Pioneers of Pagonia

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In "Pioneers of Pagonia," you are a visionary leader, traveling with your people to form alliances with island tribes. Manage resources, build and grow your economy, and protect your inhabitants from various threats. Explore procedurally generated maps with infinite variations and discover hidden treasures in this population management game.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Reviews

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 982 reviews

gameplay34 positive mentions

story10 negative mentions

Captures the nostalgic feel of the original Settlers games, particularly Settlers II and III.
Beautiful graphics and charming animations create an immersive experience.
Offers a relaxing gameplay style with customizable difficulty settings.

Lacks a comprehensive tutorial and clear objectives, making it confusing for new players.
Combat mechanics are simplistic and often frustrating, with units engaging in one-on-one fights.
Limited replayability due to the absence of a campaign and the presence of only static enemy camps.

gameplay
140 mentions
24 % positive mentions
70 % neutral mentions
6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its engaging mechanics and charming graphics, while others criticize the clunky controls, unintuitive mechanics, and pacing issues, particularly during raids. Many reviewers note that while the core gameplay offers potential and a relaxing experience, it currently lacks depth and meaningful progression, often leading to repetitive gameplay. Overall, the game shows promise but requires further refinement and additional features to enhance the player experience.
- “It’s brimming with new mechanics that expand on the classic formula in ways that left me thoroughly impressed—something certain companies could learn from.”
- “The game beautifully captures the essence of exploration and settlement, with intricate resource management and engaging mechanics that feel both challenging and rewarding.”
- “With its stunning visuals, engaging gameplay, and thoughtful design, it is a must-play for fans of city-building and strategy games alike.”
- “The pacing of the raids as a measure of difficulty is a bad mechanic in my opinion. You spend the first half of the game struggling to meet production requirements while having half of it destroyed or stolen by nonstop waves of raids.”
- “Controlling units is very clunky, and it's hard to grasp the underlying mechanics of the combat.”
- “The goals set for many maps make for a dreadful gameplay experience.”
graphics
104 mentions
49 % positive mentions
46 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the vibrant art style, charming visuals, and immersive atmosphere that enhance the overall experience. However, some players criticize the graphics as mediocre or underwhelming, noting a lack of detail and sharpness, particularly in comparison to other titles. Overall, while the art style is generally well-received, there are calls for improvements in graphical fidelity and optimization.
- “The graphics are visually pleasing, featuring a delightful mix of intricate details and picturesque landscapes that immerse players in this new world.”
- “With charming graphics, whimsical music, and a lovely gameplay loop, it's no wonder this game is rated 'very positive' as of this review.”
- “Pioneers of Pagonia looks very much like a settlers game, for sure they nailed the aesthetics, it's spot on, it's pretty, and it runs very well too.”
- “Graphics: mediocre”
- “Extremely underwhelming graphics for 2024.”
- “Worrying is the stark contrast between concept art and actual in-game graphics.”
story
82 mentions
7 % positive mentions
80 % neutral mentions
12 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth and engagement, with many players expressing disappointment over the absence of a meaningful campaign or narrative. While there are predefined maps and missions, they often feel soulless and disconnected, lacking dialogue or a cohesive storyline, which detracts from the overall experience. Players hope for future updates to introduce a more structured story and complex missions that would enhance gameplay and provide a sense of purpose.
- “I wish there was more like a campaign story for it, though I still love the predefined scenario maps.”
- “However, if they tend to go into full fantasy mode with ghosts and werewolves, they need to add proper RPG and storytelling in combination with handcrafted map designs to give this a 90° turn in terms of gameplay.”
- “The game is missing a really good long story mission mode; I hope they add this before release.”
- “Disappointing that there is not much of a storyline available.”
- “There's no story to get you invested; you are given no incentive to progress as all the buildings are available to you right away.”
- “A story is not included at this point.”
music
32 mentions
59 % positive mentions
31 % neutral mentions
9 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as relaxing and pleasant, enhancing the overall atmosphere and gameplay experience. While many players appreciate the whimsical and soothing qualities of the soundtrack, some feel it lacks memorability and variety, with a few opting to use external playlists while playing. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's charm, though it may benefit from more diverse musical elements.
- “With charming graphics, whimsical music and a lovely gameplay loop, it's no wonder this game is rated 'very positive' as of this review.”
- “The music is great - no issues there, love that.”
- “The music is soothing to vibe as you play.”
- “It can be pretty barren at times and it's missing the vivid nature sounds of the settlers games, and in general just needs more musical elements.”
- “The music is pleasant, but not memorable.”
- “The music is okay-ish.”
grinding
27 mentions
4 % positive mentions
4 % neutral mentions
