It’s a bold idea, letting players have so much of your game for free. But one seriously sizable strategy game, which blends inspirations from RimWorld, Factorio, Cities Skylines, and even Skyrim, proves that fortune favors the brave. Four years since it first launched, it’s suddenly enjoying a serious influx of new players, and is more popular on Steam than ever before. It’s also available to try via an unlimited demo, which lets you experience as much of the game as you want before buying it wholesale. If you’re waiting for Manor Lords or kicking your heels ahead of Frostpunk 2, this is the game for you.
Songs of Syx is a hugely ambitious, visionary strategy game where the goal is to raise an embering medieval town into a continent-spanning magical kingdom. A combination of high fantasy and grounded, often brutal realism, the world of Songs of Syx is composed of different cultures and races, all of whom have competing ideologies and will often come to blows. As your cities grow and your population swells, so do social tensions. You can force your citizens into servitude with Draconian laws and harsh punishments, or try to earn their fealty with fair and benevolent leadership. They won’t just do as they’re told, however – they need to be inspired, incentivized, and led from behind.
Droughts, famine, diseases, and weather will wrack your settlements, alongside bandit and pirate raids. You can muster an army to defend yourself, or maybe attempt to conquer a rival fiefdom, but combat in Songs of Syx is hard-fought and swift. If your troops’ morale drops too far, they will flee, and likely fall victim to enemy hunting parties that go searching for survivors. Boasting enormous scale, if you want to try Songs of Syx, developer Gamatron AB has shared an unlimited demo that lets you play the grand strategy game for as long as you want.
And after four years, Songs of Syx is going stronger than ever. As of Wednesday April 17, it’s just reached a new all-time concurrent player record on Steam. 97% of the more than 3,500 user reviews are positive, and a new update is on its way soon. You can get Songs of Styx right here.
Alternatively, try the best 4X games, or maybe the best city building games on PC instead.
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