The third installment in the Stronghold series of games has just received a major update that will bring lots of multiplayer features much sought by players of the strategy game.

Even though Stronghold Crusader 2 has been getting lots of mixed reviews from both players and the media, developer Firefly Studios seems to be determined to iron out all the problems that prevent it from being a great game.

The so-called “Winter Update” focuses on multiplayer features and Steam Workshop in order to enable the community to create customized content, which could be shared among players.

That being said, the update that’s now live on Steam adds full Workshop support, which means that players will be able to upload and share maps through Steam, as well as download and play user-created maps and missions.

But that is not all, as Stronghold Crusader 2 players will now be able to vote, subscribe to, and comment on any maps created by other players. It’s worth mentioning that players who decided to create new maps and missions will be able to publish them directly to Steam Workshop from the Map Editor included in the game.

New classic maps have been added in the update as well

Besides Workshop support, Firefly Studios announce the update contains a Classic Map Pack, which includes six skirmish maps voted by players: The River, North vs South, A Friend Indeed, Great Euphrates, Green Belt, and The Ford across the River.

The new multiplayer advanced options confirmed by developers include strong walls, Double strength walls, trade restrictions, no trebuchets, no assassins, no traps, no engine towers and no fire. Each of these options can be either enabled or disabled before starting a multiplayer game.

Some other changes have been included in the update as well, such as the Waterfalls that have now been added to the Map Editor and the Steam Group Chat button that was added to the Multiplayer lobby.

Multithreaded pathfinding improvements and optimization for formation movement code are among the most player-requested changes included in the update.

Last but not least, developers confirm that the Winter Update should increase the range at which Siege Camps can be placed near the enemy units and buildings.

Although Stronghold Crusader 2 received a few updates in the past, this is the first major update released by developers. Not to mention that it adds quite a few new features that should change the way the game is played in multiplayer mode.

In order to celebrate the launch of the Winter Update, Stronghold Crusader 2 has been discounted by 33%, which means it’s available on Steam for €23.44 ($23.44)