Tzar: The Burden of the Crown

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Tzar: The Burden of the Crown is a single player and multiplayer real-time strategy game with fantasy and historical themes. It was developed by Haemimont Games and was released on June 6, 2019. It received neutral reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

In the game Tzar: The Burden of the Crown, you are tasked with saving the kingdom of Keanor from a sinister evil, leading vast armies, and building deadly weapons to defeat the enemy. You have the power to train wizards, conjure mythical creatures, and wield arcane magic to ensure the triumph of good over evil. Your heroism will determine the fate of Keanor's citizens as you strive to fulfill the prophecy and become the true leader they need.

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89%

Audience ScoreBased on 201 reviews

music12 positive mentions

stability3 negative mentions

A nostalgic classic that still holds up well, offering unique gameplay mechanics and a charming fantasy setting.
The game features three distinct races with unique units and technologies, providing a high level of replayability.
Despite its age, the graphics and soundtrack are still appreciated, and the game is fun to play, especially for fans of the RTS genre.

The Steam version suffers from significant technical issues, including resolution problems, crashes, and poor multiplayer support.
Many players have reported lag and performance issues, making the game difficult to enjoy on modern systems.
The release lacks some content from previous versions and expansions, leading to disappointment among long-time fans.

music
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
25%
15%
The music in the game is widely praised as a standout feature, with many users calling it an "absolute masterpiece" that enhances the overall experience and evokes nostalgia. The soundtrack is described as epic and beautifully crafted, perfectly complementing the game's dark fantasy setting and engaging gameplay. However, some players have noted issues with track looping and missing intros in re-releases, which detracts from the otherwise stellar musical experience.
- “Best game soundtrack ever, and has RTS qualities that are still unique and way ahead of its time.”
- “The campaign is exciting, the gameplay is fun and addictive, and the music adds to the epic feel.”
- “The soundtrack is also an absolute masterpiece.”
- “Some of you may not know that, but some of the regions (like Germany, Sweden, and Finland) actually had versions of this game that had juicy CDDA music on disc.”
- “Also in these rereleases, the intros from starting the game are completely gone, and during the skirmish battles only one song track plays.”
- “Make sure to also enable CD audio in-game for the truly original OST blasting during gameplay.”
gameplay
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
40%
15%
The gameplay is widely praised for its fun, addictive nature and deep strategic mechanics, offering a rich experience with innovative features that have influenced the RTS genre. Players appreciate the smooth controls, intricate economy, and the ability for units to gain experience and learn spells, although some aspects may feel outdated by modern standards. While the campaign may not be as engaging, the overall gameplay experience remains compelling, with a desire for a remaster to enhance graphics without losing the core mechanics.
- “The campaign is exciting, the gameplay is fun and addictive, and the music adds to the epic feel.”
- “Controls are pretty smooth, pathfinding is comparatively good, the sprite graphics still look awesome and are easy to read, and the gameplay is deep, intricate, and strategic, offering endless tactical opportunities.”
- “Beyond that, it offers a plethora of mechanics never seen again in an RTS; normal units can gain experience to become hero units, any unit can learn any spell, any unit can learn to have mana or increased mana, you can lose your castle and all your buildings but still have another base across the map hidden that you can build with a singular peasant, and unimaginably huge randomly generated maps - the game has it all.”
- “Great classic, awesome gameplay but low resolution sucks, why not remaster it for HD or 4K?”
- “Thus, some gameplay aspects may look outdated by today's standards.”
- “It was way ahead of its time; it introduced mechanics that became widely accepted in the years to come by the big titles out there.”
story
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
The story in the game is centered around a ruler's journey from peasantry to power, featuring a campaign with a limited number of factions and missions that some players find unbalanced and frustrating. While the narrative is not particularly strong and contains grammatical issues, many players still find it enjoyable and challenging, with varied gameplay styles throughout the campaign. Overall, the story provides a nostalgic experience for long-time fans, despite its flaws.
- “Anyway, tzar is yet another game that tells us a story of a ruler who used to be a peasant.”
- “It's fun getting to play the story finally.”
- “During the campaign and story, it was amazing, from having to restore your kingdom and fight the evil king who decided to take it and do evil deeds.”
