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

76%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,625 reviews

gameplay60 positive mentions

story20 negative mentions

The game captures the nostalgic essence of the original Settlers series, particularly Settlers II and III.
The graphics are visually appealing, and the game runs smoothly with no major bugs reported.
The game offers a relaxing gameplay experience with intricate resource management and production chains.

Currently lacks a campaign mode and meaningful objectives, leading to a sense of aimlessness.
The combat system is simplistic and often frustrating, with units engaging in one-on-one fights that can feel random and unbalanced.
The user interface is cluttered and not intuitive, making it difficult to manage resources and buildings effectively.

gameplay
221 mentions
27 % positive mentions
70 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this early access title has received mixed reviews, with many praising its relaxing mechanics and engaging graphics reminiscent of classic city-building games like "The Settlers." However, players have noted a lack of clear goals, outdated mechanics, and insufficient depth, leading to a feeling of repetitiveness and a need for more features and clarity. While the foundation is solid and updates are promising, many reviewers suggest waiting for further development before fully committing to the game.
- “Really relaxing gameplay and easy to grasp, similar to the old settlers, but complex enough to be fun.”
- “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 goals set for many maps make for a dreadful gameplay.”
- “On the gameplay front, Pioneers of Pagonia falls short in terms of teaching players how to navigate its intricacies.”
- “It does not provide the necessary clarity or assistance to help newcomers grasp the game's mechanics effectively.”
graphics
174 mentions
46 % positive mentions
49 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the beautiful art style and vibrant landscapes that evoke nostalgia for classic titles. However, some players note issues with blurriness at certain zoom levels and a lack of distinctiveness in building designs. Overall, while the visuals are generally considered appealing, there are calls for further optimization and enhancements to fully realize their potential.
- “The graphics are visually pleasing, featuring a delightful mix of intricate details and picturesque landscapes that immerse players in this new world.”
- “Absolutely beautiful tribute to original settler games with deeper systems and awesome-looking graphics.”
- “With its stunning visuals, engaging gameplay, and thoughtful design, it is a must-play for fans of city-building and strategy games alike.”
- “The graphics are in the settler world, but I am missing sharpness and crispness from details (imagine how you received the SVGA in Settlers 2 compared to 1). I absolutely ramped everything up, but zoomed out there is too much blur; generally zoomed in we get more of it.”
- “It's not worth the money for the graphics.”
- “Unfortunately, my graphics card is not good enough to play it.”
story
142 mentions
8 % positive mentions
77 % neutral mentions
14 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth and engagement, with many players noting the absence of a meaningful campaign or narrative context. While there are basic missions and trading elements, they feel disconnected and uninspired, leading to a sense of emptiness in gameplay. Players express hope for future updates to introduce a more robust story and mission system that could enhance the overall experience.
- “The game is missing a really good long story mission mode; I hope they add this before release. The custom map could use some work to allow some fine tweaking of the values like quantity of resources and stuff.”
- “Was super excited to get it, loving the art and what I imagined to be a potential storyline about exploring the far reaches of a mystical land.”
- “Overall, my favorite things looking forward to are the artwork, music, and potential for story.”
- “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.”
- “Not to mention complex storytelling is impossible without a campaign.”
music
54 mentions
52 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
6 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as pleasant and relaxing, contributing positively to the overall atmosphere. While some players find it enjoyable and soothing, others note that it lacks memorability and variety, with a few opting to use external playlists instead. Overall, the soundtrack is appreciated for enhancing the cozy experience, despite some calls for more diverse musical elements.
- “Cozy landscape and music, interesting production chains.. the hours just fly by.”
- “The music is great - no issues there, love that.”
- “It's a beautiful game with a great soundtrack.”
- “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 game music is okay, but I use Spotify playlists while playing.”
- “The music is pleasant, but not memorable.”
optimization
30 mentions
67 % positive mentions
23 % neutral mentions
10 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is generally praised, with many users reporting smooth performance, good graphics, and no significant bugs or crashes. However, some players have noted occasional sluggishness and lower framerates, indicating that there is still room for improvement in optimization. A few users experienced crashes, suggesting that further focus on optimization could enhance the overall experience.
- “Great performance, great sound.”
- “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.”
- “The gameplay appears quite resource hungry and sluggish at times, though, given the rather simple game mechanics and graphics - so there seems to be quite a bit of optimization headroom.”
- “It crashes my computer with no error of any kind, so I will start playing it again once it focuses on optimization.”
- “The game has sometimes trouble handling performance well; you should expect some lower framerates here and there.”
grinding
28 mentions
4 % positive mentions
11 % neutral mentions
86 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and frustrating, particularly due to inefficient building management and a lack of centralized controls. The combat and farming systems also contribute to a monotonous experience, with many feeling that the game requires an unreasonable time investment to progress. Overall, the grinding mechanics detract from enjoyment, leading to a sense of boredom and dissatisfaction.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The building system is extremely tedious, not fun, and frustrating.”
- “I finished one of the maps just to say I went all the way through it, but it felt extremely tedious to finish.”
- “It's another shallow mechanic that feels like it's just there to make it more tedious for the player.”
replayability
20 mentions
30 % positive mentions
55 % neutral mentions
15 % negative mentions
Replayability in the game is a mixed bag; while procedural generation and custom game options offer potential for varied experiences, many players find the lack of meaningful content, difficulty, and multiplayer features limits long-term engagement. Some enjoy the atmospheric elements and challenge, but others feel the game quickly loses its appeal after initial playthroughs. Overall, improvements in content and mechanics are needed to enhance replayability.
- “The atmosphere makes this game replayable, while the mechanics make it a challenge.”
- “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 create for endless replayability if that is your thing.”
- “There's nothing here but watching numbers go up; there's no difficulty or replayability to the game.”
- “Completely played through and no replay value now.”
- “It feels like it's stuck somewhere between a creative and sandbox mode, with little to offer in terms of replayability at this time.”
stability
10 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, making it a standout in early access titles. Overall, the game runs smoothly and performs well, contributing to a relaxing and therapeutic gameplay experience.
- “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.”
atmosphere
8 mentions
13 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
38 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is consistently praised for its inviting and relaxed nature, enhancing replayability and providing a satisfying experience while managing resources. Players appreciate the balance between the game's complexity and its appealing design, which contributes to an engaging overall ambiance.
- “I love the design, atmosphere, and complexity.”
- “The atmosphere makes this game re-playable, while the mechanics make it a challenge.”
- “The relaxed atmosphere while managing resources and expanding is endlessly satisfying.”
- “I also love the simplicity of the production chain and the inviting atmosphere in general.”
monetization
4 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 counting insignificant variations, such as different crop types, which do not significantly impact gameplay. This has led to frustration among users who feel the marketing does not accurately represent the game's content.
- “The advertisements say there are like forty resources, but apparently they are including different crop type choices, which are choices that don't matter.”
humor
4 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the reviews primarily stems from the ironic frustration users feel towards the game's design, which they find to be unintentionally amusing due to its failure to improve upon established mechanics from similar games. The repeated emphasis on "hilariously brain dead design" highlights a blend of disappointment and dark humor regarding the game's shortcomings.
- “It's hilariously brain dead design.”
- “I've played a bunch of city builders/sims, but this one just fails on some basics, despite taking 'The Settlers' (intentionally or not) as a mechanics/design inspiration, which is hilarious because they made expanding even slower and more annoying than the original system.”
emotional
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players find the game to be unexpectedly wholesome and relaxing, evoking nostalgic feelings reminiscent of the earlier Settlers titles. This emotional connection enhances the overall enjoyment and charm of the experience.