Medieval Engineers

About

Medieval Engineers is a single player and multiplayer strategy game. It was developed by Keen Software House and was released on February 19, 2015. It received neutral reviews from players.

"Medieval Engineers" is a sandbox game set in the medieval era, focused on realistic engineering principles. Players can build various structures, such as castles and siege machines, using a variety of materials. The game also features a physics-based destruction system, allowing for realistic deconstruction and demolition of creations.

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50%

Audience ScoreBased on 5,041 reviews

gameplay92 positive mentions

stability296 negative mentions

The game offers a unique building experience with a focus on structural integrity and physics, allowing players to create intricate castles and siege machines.
The modding community has kept the game alive by adding new content and features, enhancing the overall gameplay experience.
The game can be enjoyable for players who appreciate sandbox-style building and creativity, especially when played with friends.

The game has been abandoned by the developers, leaving it in an unfinished and buggy state with no plans for future updates.
Many players have reported significant performance issues, including crashes and lag, making the game frustrating to play.
The lack of meaningful content and AI interactions in the game leads to a repetitive and empty experience, especially in single-player mode.

gameplay
384 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
66%
10%
The gameplay of "Medieval Engineers" is characterized by its unique building mechanics and physics-based sandbox environment, allowing players to create intricate structures and mechanical devices. However, many users express frustration over the lack of depth, incomplete mechanics, and numerous bugs that hinder the overall experience, leading to a perception of the game as more of a tech demo than a fully realized title. While some players appreciate the potential for creativity and the fun of destruction mechanics, the absence of a compelling gameplay loop and meaningful objectives leaves much to be desired.
- “Great physics-based sandbox with one-of-a-kind mechanics.”
- “The structural integrity system was a fun mechanic, which resulted in various different mishaps like half of the castle built on top of the mountain splitting in a vertical direction and sliding down the sloped mountainside.”
- “The game has a physics engine, as mentioned before, which allows you to construct almost anything mechanical, and more.”
- “There is no gameplay.”
- “Gameplay-wise, the game is a buggy mess and has been for the last four years, and with the devs gone that's not going to change.”
- “The developers have completely decided to ignore the mechanical aspects of this game shown in trailer and to early reviewers.”
stability
302 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
2%
98%
The stability of the game is widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and crashes that significantly hinder gameplay. Many reviews describe it as a "buggy mess" and "unfinished," with issues ranging from audio problems to physics engine failures, leading to frustrating experiences. Despite some players finding enjoyment in the game, the overall consensus is that its current state is too unstable for a full release, especially given the developers' abandonment of the project.
- “Also, surprisingly not buggy for an early access game.”
- “It runs great on my computer.”
- “Considering Keen Software House's track record with Space Engineers, a lot of these bugs will be fixed within the next few weeks, and more block types will also be added.”
- “The game is a buggy mess and has been for the last four years, and with the devs gone that's not going to change.”
- “It's a buggy, contentless, abandoned mess of a 'finished game'.”
- “The game is buggy, unfinished, and will never be as they promised in 2015.”
graphics
287 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
57%
6%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players praising the beautiful visuals and detailed environments reminiscent of a more advanced Minecraft. However, numerous users report significant performance issues, including crashes and lag, particularly on lower-end systems or with integrated graphics cards. While some appreciate the aesthetic quality and physics engine, others express frustration over optimization problems that detract from the overall experience.
- “The graphics are beautiful, and on my new Alienware, I see the grass and trees sway in the breeze.”
- “I’m an aspiring game designer myself, so I’ve learned to appreciate just how much work goes into these games, and the fact that this game has one of the best physics engines I’ve seen for a game and some of the nicest graphics for an indie game based on its own engine, I’ve nothing to complain about.”
- “The graphics, engineering, night mode, barbarians, I am out of words to describe this amazing game.”
- “The graphics are not crisp, remind me of vintage Windows 95 era, and movement is rough and jerky with a low frame rate, lags and slow response of positioning commands.”
- “The graphics make this game look like it was made in the 90s.”
- “Graphics cause lag on a brand new built system with 1060 graphics and more RAM than anyone needs -> badly optimized programming.”
