Releasing a game can be nerve-wracking and not only for the developer. Fans will fall in love with the promise of it, adding it to their Steam wishlists, and then when the game finally launches potential players hold their breath to see if their dreams are realized. In the case of Manor Lords, it seems the dial has definitely turned towards the positive side as it’s zoomed up the bestseller charts and hit huge peak player counts, all while earning a positive review rating.
We all knew that Manor Lords was eagerly anticipated, after all it became the most-wishlisted game on Steam. The dream of a medieval city building game mixed with strategy and RPG elements was an alluring call for many and now, it seems that dream is still alive with Manor Lords hitting some impressive milestones on its first day in Steam Early Access.
Mere hours after its release, Manor Lords has hit over 150,000 players on Steam. To put that in context, this makes it the sixth most played game on the platform right now, with only huge names like PUBG, Apex Legends, Dota 2, and Counter-Strike 2 beating it. At the time of writing this number is still increasing, albeit a little slower than earlier in the day when the numbers rocketed skywards.
In addition to the player count, Manor Lords is currently sitting on a 90% positive Steam rating, with over 1,500 players coming in to review the game. A common theme among comments is that even with a few features yet to be implemented and still in development, this is a remarkably stable and polished release, especially for a solo developer.
For our part in our Manor Lords early access review, we called the game “a beautiful, ambitious city builder,” a sentiment echoed across many of the reviews seen on Steam. My personal favorite that I’ve seen so far today has to definitely be “like Banished but you can now stab people,” which is a theme we can all get behind.
With player numbers increasing, positive reviews pouring in, and Manor Lords taking the number one slot on the Steam bestsellers list, the future looks rosy for the medieval strategy sim. Over the coming weeks we can expect to see the game get “better and better,” publisher Hooded Horse promises.
Manor Lords launched into early access today, Friday, April 26 and you can head over to the Steam page to grab it with 25% off until Friday, May 10.
If you’re looking to start your medieval adventure right, our Manor Lords beginners guide should see you becoming the lord you always wanted to be. Should you instead want something else on your plate, our best strategy games guide will get you eating well.
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