Patron

About

Patron is a single player open world role playing game with a historical theme. It was developed by Overseer Games and was released on August 10, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Patron is a single-player, historical open-world survival city builder game with phenomenal graphics, delightful music, and a spectacular atmosphere. The game excels in its intricate social dynamics, where each citizen has unique needs, desires, and issues, creating a complex society to manage. However, Patron can be quite grinding and buggy, requiring patience from players."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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74%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,692 reviews

gameplay80 positive mentions

story18 negative mentions

The game features a complex tech tree that adds depth to gameplay and encourages strategic planning.
Graphics and music are visually appealing and create an immersive atmosphere.
The game allows for a variety of building options and production chains, making it enjoyable for city-building enthusiasts.

The game suffers from pacing issues, often feeling slow and tedious, especially in the early stages.
User interface is cluttered and lacks intuitive navigation, making it difficult to manage resources and buildings effectively.
There is a lack of meaningful consequences for player decisions, leading to a sense of aimlessness in gameplay.

gameplay
291 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
65%
8%
The gameplay of "Patron" is characterized by a familiar city-building experience reminiscent of "Banished," featuring resource management, a research tree, and social dynamics that add depth. While many players find the mechanics intuitive and the gameplay enjoyable, some criticize it for being repetitive and lacking urgency, with a few noting that it can become tedious after several hours. Overall, it offers a relaxing yet strategic experience, appealing to fans of the genre despite some areas needing refinement.
- “The gameplay is easy to get into.”
- “Fun and addicting gameplay loop.”
- “The game's mechanics are intuitive, but the depth of strategy required ensures that every playthrough feels fresh and challenging.”
- “The game seemed to work okay at first, but after 20 or so hours of gameplay, it seems like all the workers do is walk in circles, even on a different map.”
- “It's nice, calm, and relaxing, but after a few hours, once the game’s mechanics become clear, you find yourself wanting more, and Patron doesn’t provide that.”
- “Gameplay itself is turning out to be a lot of manual, boring clicking.”
graphics
221 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
39%
5%
The graphics in "Patron" receive a mixed reception, with many players praising the beautiful and detailed environments that enhance the medieval atmosphere, while others criticize performance issues and a lack of optimization. Overall, the visuals are generally considered appealing, with some noting that they are reminiscent of "Banished" but with improvements, though there are complaints about certain graphical elements feeling outdated or lacking depth. Despite some technical shortcomings, the game's art style and aesthetic contribute positively to the overall experience.
- “The visuals are beautiful, with detailed environments that evolve as your city grows.”
- “Patron revitalizes the genre with stunning visuals, offering a cerebral experience for strategic enthusiasts.”
- “The graphics are gorgeous.”
- “Charming, but got terrible 3D visuals/graphics.”
- “The graphics are a bit rough looking for a 2021 title; the interface is clunky and resource balancing is out of the window.”
- “These graphics are ridiculously awful.”
story
115 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
75%
16%
The story aspect of the game has been widely criticized for being shallow and unengaging, primarily consisting of repetitive resource-gathering quests with little to no narrative depth or consequences. Players noted that the AI-generated character images and voiceovers detract from the experience, making the missions feel trivial and disconnected from any meaningful plot. Overall, the campaign mode is seen as an afterthought, lacking the complexity and emergent gameplay that could elevate the experience beyond a simple resource management simulator.
- “The gorgeous pixel art, captivating story, and immersive gameplay kept me hooked for hours.”
- “The game has a system of story events that change the events in your city ever so slightly, as well as adding technology researching, trading, and more!”
- “The campaign is a nice touch, teaching the basics while giving you missions to gather resources for the kingdom.”
- “The main plot itself is severely lacking; it consists of an AI character image saying something vague about trouble on the mainland and demanding resources, which you give, and then it gives another strange excuse as to why you have to send even more.”
- “The 'story' is non-existent, just a bunch of easily achievable 'give up this many resources' quests which have no positive or negative consequences - for example, the king doesn't get angry if you take too long (there's no time limit), and you don't get a reward if you achieve the quest either.”
- “The game is full of full-screen story notifications voiced by Microsoft Sam-style speak-and-spell generated voiceovers for characters that are never introduced to you and seemingly picked at random, and it basically doesn't need any of it.”
music
100 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
32%
11%
The music in the game is generally described as pleasant, relaxing, and fitting well with the medieval theme, creating an immersive atmosphere for players. While many appreciate its soothing qualities and atmospheric integration, some find it repetitive or annoying over extended play sessions. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a strong aspect of the game, contributing positively to the overall experience despite a few mixed opinions.
- “The music is soft and relaxing, fitting the overall mood.”
- “The music and gameplay are overall delightful and relaxing.”
- “The music is spot on and well timed; it doesn't annoy you and changes often to keep the ambiance engaging.”
- “Oh and I almost forgot: no honest review would be complete without mentioning that this has possibly the worst game soundtrack I have ever had the displeasure of listening to.”
- “I actually think that the bagpipe melody sounds worse than songs that are trying to be terrible.”
- “Some games with few game noises and mostly just a soundtrack can get grating over time if you recognize the repeats in the track/playlist.”
optimization
51 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
66%
22%
Overall, the game's optimization is a significant concern among users, with many reporting severe performance issues, especially as population sizes increase. While some players experience smooth gameplay, the majority express frustration over lag, low frame rates, and crashes, particularly on higher settings or after extended playtime. Despite ongoing updates aimed at improving optimization, many reviewers recommend waiting for further enhancements before purchasing.
- “A variety of buildings, a variety of resources, good optimization.”
- “If the developers keep the content coming (new maps? new buildings? creative mode?) and get to optimizing the performance, this game is gonna grant you dozens and hundreds of hours of fun, I think.”
- “I have suffered 0 performance issues so far on the highest settings; this game is very basic graphically and its very small in data size.”
