The Guild Gold Edition

Game has very slow and relaxing pace and there is a lot unique humour in it. It is not hardcore medieval trade simulator, mind you - its take on the period is very light. Artwork is very decent and still fine so many years later (it is coming though from someone who focuses on the core gameplay and doesn't really care much about graphics). At its core, the entire game is about the social standing in (sort of) late Medieval town. End goal is to become the most powerful person in the entire city and dominate over opponents (other 'families'), which can be achieved through many different means. You pick some basic traits for your character, occupation and off you go. Each occupation has different perks that can be used against opponents and help improving social standing. Outside of the trade aspect (manufacture and sell goods) there are also more arcane and mundane ways of play, along strategy involving advancing in town administrative body (with many positions - again, each with its unique abilities). Many hours of fun guaranteed. Can's speak for the GOG version on Win 8 and later (use dedicated Win7 rig for that sort of things) - for me it runs smoothly and without any issues. For me this one is truly the best one in the entire series (I'm fan of late classic games - ones from early 2000s). Later games veered of course set by this one quite a bit, so (unfortunately) can't be straight compared to the first in the entire series.

I don't want to repeat what most of the highest rated reviews (at this time) have written. Yes, the game is strange and has its quirks and the interface could do with improvements. Yes, the game kinda tricks you by not highlighting the depth of the political and "backroom" systems during the tutorial, leaving you to discover that on your own. But man, when you get into politics, that's where the game truly shines. Have a rival that annoys you? Spy on him and plant evidence so he loses his political office. Still annoyed and have lots of money? Buy out his business and have a monopoly on blacksmithing in the city! No one can stop you, the first anti monopoly law won't exist for another couple centuries. Not enough money, too much taxes? Rise in politics and then bribe or blackmail people to pass a law that allows you to make more money. You know, all of that is starting to sound like a simulation of modern business :P Sure, things can get a bit repetitive in the late game (at least they did for me), but there really is a lot to occupy your time as you rise in power. I absolutely love this game, but I also get it's not really for everyone. Still, if you have the means, give it a try and see if it clicks with you after a couple of hours.

No game adapts the do-anything, be-anybody attitude better than the Guild Gold. To get an idea of how this game is structured you should see how it begins. The goal of the game is to be the most powerful person in the city of your choosing, and so you will choose a town which determines the difficulty level and the space available to build your own buildings-otherwise you will be forced to buy buildings from people which is more expensive. Than you will choose the profession of your father and your mother which will generate a character with pre-defined abilities based on your selection. You will than choose what profession you would like from thief to priest. This is the full extent of character creation, and you are than given a business to run based on what profession you choose. This is where the game gets interesting as each business is run very differently and provides different perks. Keep in mind you will not see your character as the game is menu-based but the menu buttons are the visual layout of your screen. For me, the game had a tendency to crash although for the most part it is very solid and, fortunately, the game autosaves every turn which equals one year in game time. Another issue is the very confusing interface, and a limited tutorial, that will take some time to learn. Combat is also clunky and not very well implemented.

I love this game. You work your way up from a little business up to owning several monopolies throwing away money by the millions to get that last house just to tear it down and build yet another factory for fun and then the game crashes. Yeah, the bugs can be a gamebreaker and as you progress in the game they get more and more frequent - I recommend having three to four savegames because sometimes the reason for the crash can be from a previous season. Maybe the GOG version is better in that regard but I doubt that as the devs confirmed the sources for those crashes are so deep within the engine it's basically unpatchable. But even with these bugs there is no other game that manages to keep me in front of my monitor for hours time and time again.

The Guild (apparently called Europa 1400 in Europe) is a fantastic old game. This is the type of game that will cause disruptions in your life. You may lose your job due to obsessive all night sessions fine tweaking your medieval empire. Seriously. You know the type of game where you sit down at 8 o'clock to play for an hour or so and the next time you look at your watch it's 2 am? This is that type of game. At its core, The Guild is an economic simulation. You begin in 1400 AD as a member of the gentry. The object of the game is to expand your dynasty and gain wealth and power. I found the economic and business aspects of the game to be far more compelling than the public office portion of the game. It seems like the developer put a tremendous amount of effort into the business side of the house to the detriment of politics. This, along with a few bizarre bugs which make the game slightly annoying at times, makes the game a four instead of a five. However, don't let that dissuade you from purchasing this game. It's totally worth it!