Majesty 2 - because there is still no Majesty 3
Majesty 2 is a fantasy city-builder where you build and manage a township kingdom without directly controlling your units. You can build structures, cast spells, and place flag markers. Once you hire units (ie. heroes), they can only be influenced - not ordered - if you have a quest flag marked on the map with a gold payout.
Simple Mechanic
Building is gridless. Villagers / Peasants will spawn to build their homes and any queued structure. Tax collectors will spawn automatically from your castle, and they will walk around your town to collect taxes. Significant revenues can be collected from the marketplace and blacksmith.
Different guild structures will let you hire your heroes. Upgrading each guild structure will unlock abilities for your heroes including the Majesty spells (or the player spells). There's a marketplace for heroes to buy their equipment and potions. A guard tower spawns a royal guard. Building the same structure will have an increased price, thus spamming will be difficult early on.
The commands you can issue is through placing flags (your sim hero's quest marker) on the map. Some flags include exploration, subjugation, protection, or avoidance of a spot.
Sim Heroes
The heroes of each guild would roam and act on their own. You can issue "commands" by marking flags all over the map. If you want an objective completed fast, you would need to give that quest a higher gold payout. After building a tavern, heroes can meet up with each other and party to quest together. They can earn EXP and level up. A quarter of the game involves monitoring these silly characters.
Each hero has a name and could be re-hired using the Hall of the Lords structure. Each type of hero also has its own strength and weakness. Rogues are quick and agile but lack the vitality. Warriors are versatile but a little slow and are suitable in the frontline. Clerics serve as your healer but lack the vitality. There are rangers, dwarves, elves, and so on.
Controlling the Map
When a hero is killed, a cemetery will pop up near your town. The cemetery can spawn zombies or undead monsters from time to time. Other random things that can spawn include a sewer where giant rats can harrass your town. Sewers can appear if as your town grows bigger.
The singleplayer consists of different maps that lets you build your town. You'll progress through the storyline this way. There is also a custom game mode where you can build a town away from the story mode.
There is not a steep learning curve. I've picked it up as early as the first level. A complete playthrough of one map can unlock your imagination for your next game. The custom missions are tricky difficult but not impossible to beat. I just wish that there was a custom game mode where you can "sandbox" on building your own town.
No Sandbox Mode
What this game lacks is a traditional sandbox mode. Or at least a custom mode where you can simply build a thriving town. There is a custom game with missions but they are geared toward veteran players. You can't relax playing them. The difficulty give you stress instead. As a result, Majesty 2 takes a nosedive on replayability.
Conclusion
Majesty 2 falls under the semi-casual game category. The campaign can be challenging but not hardcore difficult after learning how to win each mission. In case you haven't noticed, Majesty 2 is somewhat of a parody for an RTS city builder. It involves sarcastic humor. The tone and art is not to be taken seriously (example: Giant Rat men in your sewer). The lack of a custom map mode means that you won't be able to build fulfill your town builder craving. If you're looking for a more serious game, turn to the game that influenced it, Driftland: The Magic Revival. Majesty 2 is a fun sim fantasy-kingdom builder. I recommend it with 4/5 stars.
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