Cultures - Northland | Game Brain — video game discovery

About

Cultures - Northland is a single player and multiplayer strategy game. It was developed by Funatics Software and was released on March 26, 2015. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Cultures - Northland" is a real-time strategy game that transports players to the Viking age. You will lead the Norsemen in their quest for new lands, resources, and glory. Manage resources, build and expand your settlements, and engage in battles using historical Norse weaponry. The game offers a single-player campaign, free game, and multiplayer mode for up to six players.

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Strategy

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75%

Audience ScoreBased on 342 reviews

gameplay12 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

Cultures - Northland offers a rich historical setting that immerses players in the Viking era, with charming graphics and an atmospheric soundtrack.
The city-building aspect is engaging and provides plenty of strategic depth, allowing players to manage resources and expand their settlements.
Many players have fond childhood memories associated with the game, highlighting its nostalgic value and unique gameplay mechanics.

The game suffers from a steep learning curve and dated mechanics, which may overwhelm new players and detract from the overall experience.
Technical issues, such as bugs and glitches, can disrupt gameplay, and the lack of modern resolution support makes it difficult to play on current systems.
Micromanagement is excessive, leading to frustration as players must constantly manage individual villagers and their needs, which can feel tedious.

gameplay
54 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
71%
7%
The gameplay is characterized by a mix of city-building, resource management, and adventure elements, providing a varied experience that is enhanced by impressive attention to detail. However, many players find the mechanics to be dated and non-intuitive, which can disrupt the overall enjoyment and present a steep learning curve. While some appreciate the nostalgic elements and depth, the gameplay is often criticized for its limitations and lack of challenge.
- “The attention to detail in recreating this period is impressive and adds depth to the gameplay.”
- “The atmospheric soundtrack and varied gameplay further enhance the experience.”
- “Gameplay involves managing the individually named units you control, harvesting resources, building your town up, and then building an army to crush your enemies.”
- “I feel some of the game mechanics are dated.”
- “However, the steep learning curve and dated mechanics might reduce its appeal for some players.”
- “Gameplay is meager, and the interface is poor.”
graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
52%
7%
The graphics of the game are often described as charming and nostalgic, with a retro art style that still holds up well despite its age. While some users appreciate the atmospheric visuals, others note limitations such as a lack of customization options and dated quality. Overall, the graphics contribute positively to the game's appeal, though they may not meet modern standards.
- “The graphics are gorgeous, even for something nearly two decades old.”
- “Nice retro graphics, an exciting campaign, and an atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “Decent 2D/sprite graphics that still look great today; despite being over ten years old, you can still use 1080p resolution and the UI scales well.”
- “There's no options to change the resolution for the game or customize the graphics settings.”
- “There's no way for gamers to try to improve the heavily dated, low-quality graphics.”
- “The graphics are sloppy and the female characters have absolutely no other function in this game besides having children and taking care of a home.”
story
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
62%
9%
The game's story is described as engaging and chill, with a heavily story-driven campaign featuring eight missions that allow for customizable gameplay. While the narrative is simple and can become repetitive, it effectively supports the city-building mechanics, making it enjoyable for fans of the genre. However, some players find the overall challenge lacking, leading to frustration with micromanagement and mission triggers.
- “It is very chill with an engaging story.”
- “This game was fun, beautiful, and nice with a great story.”
- “The campaign is really good and heavily story-driven.”
- “The micromanagement is just exhausting, so when after four hours of grinding through the first mission a critical event just doesn't trigger, I am eager to abandon this game forever.”
- “Later, there are fixed-force missions which tend to have even more boredom and even less challenge.”
- “- can get a little repetitive if you don't care about storylines.”
music
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
72%
11%
The music in the game is generally praised for its atmospheric quality, effectively enhancing the Viking theme and contributing to overall immersion. However, some users find the soundtrack to be repetitive and annoying, indicating a lack of variety that detracts from the experience. Overall, while many appreciate the atmospheric elements, there are notable criticisms regarding the music's repetitiveness.
- “The music and sound effects are well-done, adding to the overall immersion.”
- “The atmospheric soundtrack and varied gameplay further enhance the experience.”
- “Nice retro graphics, an exciting campaign, and an atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “There is no game settings, the music is bad and repetitive so it's annoying.”
atmosphere
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is significantly enhanced by its atmospheric soundtrack, which complements the Viking theme and overall gameplay experience. Players appreciate the retro graphics, noting that they contribute to a campy yet immersive atmosphere, making the campaign exciting and engaging.
- “The atmospheric soundtrack and varied gameplay further enhance the experience.”
- “Nice retro graphics, an exciting campaign, and an atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “The graphics are definitely quite good for their age, allowing for a nice atmospheric, if campy experience.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that grinding in the game can be excessively tedious and exhausting, primarily due to overwhelming micromanagement and unresponsive AI. While some players appreciate the depth of managing tasks from scratch, many find the experience frustrating, especially when critical events fail to trigger after long sessions of effort. Overall, the grinding aspect tends to detract from the enjoyment, leading to a desire to abandon the game.
- “The micromanagement is just exhausting, so when after four hours of grinding through the first mission a critical event just doesn't trigger, I am eager to abandon this game forever.”
- “It can get tedious real quick and the AI is boring most of the time, and sometimes it feels there's way too much micromanaging in this game to even relax for a moment.”
- “Adding complications doesn't make a game interesting; it makes it tedious.”
stability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is marred by minor technical issues, including occasional bugs and glitches that can lead to crashes, particularly when closing the game. Users report that these problems can disrupt gameplay and affect overall performance, indicating a need for improvements in stability.
- “Personally, I encountered some minor technical issues, such as occasional bugs and glitches.”
- “Buggy mess took my computer hostage every time I play just because it crashes every time I close the game and Steam can't handle that conundrum.”
- “Only problem I have is the screen sometimes glitches.”
humor
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its funny voice acting and a lighthearted approach, making it enjoyable despite the simplicity of the gameplay. Players appreciate the relaxed combat and management elements, which are complemented by amusing moments throughout.
- “The voice acting is hilarious and adds a lot to the experience.”
- “It's simple yet incredibly funny.”
- “Nothing here is great strategy, just management and relaxed combat with some enjoyable humor.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
Overall, the game is considered very replayable and offers great value, while Northland is criticized for its lack of replayability and frustrating entry experience.
- “Very replayable, great value.”
- “Northland is just an exercise in frustration to get into and does not offer much in the way of replayability.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews highlight that while the character designs are visually appealing and contribute to an enjoyable aesthetic, there is little mention of depth or progression in character development. Overall, the focus seems to be more on visual appeal than on the growth or complexity of the characters themselves.
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from poor optimization, being locked at a 4:3 aspect ratio without support for modern display resolutions, which hinders its performance on contemporary gaming PCs. It has not been updated to run smoothly, leaving players frustrated with its outdated technical limitations.

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