLC (in my opinion), we can play 1 brand new nation at the moment, although that DLC is a bit more expensive than the others...

Graphics:

Great in my opinion, although it might cause a bit of trouble on older PC. In my case, the lowest quality is enough to make the game fluid. What I like about it is that the character model is very beautiful whatever the texture quality. Granted, I don't get to see building shadows, but it's still a good sacrifice for better performance. Although GSC could work on the destroyed building design a bit, as sometimes we see them as if they're full health... Not enough details on that one. Whatever are the graphic settings you set, the load time is ridiculously long : you have the time to make a cheap baloney sandwich and come back.

Gameplay:

Similar to Cossacks: European Wars (of course), we get a load of options to do even before the beginning of the game: how many peasants, Montgolfier enabled or not, canons or not, peace time, XVIIIth or not, you name it. All for your game preferences.

The UI hasn't changed much, although the lack of patrol mode is cringe worthy. Some people may complain that this UI style is outdated, but I don't mind, as it gives all the information I need. We got our beloved 6 ressources back (wood, food, stone, gold, iron and coal) with the classic Cossacks function (famine, mercenary mutiny, can't shoot without iron or coal). The description pop-up is very well done: not too small, not too big either and easy to read, although annoying as it disappears when a research is completed.

The unit formation returns and, like in the other titles, can turn things around. Very important to destroy the enemy with, as it gives a rather important attack and defense bonuses.

Regarding balance, we can clearly see that canons and howitzers got a nice buff while the bombardier has been nerfed a bit. It got buffed recently, but is still not as powerful as it used to (they were frustrating, always aiming those ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ mines...). The galley has gotten a great fix: it can't mortar other boats anymore. It was kind of annoying, as it gives kind of a pointless micromanagement that enemy boats can exploit to get free damage. As of writing this review, the « big Berthas » (the Victoria and her fellow weaker sisters, still stronger than the Ship of the Line) aren't in the game. I wonder when they will put them back. I miss them... The Blockhouse shoots MUCH faster, it's a must destroy before invading one's city. I welcome these balances changes, for the moment.

Sound:

Powerful at some places, terribly weak at others. For example: the musket's firing sound is truly addicting, while the death sound leaves much to be desired. In fact, a mod is required to get more Cossacks feelings, rather than letting the game make us think that the musket is shooting sleeping needles... Also, some sound files are missing: no explosion sound when the grenadiers throw their nades at buildings, until it blows up. I also believe the explosion sound to be weaker than what we had back in Cossacks 1. And where's the fire sound? Looking at flames is nice, but we want to hear them too. Building sound, while not as memorable as it used to, is very enjoyable to listen to. I love the XVIIIth century barracks sound, for example, as it make us feel that you're in the building where the most powerful infantry units are created. Still long as hell to build, though.

As for the soundtrack, it packs a punch, even in the game since you’re constantly on your guard (Hussars and/or Sich Cossacks might attack at any moment).

Campaign :

Takes the approach in the same way as it did in Cossacks 1 : as you play through each mission, at certain moments, the game will pause and will give you stuff to read and click. It doesn’t sound very exciting, but it’s part of the good ol’ Cossacks charm. The missions are fun overall and need to be experienced once.

Tutorial :

Very effective. In the old kid days, I was really awful at the game, with them mostly ending with a gigantic case of famine and/or lack of gold with 3 Victorias… Now, thanks for the tutorial, I can keep up with the economy and advancements.

Multiplayer :

Unfortunately, you can't play the multiplayer if you have an active mod. You're stuck with muskets shooting sleeping needles. This has been decided by GSC to prevent cheating, or so I heard. Anyway, the multiplayer is quite something else from the AI. If somebody tells you that there’s no strategy in Cossacks, tell yourself that they have not played the multiplayer. Not only because the game characteristics are probably different from your usual playstyle, but you need to use the game’s features approriately, because you are dead otherwise! Anyway, the multiplayer is a very fun experience, I haven’t seen any toxic souls yet and I can sense the presence of good teamworking. However, it’s not without bugs : sometimes, when I’m attacked by Sich cossacks, my pikemen will turn around and fight an invisible enemy…

Marketing :

God awful. Not only didn’t GSC spoke to us a lot about the game before it’s launch, they inserted a cheap season pass system containing the rest of the nations, as it started with only 12 nations out of 21, with early access to season pass owners. Now, we got all of the nations back, but if you want to play the other campaigns, you still have to buy the DLCs. Oh, and it’s not for just the campaigns : unless you buy the Rise to Glory DLC, you can’t play on winter maps. That’s really not cool! I want to see what’s like to play an Island map on winter! Finally, what’s the point of releasing a content pack for the ost if anybody can just find it in their files? Oh, yeah : money.

In conclusion, 1 year after it’s release, it’s pretty stable and, while not bug free (Flying Dutchman glitch has been successfully transfered to Cossacks 3), very fun to play. Without the crappy DLCs, you get all the nations you could play back in 2001 and mess up as you like with them for just 22 CND$ (probably just 20 USD$). I proudly recommend this game for both new players and veterans alike.