93 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and frustrating, particularly in relation to the farming and resource management systems. Many reviews highlight the lack of efficiency and clarity in managing resources, leading to a monotonous experience once combat elements are removed. While some appreciate the initial challenge of resource balancing, the overwhelming complexity and micromanagement required ultimately detracts from the enjoyment of gameplay.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Then you have another conundrum in that once you have grinded through the tedious hell I spoke of above, you hit the most boring aspect of the game... sitting there waiting for haulers to carry resources to all the various objectives to simply finish the map (which is now boring due to no more enemies).”
- “The whole experience feels unbalanced and tedious.”
- “I finished one of the maps just to say I went all the way through it, but it felt extremely tedious to finish.”
optimization
20 mentions
60 % positive mentions
25 % neutral mentions
15 % negative mentions
Overall, the optimization of the game has received mixed reviews. While some players praise its smooth performance and lack of bugs, others report issues such as stuttering, lag, and freezing, particularly during quick saves or when increasing game speed. There is a consensus that further optimization could enhance the experience, especially given the game's resource demands.
- “The game is beautiful, very well optimized, but once you've played it once you don't want to play it again.”
- “Optimization: with good graphics this game runs really well, and I have yet to meet any bugs.”
- “This game runs smoothly and impresses in an instant, without any performance issues or crashes.”
- “Would be great if the devs would further optimize its performance.”
- “The game has trouble handling performance well; you should expect some lower framerates here and there.”
- “Performance issues widened: quick saves now cause my game to freeze for 2-3 seconds; once I increase game speed, it starts lagging, and then eventually calms down after half a minute.”
replayability
14 mentions
21 % positive mentions
57 % neutral mentions
21 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the random map generation and custom game options that enhance replay value, others criticize the lack of meaningful content and AI opponents, leading to a diminished incentive to revisit completed maps. Overall, the procedural generation offers potential for varied experiences, but many feel that additional features, such as multiplayer and improved AI, are necessary to sustain long-term engagement.
- “Enjoyed the fact that it has randomly generated maps for large amounts of replayability.”
- “With procedural generation, you get a lot of replayability and generally good maps, but sometimes you hit an awkward body of water that creates a frustrating road-building experience.”
- “There are custom games that you can make for endless replayability if that is your thing.”
- “There was nothing in the roadmap that talks about the introduction of proper AI to play against, so this makes the replayability of this quite low.”
- “Little replay value - once you finish a map, there is no reason to come back to it.”
- “There's nothing here but watching numbers go up; there's no difficulty or replayability to the game.”
atmosphere
7 mentions
29 % positive mentions
29 % neutral mentions
43 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its immersive graphics, engaging music, and inviting design, creating a relaxed and satisfying experience for players. Many reviewers appreciate the balance between simplicity and complexity, which enhances replayability while maintaining a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic games. Overall, the atmosphere contributes significantly to the enjoyment and appeal of the game.
- “The graphics are nice, the atmosphere is fairly immersive, and the music really brings that home.”
- “The atmosphere makes this game replayable, while the mechanics make it a challenge.”
- “It has some level of original settlers atmosphere, and it is constantly improved.”
- “The relaxed atmosphere while managing resources and expanding is endlessly satisfying.”
stability
5 mentions
80 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
20 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its exceptional stability, with users reporting no bugs, glitches, or crashes, even on older hardware. Reviewers commend the developers for delivering a nearly bug-free experience in early access, highlighting its smooth performance and overall reliability.
- “This game is relaxing, therapeutic with amazing details and no glitches. I thoroughly recommend it.”
- “It plays very well, no bugs, no glitches, good performance.”
- “I just want to congratulate the developer for doing something that is oh so rare: releasing a fully playable, nearly bug-free early access game.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is derived from its absurdly flawed design, which users find amusingly incompetent, especially when compared to its inspirations like "The Settlers." Players highlight the irony of the game making expansion more tedious and frustrating, adding to its comedic value.
- “It's hilariously brain-dead design.”
- “This game takes inspiration from 'The Settlers' in a way that's both amusing and frustrating, as it makes expanding even slower and more annoying than the original system.”
monetization
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the monetization strategy is misleading, as advertisements exaggerate the number of resources available by including trivial options, leading to user frustration.
- “The advertisements say there are like forty resources, but apparently they are including different crop type choices, which are options that don't matter.”
emotional
1 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players find the game emotionally uplifting and nostalgic, evoking a sense of wholesome fun reminiscent of classic titles from the Settlers series. This emotional connection enhances the overall experience, making it both relaxing and enjoyable.