- “Also, recently performance dropped significantly (less than 25 fps for a visually non-demanding game and a small population of ~200 citizens is unacceptable).”
- “However, no matter how much I enjoy it, I would rather play Banished or other similar games due to performance issues - it's so laggy that at some point it becomes unplayable.”
- “The game is not at all optimized; even with a fairly decent configuration in full HD (i7-10870H and RTX 3080), it is barely playable after 3 to 4 hours in-game...”
grinding
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
Players consistently find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, with many tasks requiring excessive micromanagement and time investment. The slow progression, particularly in farming and resource management, detracts from the overall enjoyment, leading to a sense of monotony and boredom. Despite some interesting mechanics, the repetitive nature of tasks and lack of engaging late-game content leave many feeling that the game is more of a chore than a rewarding experience.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The music is not tedious and actually relaxing.”
- “The AI-generated character images and voices are jarring, and the quests become tedious; they’re always asking for something, like an endless checklist that saps the fun out of the game.”
- “The problem for me is the actual physics and progression of the game are tedious and fraught with ongoing issues like every winter you run out of food, the 'king' constantly wants all of your resources and unless you've got the game speed on x10 then pretty much nothing happens, for hour after hour.”
- “After you have collected the resources, built the buildings, and pleased the citizens, this is it: no additional challenge, no late-game difficulty, just a tedious, tiring, and boring grind to gain more citizens.”
replayability
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
58%
15%
The reviews indicate a mixed perception of replayability, with some players enjoying the variety offered by different maps and challenges, while others find the overall content limited and lacking in replay value. Many express that the absence of procedural generation and a single game mode significantly restricts replayability, leading to a consensus that while there are enjoyable elements, the game may not sustain long-term engagement for all players.
- “Maps: in Patron, they have set premade maps that have different amounts of resources and climates, which gives some replayability and challenges.”
- “A fun, quick game with some replayability!”
- “I played Banished also but enjoy this one more; it has more replayability and I generally feel more invested in the future of the Patronites.”
- “Having said that, I am not challenged by your game and 8 hours in find no replayability in it, so I cannot recommend it.”
- “There is only one mode and no campaign; therefore, very low replay value.”
- “While the game seemed like a good concept and pretty well executed, it still feels like an early access game and sorely lacks features to make it a replayable game. Having finished the game in a few hours, it feels entitled to release a paid DLC for content that should be in the base game; maybe they should focus on making a complete game before DLCs.”
stability
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
88%
The stability of the game has received mixed feedback from users. While some players report a generally smooth experience with minimal bugs and good performance, others highlight significant issues, including frequent glitches, UI problems, and balance concerns, particularly in early access. Overall, many acknowledge the game's ongoing development and express hope for improvements in future updates.
- “The UI is easy to use, and the game runs great.”
- “Oh, and thus far, it's bug-free.”
- “✅ Runs great with minimal bugs.”
- “Unbelievably buggy.”
- “Game is still buggy and not balanced.”
- “While some of it is very much the same - it seems to have a lot of glitches - docks don't work well (if at all), despite having the same population I started to run out of food and supplies, etc. it just didn't seem as much fun.”
atmosphere
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
76%
6%
18%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its calming and immersive qualities, enhanced by a soothing music score and visually appealing graphics. Players appreciate the meditative experience it offers, with atmospheric sound effects and thoughtful design elements that contribute to a peaceful environment. Overall, the atmosphere is described as inviting and artistically crafted, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “The music in the background creates a soothing atmosphere while checking all the citizens' needs are properly met.”
- “The game has a cool atmosphere that allows you to fully immerse yourself.”
- “Music, sounds, visuals, the overall atmosphere is a piece of art, so much care put into it.”
- “The music in the background creates a soothing atmosphere while checking that all the citizens' needs are properly met.”
- “This game has a calm atmosphere, which I love.”
- “The whole atmosphere of the game is just inviting.”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
25%
50%
The monetization aspect of the game is currently free from microtransactions and DLC, which is a positive note for players; however, the overall experience feels incomplete and resembles a cash grab rather than a polished product. Users express disappointment over the lack of promised features and repetitive gameplay, suggesting that the game should not have been released from early access in its current state.
- “No microtransactions and DLC shenanigans (yet), no predatory monetization.”
- “This game is clearly unfinished and should not be out of early access. If more work is put into this game to allow it to be in a better state, I might change this review, but at the moment, this feels more like a cash grab copying Banished and failing to provide a better version.”
- “The game's advertisement text suggests there will be emergent gameplay, a story, 'intricate social tensions', perhaps even light RTS elements, and so on, but none of these are present. All the story amounts to is repeated missions of 'gather 500 stone ... make 100 tools ...' with a single 2D drawing of your advisor telling you what to do.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is derived from its quirky mechanics, such as the absurdity of having unassigned workers act as carriers and the AI's comical pathfinding that leads to unexpected shortcuts. Players find amusement in the irony of being a poor landlord and fishmonger while achieving greater success than traditional ventures like gold mining.
- “It seems funny that you have carriers, but then you also have unassigned workers who seem to function as carriers.”
- “The pathing is a bit funny too because the AI will calculate the fastest path, but due to the grid-like nature of the game, it often means them taking shortcuts at angles that you can't draw your paths (at least easily), so the paths are ignored a lot of times.”
- “Hilariously, being a terrible landlord and fishmonger is far more lucrative than running a gold mine and mint...”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the emotional impact of the game is diminished by the lack of meaningful engagement with its mechanics, particularly the "edicts" system, which feels underutilized and ineffective. This leads to a sense of detachment from the game's world and narrative.