Running a kingdom isn’t easy, especially when there’s more to manage than you realize. Normal city builders have you focus on general infrastructure while listening to the citizen’s needs. Norland brings everything to a different level, for better or for worse. You run a small kingdom that must accommodate the needs of many but you direct the leadership. By building the town’s infrastructure, monitoring its safety, and building relationships, you make your town thrive. Or everything goes up in flames because something took too long.
Currently in Early Access, Norland is a medieval colony sim by Long Jaunt that takes the micromanagement of a city builder and runs with it. You manage the well-being of the town but also the leaders and the residents. The leaders direct the townspeople to perform tasks, but they can’t make something out of nothing. Education is crucial to let your leaders know what they are doing. You also have bandit attacks that threaten your town and relationships with other nations.
You can’t build a town without money and you need to interact with the outside world. A holy caravan run by the church equivalent visits your town but you must also think about helping your neighbors. You may not have a standing army and must hire mercenaries. Protecting your town may mean bringing the fight to the bandits or preparing for war. In some cases, you may face supernatural forces beyond your reckoning.
One of Norland’s greatest strengths is the level of control. While you don’t manage every single person, you control its leaders. Those leaders dictate the success of resource harvesting, education, and building objectives. They also have needs that must be fulfilled and relationships among each other. The success of your town or eventual city depends on your leader’s leadership. Making sure each leader is suited to the task at hand while keeping them happy is a genuine challenge. It’s not easy getting the balance right and there’s a lot to do. But with slow steps, you can see your leaders grow into excellent managers or rulers. It’s even possible to bring people into the fold and become additional leaders with time. If you want to get rid of bandits or declare war on your neighbors, these leaders also command your army and fight with the soldiers.
There’s a lot of information thrown at you but it actually feels like you are growing your town. Every aspect is within your control, such as goods produced and the prices they are sold at. Keeping your townspeople happy or having them make sacrifices is also something you intricately control. For the micromanager at heart, this helps you build your model town. The only things you can’t control are names and genders; everything else is in your hands.
The level of micromanaging is also intense and it helps that there’s a detailed tutorial. It’s slow but perfectly paced to help you digest all the information. Even if you have questions later, there’s a help box at the upper right corner which gives you tips and advice. You are never alone and always have resources to help you out, making sure you know what you are doing. Eventually you can do whatever you like, but you always have knowledge to fall back on.
However, Norland’s level of micromanagement is a double-edged sword. Controlling every aspect of your growing town is amazing, but there are many aspects to remember. It’s easy to forget the basics, even if you stop playing for a few days and come back later. Repeating the tutorial just to understand everything is tiring and repetitive. While the information does pay off, it’s also difficult to practice when everything is in your hands.
This also means there will be several rounds of trial-and-error because of the steep learning curve. Sometimes events happen outside of your control but most of the time, your management skills won’t be up to scratch. You must do everything you can to save your town or just restart because you can’t salvage the situation. It’s punishing at first and won’t change until you put the time in to practice. It’s intimidating but the steep learning curve is there for a reason.
Fortunately, Norland does allow you to make a new game easier for yourself. You can set starting factors that help you ease into the town or challenge yourself. This prevents a game from becoming too difficult or too easy, letting you progress when you are ready. The variations also let you deal with unique circumstances, such as a supernatural army or prison labor. This is still a difficult game, but the customization options let you enjoy the gameplay at your own pace.
Norland’s potential is vast and the steep learning curve means it takes some time to adjust. But once you develop reasonable competency, you can control your town’s growth any way you want. Customizing your starting situations is fun and lets you progress at your own pace. With future additions and developments improving the game in the future, there’s much to look forward to with Norland.
Victor reviewed Norland in Early Access with a review code.
