Pioneers of Pagonia Review – A LOT to Love

Pioneers of Pagonia will have its full release on December 11th, nearly 2 years since releasing into Early Access. And this meant that it was the perfect time to review the game, not partially, but in all its glory.

And there’s lot to love.

Envisioned by the original creator of The Settlers, Pioneers of Pagonia aims to bring life back into the city building genre but with its own charm. The full release is accompanied with a story campaign with over 30 hours of content, that is if you’re able to beat it in one go.

The game has a robust tutorial system, taking you through the several structures and buildings you will need as you progress through the maps, it’s never a case of too much information, it’s trickled with the first few maps having an overreaching tutorial than a ‘Tutorial level’ that you may find with most games. This is something I really enjoyed, the stream of information felt more like discovery than an info dump the developer had to do.

It’s the same feeling you get throughout the game, everything is done in a purposeful pace. Nothing feels rushed, when asked if the Early Access caused any delays, Volker Wertich, Co-Founder of Envision Entertainment and Creative Director in the game with the utmost calmness reiterated there were no delays.

When it comes to Pioneers of Pagonia, you can sense that measure of calm confidence, there’s a lot of love and passion poured into this, that’s not up for debate, but there’s also an element of confidence in approaching a genre defined by The Settlers and staking claim to it, when the latest ‘reimagining of The Settlers’ failed to grab the hearts and minds of players.

It’s not a game that’s looking to rest on the laurels of past glories either, it’s fresh, with up to 4 player co-op that will have you and your friends be able to hop in and out without any trouble at all.

Throw in a very capable map editor, Pioneers of Pagonia has something for everyone. Be it a seasoned Citybuilder, or a new pioneer taking up the tools to forge their way ahead.

Pioneers of Pagonia releases on Steam on 11th of December.