Lord of Dwarves

About

Lord of Dwarves is a single player strategy game with a historical theme. It was developed by Stellar Sage Games and was released on May 22, 2020. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Lord of Dwarves" is a sandbox-style village builder and strategy game where you play as a dwarf lord. Gather resources, build and upgrade your dwarf fortress, defend against enemies, and manage your dwarf minions to ensure the success of your kingdom. The game features a dynamic world with day/night cycles, weather, and various biomes, providing a challenging and immersive experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+13

Skip User Reviews

80%

Audience ScoreBased on 55 reviews

gameplay4 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

The game offers a fun and engaging colony management experience with a well-structured campaign that serves as a tutorial.
It features a variety of customization options in sandbox mode, allowing players to tailor their gameplay experience significantly.
The mechanics are intuitive, and the game provides a good level of depth, making it enjoyable for fans of similar titles like Dwarf Fortress and Gnomoria.

The game suffers from performance issues, including crashes and lag, which can hinder the overall experience.
There are concerns about the game's lack of updates and potential abandonment, leaving some features feeling incomplete or underdeveloped.
The user interface is criticized for being small and not user-friendly, making it difficult for players to navigate and manage their dwarves effectively.

graphics
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The graphics of the game are generally appreciated for their 3D design and cohesive aesthetics, though some users note quirks typical of a single developer's work. While the visuals are simple and clean, with clear animations, there are mixed opinions on their quality, with some feeling they resemble placeholders rather than a polished final product. Overall, the graphics are seen as a strong point, but there is room for improvement and additional content.
- “I really like the 3D graphics in this one, though there are a few little quirks with it which is to be expected from a single developer.”
- “The aesthetics are somewhat pleasing and all of the graphics go together fairly well.”
- “The graphics grow on you; they are simple and clean.”
- “Graphics somehow look 'wrong'.”
- “The graphics need some work and the game is quite complex at first but the tutorial campaign is a well thought out, step by step, introduction into the game.”
- “The graphics... I thought they were placeholders for early access and as such are acceptable, but not for a release.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
37%
27%
The gameplay is centered around building and managing a dwarven civilization, with a strong emphasis on resource management, crafting, and military development. Players appreciate the intuitive mechanics and detailed systems, reminiscent of Dwarf Fortress, which provide a rewarding experience despite a basic visual presentation. While the game offers a solid foundation and a wealth of content, players express a desire for more engineering options and feedback to enhance the experience further.
- “It's not hard to play, as the game guides you through the mechanics quite well, but you literally end up controlling every part of your little dwarven civilization.”
- “I'm enjoying this game, very detailed mechanics; for example, archers need arrows, arrows have to be crafted, and can be set in ammo bins.”
- “The building and crafting mechanics are awesome - love the different kinds of materials with different tiers that all do slightly different effects.”
- “While the initial impression visually may be off-putting and very basic, the gameplay and indeed the thought and effort put into the design are rewarding.”
- “There's a really solid foundation of gameplay and it looks like a lot of detail in this game, but right now what it really needs is feedback from players.”
- “From a gameplay standpoint, there's actually quite a lot of content.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The music in the game has received largely negative feedback, with many players finding it repetitive, annoying, and lacking in variety. Some users suggested that the sound effects and music detract from the overall experience, while others preferred to mute the game and listen to their own playlists. Overall, there is a consensus that the music needs significant improvement to enhance the game's appeal.
- “The music and sound effects need some help, but I enjoy listening to my own playlists, so it's not a huge issue for me.”
- “I seriously think with better music and a clean UI, the game would feel a lot more solid, rather than a really early release game.”
- “I'm sorry developer, but for the love of God, you might want to add some variety to that music.”
- “I'm sorry developer, but for the love of god you might want to add some variety to that music.”
- “It was really cute at first, seemed like you made it yourself with some free synth music tool... but it just keeps droning on and on and is just off tune enough to make me feel unsettled the whole time.”
- “I seriously think with better music and a clean UI the game would feel a lot more solid, rather than a really-early early release game.”
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The story aspect of the game is built around utilizing knowledge from previous missions to aid in current tasks, enhancing gameplay continuity. Players express eagerness to progress through missions and uncover more narrative elements, although they note minor control and directional inconsistencies that could impact immersion. Overall, the narrative framework is engaging, reminiscent of other early access titles in the genre.
- “I can't wait to get into the next mission and learn more stuff.”
- “It will help for your mission.”
- “Make your life easy and build everything you have learned in former missions even though it is not mentioned in your current mission.”
- “It plays similarly to other early access games such as Colony Survival or Castle Story.”
- “Most of it's minor, like Q and E feel reversed for camera controls as someone who plays a lot of city builders, or that some parts of the missions indicate a direction like north, but there's no compass in-game, just little things.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback, with some players experiencing significant RAM issues, lag, and glitches that hindered gameplay, while others reported a smoother experience without crashes or major performance problems. Overall, there is a consensus that the game could benefit from further optimization to enhance the overall experience.
- “Was fun for an hour, seems like it would be a lot more fun if the performance was polished a little more.”
- “In my 8 hours of play, I experienced no crashes or performance issues, and as far as bugs go, my only problem was with tabbing out of fullscreen, which required a reset of the option to enable fullscreen again.”
- “I bought this game on day one and experienced horrible RAM issues. I sorted them out, but I don't see the point in buying this game again as my 2 hours of testing time is up and I didn't find it worth $20 even without performance issues.”
- “Super laggy and glitchy while in game, had performance issues to the point where the game was freezing every few minutes.”
- “In my 8 hours of play, I experienced no crashes or performance issues, but my only problem was with tabbing out of fullscreen, which set the game into windowed mode, requiring a reset of the option to enable fullscreen again.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users generally find the game to be stable and free of bugs, especially considering its $20 price point, indicating a solid performance without significant issues.
- “Worth $20, bug-free!”
- “The game runs smoothly without any crashes.”
- “I appreciate how stable the gameplay is; it never lags or freezes.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect, particularly in food and farming mechanics, to be tedious and frustrating, with debates arising over the efficiency of different crops like yam versus potato.
- “The grinding in this game feels especially painful when it comes to food and farming. Is yam really better than potato?”
- “The repetitive nature of grinding makes it feel like a chore rather than an enjoyable part of the game.”
- “I find myself spending hours grinding for resources, and it often feels like I'm not making any real progress.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers highlight the game's impressive depth and high replayability, suggesting that players can enjoy multiple playthroughs without losing interest.
- “Oh, and the most impressive part - this game is incredibly deep and replayable.”