Manor Lords (2024) Strategy Game Early Access Review

Manor Lords is a gorgeous medieval city-builder that kept me occupied for hours building my perfect, cozy hamlets. But it's not the type of Early Access game that seems like all it needs is some spit and polish to be fully playable. No, it's definitely unfinished in several key, critical ways, notably lacking much of an endgame challenge or any way to put its flashy RTS battles to a real test. It's a great foundation, and I see a lot of promise here. But there was only so much fun I was able to squeeze out of such an incomplete demo. I will definitely be keeping my eye on Manor Lords and eagerly awaiting each new update, but I also wouldn't blame you if you decided to hold off on striking the earth for now. That's not a dig at all. I said the exact same thing about Baldur's Gate 3 when it first released into Early Access, and it eventually came full circle to become one of my favorite games of all time. But I have to be realistic about what's here right now – and it’s somewhat less than what would allow me to recommend it wholeheartedly.