The new construction game Manor Lords is now the most desired game on Steam. In the past, the gameplay has often been compared to other titles. The developer makes clear statements to clarify this. Players should know what to expect.
What game are we talking about? Manor Lords is a new strategy and building game on Steam that has been at the top of the most desired games on the platform for some time now. It is also enjoying great success on Twitch and even excites two of the biggest German streamers.
Manor Lords is set to be released on Steam on April 26, 2024.
Especially strategy fans are looking forward to the new title and have high hopes for the gameplay and the various mechanics. In addition to very free design of your cities and classic strategy gameplay, Manor Lords also offers combat gameplay, which reminds many players, including Maurice Weber, of Total War.
Developer explains what players should really expect
What does the developer say about it? With this and other comparisons, the developer wants to clarify once again just before the release. On Steam, he directly addressed interested players to make it clear what Manor Lords is not, and explains why he chose Early Access.
“Manor Lords is not a competitor to Total War,” emphasizes solo developer Greg Styczen first. “It is a city builder with battles,” he continues, adding that while battles are part of the game, they are not as large and frequent as some players might expect. The focus of the gameplay remains on city building and management.
He also prepares players for the scale of the game, stating that while there will be different regions, players will not be able to conquer all of Europe. Players will not build a whole empire here. Instead, Manor Lords is meant to be much smaller.
Styczen also comments on the comparison with titles like Kingdom Come: Deliverance. “It is also not an RPG,” he explains and then refers to the “Visit Mode,” which is supposed to allow players to view their cities up close from a first-person perspective. This is more of an experiment and bonus feature. However, Manor Lords will mainly be played from a classic top-down perspective. “There will be no first-person gameplay,” said Styczen.
Players should love Manor Lords for what it is
Manor Lords is primarily intended to be a relaxed strategy and building game, focusing its mechanics on aesthetics, resources, and management. Styczen hopes that players will learn to love Manor Lords for what it is: a realistic, organic, and authentic city builder with real-time battles.
Why Early Access? Styczen also commented on his decision to publish Manor Lords in Early Access, as this might be disappointing for some. However, he still wishes for a development with open communication between him and the players. Not least because this has worked well so far, but also because it is his first game.
Some things are still not finished, and he suspects that players will have some requests for changes. Therefore, he considers Early Access to be the right decision.
No roadmap before first feedback
At this time, Styczen does not want to publish a roadmap. What is more important to him is the philosophy: listen, check, implement, rather than dictate what should happen in the future. First, he and publisher Hooded Horse want to wait for player feedback and then decide which goals take priority.
Whether future tests will be open or closed has also not been definitively decided yet. One idea is that players who already own the game can participate in the “Pre-Release Beta,” which could naturally be less stable.
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