The Viking City Builder We All Need

We have seen many city-building games like Medieval Dynasty, Foundation, Cities Skylines, and even the Anno games. Each one while labeled as a city builder, maybe survival, was different in their own right. Medieval Dynasty was first person; you built everything by hand while also surviving in the woods. Cities Skylines was a top-down, like Anno and Foundation. Each of these games focused on a different time period and had different building mechanics. When in comparison to each other they share many similarities, but it’s clear that they are all different.
A new game is coming forward, using a theme vastly different from the others with the possibility of expansions later. Presenting today is Viking City Builder. This game is going to be a Single-player, survival, RTS, and of course, city builder. The company of this game is Titan GameZ, a new indie game company.

Game Process

When it comes to inspiration, Titan GameZ has stated that they were big fans of Nordic culture and strategy games so creating Viking City Builder was an obvious choice for them. They also wanted real-time battles, since we all know Vikings are known for their conquering and pillaging. To accomplish this, a Team was assembled with developers with experience in design and development and with this game genre close to their hearts as gamers. Some of their favorites are Banished, Age of Empires, and Anno 1880 to name a few. Viking City Builder started with a single person. As time progressed and the project expanded and grew, it was time to form a team. This team later joined Titan GameZ studios.

Different areas of the game are references to real locations in the Scandinavian area. These places created inspiration for the game, and using those inspiring locations, developers took the distinct character and resources and incorporated them into the game to give it a more authentic and immersive feel. An example is Hyllestad, which was rich in stone resources. Other Inspiring locations include Birka, Hedeby, Kaupang, Trondheim, Paviken, Aarhus, Ribe, and Gamla Uppsala.

A game this detailed certainly had to have done a lot of research. So, the team was asked, “How much time was spent on this research?” They have an entire design team that takes care of the accuracy of the designed models and mechanics and they have one person in it who does historical research almost full-time. This includes the use of historically accurate information about real, important figures, the actual architecture of the buildings, and any transportation, behaviors, rituals, rites, etc.

“This attention to detail is important in creating an immersive gaming experience, and can also help inform players about this fascinating period in history, so we spend a great deal of time on research.” -Titan GameZ

The game was first shown on Steam in 2020 but has never been released yet. The team has been very constant on the updates, revealed a lot of progress, and the strides they are taking to ensure an amazing experience for both the players and a prideful accomplishment for the team. They do, however, plan to release the first playtest in the future. That future may be closer than we think, it could be out by the end of the year or next year.

While we don’t know the exact date of when people will gain access to the first playtest, Titan GameZ has promised that the playtest will be used to test optimizations and to help develop the game further to create a bug-free game when fully released. This includes before adding any other elements. Other elements could see a DLC in the future for Viking City Builder. This was not outright stated, but it was heavily hinted at.

It was asked if the game would be competitive with others similar on the shelf. The short answer is yes. The team has been working very hard on the game, is very familiar with the genre, and aims to have a game that stands out from the crowded market of city-building games. They realize they have set the bar very high, but are confident in the team. They believe with their hard work and experience they can achieve this goal.

Titan GameZ wants to thank its community greatly for their patience, and understanding for being very fascinated by the world of Vikings, like the team.

“The community also got involved in some fun on our social media, prepared by our Marketing Team. Through the interaction of the people was created a character, a fictional hero, whose fate will be reflected in the game. To sum it up – we aren’t the only developers here, the game is being developed together with the Vikings who support us, providing us with valuable feedback and suggestions on gameplay, game mechanics, graphic design, and other aspects of the game. Thank you again for that!” -Titan GameZ

What to Expect from the Game

Currently, the game will only support keyboard and mouse. There may be a patch later that will support controllers, but for now no. As stated above the game is single-player. This is largely due to the fact that creating a multi-player is extremely difficult. They want a completed game with a single-player before they explore the possibility of multi. While Multi-player is not possible now, they have not taken it off the table.
The game has levels and ranks which are acquired by playing the game. As you play, you get Fame points and with the points, you can progress the game, and unlock buildings, technologies, resources, and titles. From the simple Jarl to the mighty King!

Titan GameZ has also remarked that the first enemy of the game won’t be wielding an ax or sword, but rather it’ll be cold and hunger. Players will need to provide the settlement with basic needs in order to survive the harsh winters. This means working the smokehouse to ensure food stays useful for longer. Then once you overcome the harsh winters, you will have health, security, obedience, and happiness to watch out for within your village. If you have all this under control, then you can work on taking on enemies of foreign tribes or factions. The developers have stated that these groups can be dealt with either diplomatically or militarily. A successful raid can give the players raw materials, land, and people, or it could lead to a loss if the army is defeated.

Now, the exciting part: there will be character creation. This character customization is in the form of an avatar, Village, Banners, and markings on the Viking shields. It’s no full body but it’s still impressive on its own, and rather exciting to at least have an avatar and banner to bear in all the fights.
There will be different starting locations on the map depending on resources available, neighbors, or the state of the market. Where we start the game will make a difference in the further course of the game.

Although the game will not follow a dynasty style game, it is being designed more like Banished, Dawn of Man, or Foundation. This is also combined with the Combat system inspired by the Total War series, or Ancestors: Legacy.

“The city builder part, i.e. building a dream Viking settlement and managing its economy, is more reminiscent of such classics of the genre as Banished, Dawn of Man, or Foundation, while the combat system, or more precisely tactical combat, is inspired by the Total War series of games and the production of Ancestors: Legacy. We’re sure that fans of these productions will also like our game.” -Titan GameZ

Lastly, the game will focus mainly on Scandinavia as they want to be able to release the game as soon as possible. They are considering adding other Slavic countries, Byzantium, France, or just the British Isles.

Personal Expectation

I have been following this game for quite some time. It shows promise and while I don’t play real-time strategy games, I think a major exception is due for this game. The graphics and details they have for the game are outstanding. The work they have presented has been amazing. Reading the devlogs as they come out really shows the work and time that goes into these indie games, and in perspective, the bigger games too. Viking City Builder may be the next big indie game, and hopefully, Like Valheim, will get a lot of downloads in a short span, once it fully launches. Certainly, I have high expectations for the game and am also confident that the game will be exceptional.

The first Playtest still hasn’t happened yet, but some big dates are coming up too. To start, on January 19th, on the Viking City Builder discord(link will be below) they have a Developer’s Day.(this is an opportunity to really get more information about the game) If the game sounds interesting to you, and you wish to play, add it to your wishlist on steam, and you could get a chance to download the playtest when it drops!(adding it is not a guarantee of getting the playtest.)

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