Sumerians
- October 17, 2023
- Decumanus Games
- 3h median play time
Get on Steam"Sumerians" is a single-player strategy game with stellar gameplay and ingenious visuals. Assemble a thriving Sumerian city in Mesopotamia, focusing on urban planning, economics, and resource management. Construct temples, hire priests, grow crops, establish markets, and maintain a balance between farmers, artisans, and vendors to expand and protect your city.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game is a unique take on city building set in ancient Mesopotamia, offering a refreshing historical perspective.
- It features engaging mechanics that simulate a complex economy, allowing for creative city design without a grid system.
- The developer shows dedication to the project with regular updates and a clear roadmap for future content.
- The gameplay can become repetitive and lacks depth, with limited objectives and a steep learning curve for new players.
- Performance issues arise with larger populations, leading to significant lag and frustrating gameplay experiences.
- The game currently lacks a comprehensive tutorial, leaving players confused about mechanics and strategies.
- gameplay90 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 69 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the city-building game is characterized by a mix of satisfying depth and some frustrating mechanics, particularly the localized resource management system, which many players find cumbersome. While the game offers a laid-back experience with a historical setting and a variety of city management features, it currently lacks significant challenges and objectives, leading to a straightforward progression. Despite its early access status and some unclear mechanics, players appreciate the potential for future updates and the immersive environment, making it a promising title in the genre.
“The attention to detail, the immersive environment, and the overall gameplay experience are proof of the passion behind this project.”
“In terms of gameplay, all the key features of a good city builder/manager are included, from zoning to ensuring water access (through wells) to reducing crime (through guard posts) to trading (through a port).”
“Fantastic game, even though the gameplay can be hard to understand at first, once you got it, you got it.”
“I've played plenty of city builders, but few have left me so in the dark about game mechanics while still showering me in (too much) data and metrics.”
“This mechanic is obtuse and significantly slows down gameplay, and is far inferior to the 'global resources' method of resource management.”
“That being said, while the core gameplay mechanics are there, its condition as an early access is quite clear: currently (02/01/2023) the game doesn't really present any significant challenge to the player besides paying salaries to state workers, and growing your settlements eventually becomes quite straightforward and the economic management aspect that made the game stand out from its competition loses its importance.”
- graphics56 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the art style and overall aesthetic as "absolutely amazing" and "very pleasing," while others criticize the graphics as dull, laggy, and inferior to older titles. Despite some technical issues and a minimalist approach, many appreciate the comfortable UI and the potential for future improvements, indicating that the graphics may evolve positively over time. Overall, the game's visual presentation is seen as a strong point by some, but a significant drawback by others.
“The art style and just the overall aesthetic is absolutely amazing; it's easy to get the hang of it and works very well.”
“The graphic design is very nice, and the way cities develop is truly fascinating.”
“The game has a lovely aesthetic throughout -- even the loading screen uses cuneiform!”
“The dynamics and graphics are worse than Children of the Nile, and that is a 15-year-old game that is still better than this one for building and managing your settlement.”
“Terrible graphics and tutorial.”
“To be honest, no positives really; the graphics are dull and boring to look at, with no sense of progression or achievement. It's just another city builder stripped to the bare bones and re-skinned. The only reason I still have it on my account is that I didn't realize refund was a feature back then.”
- grinding12 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players express frustration with the grinding aspect of the game, particularly in managing farming and resource logistics. The need to pause gameplay to set up efficient farming operations is emphasized, as mistakes can lead to resource shortages early on. Additionally, the complexity of the farming system and the challenge of balancing worker roles contribute to a steep learning curve.
“My biggest gripe is that at the start of any game you have to pause the time and set up the state farming ASAP because any little mistake in this and you will run out of grain before year 2 is over.”
“Farming system seems a bit confusing to me; it doesn't seem to matter how many transporters or farmers I have, they never seem to harvest everything.”
“Determining the proper amount of government workers (e.g. farmers for state-owned grain fields, transporters, etc.) can take a little bit of getting used to, but the workload seems to reflect the amount of manpower required for tasks like farming and hauling in the era of this game.”
- music12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its authenticity and ability to enhance the Middle Eastern ambiance, contributing positively to the overall experience. While some players express a desire for more environmental sounds to complement the soundtrack, the music remains a standout feature that many find enjoyable and immersive.
“The music is awesome and feels very authentic.”
“I also like the Middle Eastern ambiance and music.”
“I like the art style and music.”
“The graphics are simple, the soundtrack is getting there, and I just can't wait to see how this game evolves.”
“I would like some street noise and sound coming from the city, rather than placement noise and music.”
- optimization12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its great concept, but it suffers significantly from optimization issues, particularly as population increases, leading to drastic drops in frame rates. Players report that performance deteriorates after a few hours of gameplay, especially when the population exceeds 3000, making it a major barrier to fully enjoying the experience. Many hope that future updates will address these performance concerns.
“As I said, the concept is great and I hope that with enough backing from EA buyers, the game will continue to grow and get the optimizations it desperately needs.”
“Right now, the biggest drawback to fully enjoying the game is probably the optimization.”
“So far, I've found that performance drops off at around the 3000+ population mark, with my FPS dropping to about 8 FPS compared to the 50+ FPS I get when I start a new game.”
“Great concept, though it still needs a ton of optimization work.”
“You can count on a couple of hours right now before performance really starts to suffer.”
“So far I've found that performance drops off at around the 3000+ population mark, with my FPS dropping to about 8 FPS compared to the 50+ FPS I get when I start a new game.”
- replayability8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game offers high replayability, with players enjoying its relaxing city-building mechanics and the addition of new content over time. However, some users note a lack of depth and character, which may limit emotional engagement. Overall, it remains a more playable experience than many polished titles despite its rough edges.
“It's a neat little city builder that's relaxing to play with high replayability.”
“Replayability factor is high, and even when I take a break for a few months, I return to an updated game with new content, renewing the fun.”
“Do not expect much depth, replayability, or character that would get you attached and involved.”
“Taken as is, the game is a little rough in places but is still more playable than some finished games.”
- story4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game is largely criticized for its lack of narrative depth and structure, with players expressing disappointment over the absence of missions or meaningful goals influenced by external factors. Many users hoped for at least a minimal storyline to enhance the gameplay experience.
“I was hoping there might be some sort of story with it, even just a little bit of narrative or some goals influenced by outside factors.”
“No missions yet but it feels empty.”
“I was hoping there might be some sort of story with it, even just a little bit of narrative or some goals influenced by outside factors.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game currently suffers from significant stability issues, including lag and frequent bugs, even on capable hardware. As it is still in alpha, players experience both the benefits of regular updates and the drawbacks of instability, particularly when loading old saves, which can lead to freezing.
“Super lagging for a low graphics game (and I have a pretty decent computer) and it constantly bugs out or freezes.”
“It's still in alpha which has its pros (updates add a lot to the game) and cons (can be a little bit buggy, specifically loading an old save might freeze it for me, I try not to get too attached to any one save.)”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is consistently praised as fantastic and highly immersive, creating a captivating experience for players.
“Fantastic, really atmospheric.”