Before anything, let me tell you a bit about GSC's history. This Ukrainian game developper, founded in 1995, was reputed for RTS (Cossacks) and FPS (S.T.A.L.K.E.R.) games. In 2004, they opened up a branch company named "GSC World Publisher", allowing them to publish games without being EA'd, I believe... In 2007, they made S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, which was followed by 2 brilliant sequels in 2008 and 2009 respectively. They tried to port it into consol. However, due to a lack of manpower, they instead decided to make S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, but that game was cancelled since they were then on a financial problem. December 9 2011 would mark their official disclosure. Vostok Games was created not long after by the GSC staff members with their F2P game Survarium. On december 22 2014, after a controversy with another game developper that I won't name, GSC re-opened and announced what will become Cossacks 3. As you can see, they just got out of bankruptcy, so before buying the game, I suggest you to not have very high expectations, a good load of deception will rise otherwise. Onto the game, now: Menu: Quick and simple, compared to what we had back in Cossacks: European Wars, although it doesn't feel complete. In the square in the bottom-right corner of the menu was (probably) supposed to have a preview of the map we are about to play on. The flags no longer move (nit-picking), but we have even more colors than we used to, so we can mess around with all of them to see which one fits our taste the most. With the Season pass/deluxe content, we get to play as all the civs we know and love from the last 2 nations of Back to war and with the actual DLC (in my opinion), we can play 1 brand new nation at the moment, although that DLC is a bit more expensive than the others... Graphics: Great in my opinion, although it might cause a bit of trouble on older PC. In my case, the lowest quality is enough to make the game fluid. What I like about it is that the character model is very beautiful whatever the texture quality. Granted, I don't get to see building shadows, but it's still a good sacrifice for better performance. Although GSC could work on the destroyed building design a bit, as sometimes we see them as if they're full health... Not enough details on that one. Whatever are the graphic settings you set, the load time is ridiculously long : you have the time to make a cheap baloney sandwich and come back. Gameplay: Similar to Cossacks: European Wars (of course), we get a load of options to do even before the beginning of the game: how many peasants, Montgolfier enabled or not, canons or not, peace time, XVIIIth or not, you name it. All for your game preferences. The UI hasn't changed much, although the lack of patrol mode is cringe worthy. Some people may complain that this UI style is outdated, but I don't mind, as it gives all the information I need. We got our beloved 6 ressources back (wood, food, stone, gold, iron and coal) with the classic Cossacks function (famine, mercenary mutiny, can't shoot without iron or coal). The description pop-up is very well done: not too small, not too big either and easy to read, although annoying as it disappears when a research is completed. The unit formation returns and, like in the other titles, can turn things around. Very important to destroy the enemy with, as it gives a rather important attack and defense bonuses. Regarding balance, we can clearly see that canons and howitzers got a nice buff while the bombardier has been nerfed a bit. It got buffed recently, but is still not as powerful as it used to (they were frustrating, always aiming those goddamn mines...). The galley has gotten a great fix: it can't mortar other boats anymore. It was kind of annoying, as it gives kind of a pointless micromanagement that enemy boats can exploit to get free damage. As of writing this review, the « big Berthas » (the Victoria and her fellow weaker sisters, still stronger than the Ship of the Line) aren't in the game. I wonder when they will put them back. I miss them... The Blockhouse shoots MUCH faster, it's a must destroy before invading one's city. I welcome these balances changes, for the moment. Sound: Powerful at some places, terribly weak at others. For example: the musket's firing sound is truly addicting, while the death sound leaves much to be desired. In fact, a mod is required to get more Cossacks feelings, rather than letting the game make us think that the musket is shooting sleeping needles... Also, some sound files are missing: no explosion sound when the grenadiers throw their nades at buildings, until it blows up. I also believe the explosion sound to be weaker than what we had back in Cossacks 1. And where's the fire sound? Looking at flames is nice, but we want to hear them too. Building sound, while not as memorable as it used to, is very enjoyable to listen to. I love the XVIIIth century barracks sound, for example, as it make us feel that you're in the building where the most powerful infantry units are created. Still long as hell to build, though. As for the soundtrack, it packs a punch, even in the game since you’re constantly on your guard (Hussars and/or Sich Cossacks might attack at any moment). Campaign : Takes the approach in the same way as it did in Cossacks 1 : as you play through each mission, at certain moments, the game will pause and will give you stuff to read and click. It doesn’t sound very exciting, but it’s part of the good ol’ Cossacks charm. The missions are fun overall and need to be experienced once. Tutorial : Very effective. In the old kid days, I was really awful at the game, with them mostly ending with a gigantic case of famine and/or lack of gold with 3 Victorias… Now, thanks for the tutorial, I can keep up with the economy and advancements. Multiplayer : Unfortunately, you can't play the multiplayer if you have an active mod. You're stuck with muskets shooting sleeping needles. This has been decided by GSC to prevent cheating, or so I heard. Anyway, the multiplayer is quite something else from the AI. If somebody tells you that there’s no strategy in Cossacks, tell yourself that they have not played the multiplayer. Not only because the game characteristics are probably different from your usual playstyle, but you need to use the game’s features approriately, because you are dead otherwise! Anyway, the multiplayer is a very fun experience, I haven’t seen any toxic souls yet and I can sense the presence of good teamworking. However, it’s not without bugs : sometimes, when I’m attacked by Sich cossacks, my pikemen will turn around and fight an invisible enemy… Marketing : God awful. Not only didn’t GSC spoke to us a lot about the game before it’s launch, they inserted a cheap season pass system containing the rest of the nations, as it started with only 12 nations out of 21, with early access to season pass owners. Now, we got all of the nations back, but if you want to play the other campaigns, you still have to buy the DLCs. Oh, and it’s not for just the campaigns : unless you buy the Rise to Glory DLC, you can’t play on winter maps. That’s really not cool! I want to see what’s like to play an Island map on winter! Finally, what’s the point of releasing a content pack for the ost if anybody can just find it in their files? Oh, yeah : money. In conclusion, 1 year after it’s release, it’s pretty stable and, while not bug free (Flying Dutchman glitch has been successfully transfered to Cossacks 3), very fun to play. Without the crappy DLCs, you get all the nations you could play back in 2001 and mess up as you like with them for just 22 CND$ (probably just 20 USD$). I proudly recommend this game for both new players and veterans alike.