optimization
195 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
56%
30%
The optimization of the game has been widely criticized, with users reporting significant performance issues, especially on less powerful systems. Many describe it as "unoptimized" and "buggy," with frequent frame drops and lag during gameplay, particularly when handling large structures or physics interactions. Despite some updates, players feel that the game remains in a poorly optimized state, often likening it to abandonware, and express frustration over the lack of substantial improvements from the developers.
- “The game is being improved on a regular basis through updates that add and polish features and content, optimizations and bug fixes.”
- “There is definitely still fun to be had here, but I do not recommend supporting a developer that just quits out on the game, nor can I recommend an unfinished, unoptimized game with little to do other than hoping for community fixes.”
- “Very nice idea and looks amazing, only issue would be the performance drops when you try to destroy a huge castle someone spent hours of their life building brick by brick and then proudly put onto the workshop for players to admire.”
- “Don't buy it as it is completely unstable, terribly optimized and not supported.”
- “The game is extremely poorly optimized for both CPU, GPU, and RAM; I've seen the game consume 22GB of RAM. This game is what Google Chrome would like to be.”
- “It's a good concept, but at this point it's terribly optimized and awfully clunky.”
story
87 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
76%
8%
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its absence, with many reviewers noting that it lacks a coherent narrative, missions, or engaging quests. While some players appreciate the freedom of a sandbox experience, others express disappointment over the lack of NPCs, meaningful goals, and a structured storyline, leading to a sense of emptiness in gameplay. Overall, the consensus is that if you're seeking a rich narrative or structured gameplay, this game falls short.
- “We built massive, intricate cities and kingdoms, fought many wars and set up entire storylines in our playing together.”
- “I think the absence of a set story line is a plus, not a minus, for the game.”
- “If you like solving problems with wood, building and breaking stuff, digging tunnels through mountains, with a fair amount of roleplaying and making your own story, it is really there.”
- “This game was the ultimate grind without any storyline or reason for existing.”
- “There is absolutely no story mode or any element of narrative.”
- “It's unfortunate because they know how to make the physics of the program work great but have no idea how to add elements such as story, NPCs, AI enemies with the intelligence of a piece of wood, or anything that would just give you something to do with your creations.”
grinding
78 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
2%
97%
The grinding aspect of the game is frequently criticized for being tedious and time-consuming, with players noting that resource gathering and crafting can feel like a slog, often requiring excessive effort for minimal reward. While some enjoy the potential for creativity in building and farming, many find the lack of engaging content and the slow pace of progression detracts from the overall experience, making it feel more like a chore than a fun gameplay element. Despite its promising features, the game is often described as needing significant improvements to reduce the grind and enhance player enjoyment.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Be prepared to waste a lot of time working on one seemingly simple project after another while endlessly grinding for resources.”
- “It is an unpolished sandbox where you can go grinding like hell to build a castle without any other purpose than to build in an empty world with no real struggles and no real enemies.”
- “The current research system is boring, grindy, and again simply not fun.”
music
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
50%
4%
The music in the game is widely praised for its beautiful and immersive soundtrack, which enhances the medieval atmosphere and provides a relaxing backdrop for gameplay. Many players enjoy listening to the in-game music while building and exploring, although some have noted issues with repetition and bugs that affect their experience. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's appeal despite its other shortcomings.
- “The music of the game is really fantastic and underlines the medieval setting.”
- “A fun game, very relaxing with the lovely music in the background.”
- “The soundtrack is both soothing and uplifting.”
- “Whoopidoopidooo, we get the soundtrack and an in-game banner... that's it. How is that compensating these devs yet again ditching a game while cashing in on it, huh?”
- “The soundtrack (the only thing that the 4 euros DLC gives you) is terrible.”
- “Then I felt like the same 4 songs were repeating over and over.”
monetization
