Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront vs Stronghold: Crusader
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront is a simulation strategy game from Barbedwire Studios (2021) while Stronghold: Crusader is a strategy simulation game from Firefly Studios (2002).
Quick answer: Stronghold: Crusader rates higher, 7.6 to 7.5 on the GamingPickz Score, and Stronghold: Crusader is the cheaper at $11.99.
What each one is
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront is filed under Simulation and Strategy. In contrast, Stronghold: Crusader under Strategy and Simulation.
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell is a realistic RTS/ RTT game that offers endless replay value. Command all types of troops in historical singleplayer, dynamic campaign, PvP and PvE battles. Are you ready for some serious immersion in World War 2?
Gird your loins and sharpen your steel! Besiege 20 unique enemy lords and battle friends online, in this expanded remaster of the classic 'castle sim'. Relive history with new units, opponents, visuals, audio, campaigns, skirmish trails, co-op and larger maps.
Story, characters and reception
No Wikipedia detail on file.
Characters
The game contains several different characters that all appear as AI-controlled lords in the Skirmish mode, available to be selected as allies or enemies. One unique aspect of the game is that the characters have individual binks (small short videos) by which they communicate with the player, asking for goods or help if allied with them or, if they are the players' enemy, taunting them when attacking or expressing worry when under siege. These videos… (Wikipedia)
Reception
Stronghold: Crusader The game received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic . Sales As Stronghold was a commercial success in the German market, local commentators suggested before Crusader s release that it would become a hit as well. The game opened as September's fifth-best-selling full-price computer game, according to Media Control . (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront | Stronghold: Crusader | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 7.5/10 | 7.6/10 |
| Steam rating | Very Positive (85%, 33,894) | Very Positive (92%, 11,593) |
| Critic aggregate | No aggregate | 78/100 |
| Price | $34.99 | $11.99 |
| Install size | 80 GB | 7 GB |
| Steam Deck | unsupported | playable |
| Released | 2021 | 2002 |
| Developer | Barbedwire Studios | Firefly Studios |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront vs Stronghold: Crusader, point by point
Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.
Genre and premise
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: OstfrontSimulation strategy gameStronghold: CrusaderStrategy simulation gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: OstfrontWorld War II, Historical, Real Time TacticsStronghold: CrusaderNo descriptive tagsThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: OstfrontScore 7.5 · 85% on SteamStronghold: Crusader ✓Score 7.6 · 92% on Steam · 78 criticThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront33,894 reviews · 7 add-ons · 80 GBStronghold: Crusader11,593 reviews · 4 add-ons · 7 GBReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront$34.99Stronghold: Crusader ✓$11.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: OstfrontUnsupportedStronghold: Crusader ✓PlayableValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Stronghold: Crusader takes 3 of the marked rounds to 0. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueCall to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront and Stronghold: Crusader on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.
2 games have both
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
Which to pick, by what you want
- The cheaper right now: Stronghold: Crusader ($11.99)
- Better on a Steam Deck: Stronghold: Crusader (playable)
- Lighter on storage: Stronghold: Crusader (7 GB)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront (33,894 reviews)
Where they differ
World War IIHistoricalReal Time TacticsStrategyThird PersonRTS
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Stronghold: Crusader is middle-of-the-road on difficulty.
System requirements, side by side
| Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront | Stronghold: Crusader | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | GTX 1070 / RX 5600 | Graphics Card with 2GB |
| Minimum CPU | — | Intel® Core™ i3-6100 |
| Minimum RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB |
| Install size | 80 GB | 7 GB |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront · Stronghold: Crusader.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 7 accessibility features for Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront and 6 for Stronghold: Crusader. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
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Common questions
How different are Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront and Stronghold: Crusader in scope?
Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront has drawn 33,894 Steam reviews, ships 7 add-ons and installs in 80 GB. Stronghold: Crusader has drawn 11,593 Steam reviews, ships 4 add-ons and installs in 7 GB.
Is Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront or Stronghold: Crusader better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Stronghold: Crusader rates higher (7.6 to 7.5). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.
Which is cheaper, Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront or Stronghold: Crusader?
Stronghold: Crusader is cheaper right now at $11.99, against $34.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Should I get Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront or Stronghold: Crusader?
Stronghold: Crusader rates higher, 7.6 to 7.5 on the GamingPickz Score, and Stronghold: Crusader is the cheaper at $11.99. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
Do you rank one above the other for a fee?
No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.
Related comparisons
How we compare, and what we will not do
The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.