Manor Lords - medieval city-building with large scale battles

[motherfucker]

How the fuck would a game like this be the most wishlisted on Steam?

Too white.

 

[Axioms]

The actual issue is that for indie devs 1000 devs make a game for every game that takes off. Maybe 10 devs finish their game for anything that isn't unit asset flips or oversaturated stuff like platformers. The indie devs who fail are invisible to gamers.

Meanwhile an actual dev studio with a major publisher can't afford to fail so much. They need basically every game to hit, even if it doesn't take off fully like a viral game. And people have higher expectations for them, also.

This wasn’t any different in the 1990s, except the closest thing to ‘indie’ back then was a small software house in the San Francisco Bay. The attrition rate was sky high, a white-collar aspirational Bataan Death March.

Also Hooded Horse is run by a guy who worked at McKinsey with money from people he met during his time there. Not as bad as Sweet Baby Inc but not exactly an anti-woke hero company.

Maybe my perspective is different since I went to prep school with people who went to work at McKinsey, but these things take capital and if your ‘side’ refuses to muster that capital for cultural products then be damned. Hooded Horse along with Barbedwire Studios & subsidiaries have under their umbrella the vast majority of the games I enjoy and am looking forward to. Who offers better?

Sure, HH signs mostly good games, and then some boring space stuff. But they are not "anti-woke or anti-pc" as a matter of policy.

 

[Axioms]

Having an actual competent combat system to go with the building? Now that's a game to be excited about. Like the guy above said - stronghold with more economy and diplomacy? What's not to like.

Where are people getting that Manor Lords has way better / different combat than Total War? I am admittedly not an RTS guy but I've watched a few videos now and it looks exactly like a typical RTS.

The game isn't superior to Total War. It is just different and also smaller scale. You don't have 20-40 "units with up to 100 guys" as in TW. Which means you need far less technical skill for optimization and visually nice behavior.

 

[The Wall]

Sure, HH signs mostly good games, and then some boring space stuff. But they are not "anti-woke or anti-pc" as a matter of policy.

Not true though. According to WOKE, if you're not explicitly WOKE (in their religious language: ally) then you're their enemy aka anti-woke. It's very binary and very simple. Anyone who thinks Blackrock didn't offer them money is delusional. Clearly, they refused. Company that publishes strategy, tactical and management games about white guys fighting for and building better world, is simply BASED AF

#1 Publisher at this moment. As Hace El Oso said: "Who's right now better?"

 

[Axioms]

HH is probably the best strategy publisher right now. Has nothing to do with being PC or anti-PC.

 

[The Wall]

I disagree and won't elaborate further. If you think people's eyes alone aren't tired from watching niggers on screen, and crave esthetics of Euro-centric stories & settings, ok

 

[Tyranicon]

Manor Lords will be for Hooded Horse publisher their Skyrim moment, financially

Oh yeah, this game is going to make so much profit you're not going to even believe.

1# most wishlisted on Steam with 2mil wishlists? This game will singlehandedly make Hooded Horse a known entity.

Possibly also a good thing for Menace, the sci-fi game from the Battle Brothers dev. Publishers often have a "rising tide lifts all boats" thing going for them. In fact, a large reason some devs sign on with indie publishers is to get flowover traffic from their other games.

 

[Lacrymas]

It might bring more attention to Old World too, seeing as how it's published by HH too. I'm not sure I have much interest in this Manor Lords, though. Even though I like city-builders, it being a medieval one + it having elaborate RTS combat turns me off a bit. Not that I wouldn't appreciate elaborate combat, I'm just not sure how well they are going to pull it off and how well it will gel with the city building part.

 

[The Wall]

It might bring more attention to Old World too, seeing as how it's published by HH too. I'm not sure I have much interest in this Manor Lords, though. Even though I like city-builders, it being a medieval one + it having elaborate RTS combat turns me off a bit. Not that I wouldn't appreciate elaborate combat, I'm just not sure how well they are going to pull it off and how well it will gel with the city building part.

Ok, valid concerns. How about you test it? Try Manor Lords. You have good free DEMO. I won't suck a dick of game that sucks only because I REALLY wanted it to be good. Manor Lords will be good, it seems. Why? Because it's made by Developer who's as programmer and designer same caliber as Young Tim Cain. Based POLSKI brat

It's all about individual Elite Humans with vision and skill to turn said vision into reality. Future belongs to digital God Kings indie single developers and small teams

 

[Baron Tahn]

What would you prefer, Lacrymas, out of interest? If not medieval Europe?

I'm okay with it for my part, while it is the most generic of settings I'd love to see it done right if they can, then maybe move on to more exotic locales.

 

[Hace El Oso]

There have been exactly zero authentic Ostsiedlung city builders, how could it possibly be ‘generic’?

 

[The Wall]

Ok, serious question time!

What's the last, good, authentic medieval city builder with high production quality and half of features from Manor Lords?

Genuinely curious, because I wanna play it. Answer: game like Manor Lords hasn't been made in decade+. You simply look at matter from perspective of your gamer experience (playing today good city builders from 1999), not from perspective of Gaming (in 2024). High graphical production, innovative, non-woke games are fucking rarity for yeeears

There have been exactly zero authentic Ostsiedlung city builders, how could it possibly be ‘generic’?

Haha! This

 

[Baron Tahn]

Bah, no need to sook about it. I tend to agree. But you know what I mean; castles, stone walls, archers, moats, catapults etc is the 'standard' for most. It's what I want because as you say, it hasn't been done properly as it is.

I was merely being friendly and wondering if others preferred another cCaesar or Pharoah - maybe Japan (those castles are cool).