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game has been overwhelmingly criticized as a blatant cash grab by Keen Software, with many users expressing frustration over its abandonment and lack of meaningful updates. Reviewers describe the game as low-effort and accuse the developers of prioritizing profit over quality, leading to a perception of it as abandonware. Overall, the sentiment is strongly negative, with many advising potential buyers to avoid the game due to its exploitative practices.
- “Abandoned, please don't waste your money on this or any other Keen House Software game. The company just makes shameless cash grab games. This one was abandoned because it was not making money; the other game is Space Engineers, and they sell every update as a DLC.”
- “Pathetic business practices and a completely disgusting unapologetic cash grab from a lazy and incompetent company.”
- “Turns out, this was a lazy cash grab, and is now basically abandonware, as Keen has decided to just ignore any issues the game still has and cease all patches or support.”
humor
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
88%
12%
The humor in the game is frequently highlighted as a major draw, with players enjoying the absurd and often chaotic situations that arise from its mechanics and bugs. Many reviews mention moments that elicit genuine laughter, such as unexpected AI behavior and the comedic consequences of building failures. Despite its flaws, the game is described as a fun experience, especially when played with friends, making it a recommended choice for those who appreciate a lighthearted, humorous gaming environment.
- “Extremely fun and funny, I recommend it!”
- “So I'm playing, I've used mods from the workshop because I love the mods for this game, and I'm listening to music making a small cannon from one of the mods. Then 'Megalovania' starts playing, and two skeletons kick down my door with flaming swords and kill me. I'm laughing my ass off because of the situation. This game is buggy and laggy at times, but it's fun as hell.”
- “While it definitely needs to have a lot of bugs exterminated, pick it up, fund the devs, have a go with some friends, and I guarantee you that you will be laughing your ass off at some point.”
- “Building options are awesome, but survival mode is totally unplayable and an unfunny joke.”
- “I just wasted 3 hours on this in the last day and I had so many 'are you shitting me' moments it's not funny.”
- “I know what you are going to say, I can build a pendulum. Let me rephrase: please make the ropes have an elasticity coefficient below 1; perpetual motion is not funny when it's occurring from bottom to top.”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players find it infinitely replayable and creatively rewarding, others feel that a lack of updates and gameplay variety leads to boredom and diminished long-term engagement. The community patch may enhance playability for some, but overall, the game's potential for replayability is hindered by its stagnation since early 2019.
- “This game has a lot of replay value to me, like Minecraft but way better than that.”
- “I can recommend this game for its awesome replayability and the fact that it lets your creativity run wild while staying really realistic and rewarding.”
- “Major replayability! I come back to this game pretty regularly, and when I do, it's for hours on end.”
- “This can lead to boredom and a lack of long-term replay value.”
- “This game has been left to die since February 2019 while we were expecting it to be polished and more playable online.”
- “The lack of gameplay reduces replayability of this game and does not challenge the player to keep playing.”
atmosphere
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
23%
33%
Players consistently praise the game's atmosphere, highlighting its immersive medieval music, beautifully designed environments, and peaceful ambiance. The graphics, while not hyper-realistic, contribute to a captivating experience, enhanced by quality lighting and engaging wildlife. Despite some minor physics bugs, the overall atmosphere remains enjoyable and inviting, encouraging exploration and creativity.
- “While you are searching for the right spot, you walk by the buildings of other players, enjoy the atmosphere, drink some tea, and relax to some medieval music.”
- “I enjoyed the atmosphere in the game, just running around looking for ores and enjoying the view of a clearly very passionately designed planet.”
- “The graphics are not hyper-realistic, but the atmosphere created and the quality of the lights sure create a good experience.”
- “The graphics are not hyper-realistic, but the atmosphere created and the quality of the lighting sure create a good experience.”
- “As I said, there are many physics bugs; however, they are not so severe that if you get stuck in a crevice, you get shot into the atmosphere (this happens in 7 Days to Die, another good pre-alpha game).”
- “+ Peaceful atmosphere with many block options.”
emotional
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game elicits a strong response from players, ranging from heartbreak over its abandonment to moments of joy and nostalgia. Players express a mix of satisfaction and sorrow, particularly in relation to the game's mechanics and their impact on the overall experience. The unpredictable camera work has also been noted to evoke feelings of discomfort, adding to the emotional complexity of the gameplay.
- “This is heart breaking.”
- “So I give a heartfelt thank you to all the peeps at Keen for the gift that is M.E.”
- “10/10 would cry again.”