In Norland, Rimworld meets Crusader Kings and the result is a complex building game of court intrigue, war, love, desperation and lust for power.
The Middle Ages are a wonderful place for entertaining stories. It”s also where everything just comes together! Societal differences, intrigue, excessive guilt and an absolute willingness to unleash war out of a wounded sense of honour. Where else do you hear stories like: And then Lord Baxterbax-Studdord sent his army of horsemen to fight the wicked Lord Marrington, who had the audacity to eat the last of the lard tarts at the King”s banquet.
That is why the Middle Ages are simply the best scenario for any game genre. But especially for those games that want to fully exploit this infinite potential for absurd, beautiful or dramatic stories. Crusader Kings 3 alone shows how much success can be achieved with this.
But alongside Crusader Kings, the build-up hit Rimworld has meanwhile also earned a reputation as a story generator of the highest order. So what would happen if the two came together? That”s what many people are asking themselves at the moment, and that”s why, in addition to mods for Rimworld, small games are currently being created such as Clanfolk, Going Medieval or today”s candidate for presentation: Norland!
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What is Norland about?
Norland wants to think Rimworld a little further. Because the colony simulation basically just tells the story of a small, tight-knit community in which every member is largely equal, at least initially. But equality is not an option in Norland. The game has, after all, chosen the Middle Ages as its scenario, and talk of equality of all people before law and God would have made, at best, a delicious little jokus in the tavern back then. Everyone would have had a wonderful time and then gone back to slaving in the fields for the liege lord.
That is why the population of the building game is also divided into different classes, of which there are even more than the classic three estates. In Norland, characters are divided into slaves, criminals, peasants, warriors, priests and nobles. However, we only have direct control over the nobility.
The nobility is the linchpin of our efforts and should not exceed a certain size. After all, the aim here is to guarantee tension through the struggle for survival. But that only applies to the survival of one”s own family. If all the members die as a result of decisions (murder, old age, horse kicking), the game is over for good. Even if the self-built city is still inhabited by hundreds of peasants, slaves or priests.
Until that time comes, we decide on the daily life of all family members and give all kinds of orders for the expansion and administration of the city along the way. The remaining population is thus simulated independently, but at least adheres to direct orders from the noble rulers. Well … mostly.
How does Norland tell stories?
For the subjects may not be quite as submissive as they should be. Or rather, there can always be a few bad apples. After all, each individual character is supposed to have his or her own personality. This is the only way to guarantee that Norland will also generate fabulous stories.
What makes a character stand out and how they behave throughout the day can depend on numerous factors. For example, some characters have a stronger sex drive than others, demand a certain commodity or don”t take ownership so seriously. Of course, emotions and relationships with other people in the city also play a big role. Even religious beliefs decide what a character does.
Our choices as nobles in concert with the random behaviour patterns of all the other characters are the tinder that should fuel numerous different stories in Norland. If a spouse feels betrayed, it can lead to murder. Or should a priest preach too zealously, religious riots can break out in the town.
Unlike in Rimworld, our city is only one of many on a real world map. Neighbouring kingdoms are also led by noble families and can come to visit as guests. Such interactions can eventually lead to real wars in which considerable armies clash.
Norland is aimed at people who like building strategy and complex commodity chains, but who also like the idea that even strategy games can be livened up by dynamic stories.
What do we like so far? What remains open?
We like that
- The story potential: Norland cooks with a lot of ingredients that bring the potential for lots of entertaining stories. Whether it”s a tale of betrayal or resistance to the church, Norland seems to be a real catch-all for medieval drama.
- The Family: Norland draws heavily on Rimworld in terms of visuals and content, but doesn”t end up being a simple medieval overlay. The system with the different estates sounds very promising and the management of one”s family is already a big part of the fascination in Crusader King.
This remains open
- How dynamic are the stories really? We have not yet been able to play Norland and have to rely on the word of the developers. So we don”t know if Norland really tells such dynamic stories or if the same events often happen in the end.
- How much fun is the economy? Stories are good, but a building game should also always motivate on a mechanical level. Here we have to see whether the economic aspect of Norland turns out to be complex enough and doesn”t just run alongside.
It shouldn”t be long before Norland appears on Steam. You would think that such a complex story generator would be a classic Early Access game – but fiddlesticks! According to the development studio, Norland will be released directly as a finished version in autumn 2022.
Editorial conclusion
Although I actually love building games and find story sandboxes in particular very, very exciting, Rimworld never had me hooked for long. That”s probably also due to the space setting, which again I can”t do much with. Now a Norland comes along and I”m immediately fascinated! Thanks to the Middle Ages!
This looks like a really cool Rimworld alternative! And there”s a lot in it too! I”m very taken with how many different elements Norland is already stirring together. There”s religion, intrigue, deceit, war and who knows what else. This could actually be incredibly entertaining, if everything really works out and as many fabulous medieval stories emerge as I”m imagining right now.
