Medieval Dynasty: New Settlement is part immersive sim and part survival game, and tasks you with exploring a medieval land in order to set up the titular new settlement. I’m not exactly great at survival games, with stuff like Green Hell kicking my arse, but as a fan of medieval settings I decided to give this one a shot anyway.

And I’m glad I did decide to try it out as this game really is something special.

Many thanks to the publisher for the review code.

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SETTLING DOWN FOR THE KNIGHT
Medieval Dynasty has a few games that you can jump right into from the start: there’s the story mode, complete with multiple difficulties to choose from; a sandbox mode, where you’re free to basically do whatever you want; and a challenge mode for those looking for a more arcade-like challenge. The latter two modes are a great addition for those wanting to mess around a bit without narrative constraints, although I’d definitely recommend waiting until you complete the lengthy story mode so that you can get to grips with all the essentials you need to survive,

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Speaking of the story mode, the game throws you into this world with nothing but the shirt on your back as you make your way towards the nearest settlement. You have a note about your lineage that will grant you a small piece of land nearby, and helpfully the mayor will point out a few ideal places that you can set up camp. I decided to opt for a nice area near a lake  that was suitable for farming, as that seemed like the type of life I wanted to make here.

Making my way to the shore, my first port of call was to create my own residence. To do that I needed tools, so I set out to make an axe. Your handy journal details all the materials you’ll need and will even give you a handy little silhouette in order to assemble it. I grabbed some sticks, rocks, and reeds and I was done. With the axe I could then start to chop down some trees for logs, which is naturally rather important for creating my rustic house.

What makes the game work so well is the level of immersion it to make you feel like you’re actually involved in this world. Lopping down a tree requires you to give it a good few whacks with the axe, which is enough to make it satisfying to do without ever making it actually feel like work. Similarly, if you want to make an object from clay, you’ll need to put the mass on a potter’s wheel and shape it with your hands, before heating it up in an oven to make it keep it shape. These jobs would be tiring to do in real life, but they’ve been filtered down to the essentials to make it actually fun to do.

Getting through your medieval day isn’t all about crafting things though, since you’ll also need to eat and drink in order to survive. As a farmer I was able to grow crops and berries for nutrition, and a well helped me produce some good quality water for me to drink. The good thing is that the survival side of things isn’t as oppressive as the likes of Green Hell VR where you’re constantly concerned about dysentery, poison, and animal attacks. Medieval Dynasty is a lot more forgiving, so you’ll generally be fine so long as you don’t start prodding any wild bears. 

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But that’s just the fundamentals of the game. You’re here to put together a new settlement, and for that you are going to need help. By befriending the local population through a multitude of quests, you can then start building your community by bringing them over to come and work for you. The more you bring and keep happy, the more your community will be self sufficient – keeping everyone happy as a result.

It’s a great little loop that has you continually doing quests to keep everything going as you progress towards creating your legacy. With time passing rapidly (a year is about 12 in-game days), you’ll need to work towards finding a wife and child in order to ensure that your medieval dynasty will continue.

As great as the game is though, that doesn’t mean to say that Medieval Dynasty doesn’t have its issues. The initial loading time can be rather lengthy, and the visuals are certainly not the highest quality, but these issues are far less detrimental than you may expect. The general art design and how the game implements things like the journal, backpack, crafting, and so on more than makes up for the unimpressive textures and ensures that the game feels pretty damn immersive even if it doesn’t look it. It’s also worth mentioning too that the developers plan to release a patch that improves higher quality textures, but it remains to be seen how big of a difference it will make.

Honestly though, even if it makes little difference, that shouldn’t affect your decision; Medieval Dynasty: New Settlement is a great game and fantastic value for money, and really has to be experienced to truly appreciate. 

VERDICT
Medieval Dynasty: New Settlement is a wonderful experience that will keep you playing for countless hours as you start building your new Medieval life. It may not look amazing, but the sense of immersion makes it one of the best experiences on the platform.