- “The story isn't great, and there's definitely some typos and grammar issues, but it's still really fun and very challenging.”
- “Especially since naturally, this game is pretty rough and unbalanced, while the single-player campaign is full of those nasty missions, in which you either know exactly what to do or die in agony.”
- “At the same time, though, only three factions with only 18 missions (only one campaign here) is something more Blizzard.”
graphics
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
9%
27%
The graphics of the game are praised for their classic charm, featuring beautiful 2D artwork that remains appealing even at lower resolutions. While the sprite graphics are easy to read and contribute to the game's dark fantasy aesthetic, some users express a desire for modern HD updates, as the current maximum resolution of 1024x768 feels outdated. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, enhancing the deep and strategic gameplay experience.
- “Very good classic game, lovely graphics even now.”
- “Brutal dark fantasy setting, mighty wizards and mystic creatures, epic battles with limits above 200 units, great music and beautiful visuals - the game grants a lot of fun even today.”
- “We have a classic RTS game with beautiful 2D artwork that looks up to this day, even in lower resolution, very nice soundtrack (a little bit short, but still really good!), and everything you'd expect from a good old-school RTS (both good and ugly) that plays a little bit like a juiced up version of Warcraft 2.”
- “The only thing it misses is some HD graphics because it supports a maximum resolution of 1024x768, and multiplayer is only available via public IP, Hamachi, or GameRanger.”
- “Well implemented and fun to play, but the graphics are not that good.”
- “The game is not optimized for other recent operating systems. This isn't as much an issue in terms of graphics, but the constant crashes make it impossible to play a full skirmish or even progress through missions.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The humor in [b]tzar[/b] is hit or miss; while some players find it amusing compared to modern RTS games, others criticize its attempts at humor as poor and ineffective. Despite this, many users report experiencing genuinely funny moments during gameplay, both in single and multiplayer modes.
- “Some of the content is funny when compared to more modern RTS games, and it shows.”
- “Had so many hilarious moments with it, both in single-player and multiplayer.”
- “And it's supposed to be funny.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users report significant stability issues, with the game displaying a small, glitchy window that fails to function properly on modern PCs. This has led to frustration and an inability to play the game as intended.
- “I bought the game because I owned it a long time ago on a PC far, far away, but when I try to play it on my modern PC, it appears as a 6"x6" box in the middle of my screen, glitches, and won't stay in the game.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly impossible to progress.”
- “I experience constant lag and freezing, which ruins the overall experience.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players highlight the game's exceptional replayability, primarily due to its random maps and diverse settings that create unique experiences in each playthrough. The combination of sandbox and RTS elements further enhances the game's longevity, making it a compelling choice for repeated gameplay.
- “The random maps offer infinite replayability.”
- “The ultimate sandbox and RTS rolled into a single unbeatable package of replayability.”
- “+Random maps give tons of replayability with several settings allowing for more unique playthroughs.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's optimization has been criticized for not being compatible with recent operating systems, leading to frequent crashes that hinder gameplay, particularly during skirmishes and missions. Additionally, overall performance issues have been noted, affecting the gaming experience.
- “The game is not optimized for recent operating systems. This isn't as much of an issue in terms of graphics, but the constant crashes make it impossible to play a full skirmish or even progress through missions.”
- “The performance is kind of off.”

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60%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews

Tzar : Burden of the Crown
Eurogamer.net
60%

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Frequently Asked Questions

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown is a real-time strategy game with fantasy and historical themes.

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown is available on PC and Windows.

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown was released on June 6, 2019.

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown was developed by Haemimont Games.

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its music but disliked it for its story.

Tzar: The Burden of the Crown is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Age of Empires II:, Rise of Nations, STAR WARS™ Galactic Battlegrounds Saga, Warlords Battlecry III, Age of Wonders and others.

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