Patch 1.05 should be here in a few weeks. Paradox has released some
information about it, and so far it sounds good. The crusading mechanism was good as it was, I think, but I still like it that they are paying extra attention to it, since it is (or should be) a major feature in the game.
I'm just hoping they add at least at some point the ability to ask the pope for a crusade. Right now the AI handles it, and doesn't always do a very good job. Uh, sure guys, let's all attack together a meaningless little North African province in the middle of the Sunni caliphate, while at the same time the muslims just ransacked all the wine cellars in Northern France. The distantant targets might also be, why the AI kings rarely go on a crusade in the first place, and the meaningless little North African province can stay as the crusade target for over 100 years. Maybe if there was a possibility to have a few crusades for different targets going on at the same time?
The first DLC has also been
announced. I'm underwhelmed. The "major DLC" is a vanity feature that many other games have implemented from day one? Name your own dynasty? Build your own character? I can't see myself paying for this, unless it's part of a larger pack. I wish they had focused more on a real expansion-like DLC that could have been more expensive, but added some major ingame content, like playable muslims and pagans. This one, in my opinion, goes right down to the "horse armor" and "pink skin for your favorite gun" category.