I've been wanting one of these games since fkn Lords of the Realm 2 so don't get up MY ass about it.

 

[The Wall]

Fact alone that you recruit from your peasant workforce (not counting mercenaries and personal retinue) and concequences that can have and historically had on Lord's fief, is something super interesting. Next: imagine Stronghold level of castle life, construction, siege and defense simulation. But in Manor Lords' graphics.

Dare to imagine such a thing

 

[The Wall]

Bah, no need to sook about it. I tend to agree. But you know what I mean; castles, stone walls, archers, moats, catapults etc is the 'standard' for most. It's what I want because as you say, it hasn't been done properly as it is.

I was merely being friendly and wondering if others preferred another cCaesar or Pharoah - maybe Japan (those castles are cool).

I've been wanting one of these games since fkn Lords of the Realm 2 so don't get up MY ass about it.

Sure! I wish for Roman setting as well. Especially during IV century and Fall of Rome would be awesome. People don't look at wider picture. If Manor Lords is both good AND financially successful, which seems like certainty, what are future projects by developer Slavic Magic? Who knows man!

 

[Baron Tahn]

Yeah I'm pretty hyped, or as far as one can be with my cynicism load. Very keen indeed, just keeping expectations tempered. They always either fk the combat (ie something like banished) or fk the simulation (something like Total War).

 

[The Wall]

I'll post some beautiful concept art from Discord later today, if I see that it hasn't already been shared here in thread

 

[Lacrymas]

What would you prefer, Lacrymas, out of interest? If not medieval Europe?

I'm okay with it for my part, while it is the most generic of settings I'd love to see it done right if they can, then maybe move on to more exotic locales.

Literally anything else. Maybe a historical Middle Eastern setting? We haven't had one of those.

 

[Axioms]

What would you prefer, Lacrymas, out of interest? If not medieval Europe?

I'm okay with it for my part, while it is the most generic of settings I'd love to see it done right if they can, then maybe move on to more exotic locales.

Literally anything else. Maybe a historical Middle Eastern setting? We haven't had one of those.

I wish someone would essentially remake Emperor. That would be great.

As far as the Middle East, does Nebuchadnezzar not count? That's in the Middle East.

 

[Lacrymas]

I wish someone would essentially remake Emperor. That would be great.

As far as the Middle East, does Nebuchadnezzar not count? That's in the Middle East.

Emperor is still great as it is. The gorgeous 2D graphics haven't aged a bit. I was thinking more Arabic Middle East, but something ancient would be cool too. I forgot about Nebuchadnezzar even though I have it in my library, lol.

 

[Axioms]

I wish someone would essentially remake Emperor. That would be great.

As far as the Middle East, does Nebuchadnezzar not count? That's in the Middle East.

Emperor is still great as it is. The gorgeous 2D graphics haven't aged a bit. I was thinking more Arabic Middle East, but something ancient would be cool too. I forgot about Nebuchadnezzar even though I have it in my library, lol.

So more Arabia/Levant, makes sense.

Yeah Emperor still looks great but it could use some QoL and larger map sizes and stuff.

 

[Raghar]

What would you prefer, Lacrymas, out of interest? If not medieval Europe?

I'm okay with it for my part, while it is the most generic of settings I'd love to see it done right if they can, then maybe move on to more exotic locales.

Literally anything else. Maybe a historical Middle Eastern setting? We haven't had one of those.

The problem is Europe in 600 was fall of Roman empire, and everyone murdered everyone. There were multiple states based of people of certain bloodline and immigration was forbidden, thus rich couldn't buy themselves into ruling position, and people were not able to replace original population.

It created interesting dynamic, and feeling of building of state. In addition, separate development of each country in small space created independent tech development.

Basically it created rather interesting environment from point of view of a historian, or strategy games developer. Middle east are basically desert riders and backstabing politics. China was big and strong and failing on itself by itself. Until Mongols there wasn't someone who would challenge China, and Mongols got China basically because part of population viewed it as: better Mongols than "these" Chinese bureaucrats.

 

[Harthwain]

I wish someone would essentially remake Emperor. That would be great.

As far as the Middle East, does Nebuchadnezzar not count? That's in the Middle East.

Emperor is still great as it is. The gorgeous 2D graphics haven't aged a bit. I was thinking more Arabic Middle East, but something ancient would be cool too. I forgot about Nebuchadnezzar even though I have it in my library, lol.

You guys reminded me of Three Kingdoms: Fate of the Dragon.

 

[Shrimp]

One minor thing that I hope gets changed during development is the game's UI. The dev has thankfully at least put some level of thought into it and made many of the interfaces some thematically appropriate elements like scrolls, but all the icons and the text next to the UI elements look very... basic. I think it might be the font.
It's such a small thing that I'm usually willing to ignore or overlook which is why I find it so weird that it sticks out like a sore thumb to me.

 

[jebsmoker]

Ok, serious question time!

What's the last, good, authentic medieval city builder with high production quality and half of features from Manor Lords?

Genuinely curious, because I wanna play it. Answer: game like Manor Lords hasn't been made in decade+. You simply look at matter from perspective of your gamer experience (playing today good city builders from 1999), not from perspective of Gaming (in 2024). High graphical production, innovative, non-woke games are fucking rarity for yeeears

There have been exactly zero authentic Ostsiedlung city builders, how could it possibly be ‘generic’?

Haha! This

the only game i can think of that is vaguely like Manor Lords in any way is probably this - an obscure, eurojank city-building game from 2004:

https://www.mobygames.com/game/15696/medieval-lords-build-defend-expand/