The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom

« If you're a fan of games like Sim City, Tropico, Caesar or even the earlier Settlers games, this game probably isn't one you want to miss. The changes from the earlier games and from other games in its genre are almost all for the better, and it's just generally a well put-together piece of entertainment - whether you prefer to build sand castles or kick them over. »

« The Settlers 7 looks easy but is despite of the looks really complex. Especially the multiplayer part is not only fun to play but really hard to master with three different ways of winning. Strategy and simulation fans will love it! »

« The Settlers 7 is one of the best installments of the series. It is very addictive, has a deep economic system and we like the fact that you can complete a level with different tactics. »

« This is a complete make-over of the series. It’s faster, more diverse, more flexible and because of these changes it’s extremely thrilling, too. There are a lot of ways to win, so trying out new strategies is very entertaining. »

« Although I lost my Settlers virginity at a fairly old age, growing a functional colony is very, very addictive. The game brings back a load of childhood memories, which is definitely one of the game's strongest sides. There are some minor flaws though. The AI is passive and if you need to handle million things at once, sometimes the game gets quite confusing. [May 2010] »

« If you’re a fan of the series and are able to swallow Ubisoft’s fulsome addition to Blue Byte’s game, I’d definitely recommend The Settlers 7. »

« I’m hoping that people get into it, because I plan on keeping this one in my regular rotation for some time. »

« Settlers 7 is a fantastic experience that brings out the best in economic sim and RTS games. »

« The start is horrible: The campaign is poor with childish and political correct language. This setting destroyed my motivation to continue to play. No I dont want to play as a female. The dialogues are childish and the gameplay looks very simple, if you compare it to the older settlers. And when you read about the DRM attack of Ubisoft years ago I have more sympathy, that this game is a flop. »

« How lazy this game is... Not much to do in matches. Maybe the focus is really on you building and maintaining a city, with logistics and all. But then you need to remove the victory points among other things. Not my favorite genre, but this one I hated. »

« Excellent game! Is Magnific and more funny. I recommend this game always!!! »

« Compared to previous games economy is not only silly and illogical but is also too simple. Campaign story not only not interesting but painful to hear/read. Game mechanics like generals and controlling territories are done horribly bad. »

« This game is actually quite good. One of the better strategy/management games thats out there. Its not perfect but can definitely be great with some improvements to the AI. Needs a bit more skirmishes here and there to make things interesting. Maybe a new defensive mechanic so you dont automatically get rolled over too easily by a bigger army. Story and characters are simple but quite fine, even enjoyable - for a game thats not concentrating on story. When I think bad story, I think Guild wars 2. The story and plot is huge. but done very poorly, particularly the expansion heart of thorns. Its really really really bad. The likes I've really never seen in the history of my 23 years of gaming. Its my crown example of a bad story. At the moment, there is no better game I'd rather play in this genre. Civilisation 5 maybe big, but the game play is boring as hell. This game on the other hand is lots lots more fun. You want to ride the hype train and brag about playing the biggest and newest games, go Civilisation 5, if you really want to play a good and fun game thats decently made and designed, play this game. »

« I never played other settlers games before, but i kinda like it. Give it a try. If you like games like anno and like gathering resources, without having to worry to mucb about combat. Then this game might entertain u for a while. »

« In opposition to the majority I will say that I like the overall art direction and stupid, bumbling characters that don't know what they're doing. They're really Settlers 3-4 alike and I take the look of Settlers 7 over two previous ones. But sadly the looks aren't everything. DRM aside. The game is resource hungry and tends to overheat my GPU for no reason and very often I suffered serious FPS drops (from 60+ to 5). And the good overall art direction for the most of time is barely visible outside of cut-scenes. Most of the time you play on the smallest zoom, which is FAR away from the ground. So far, that every single building looks exactly the same and every single settler looks the same. The developer was aware of that and implemented small goods icons above the settlers, so you can see what exactly is happening in your settlement. Also, the initial charm of Settlers 7's looks is ruined by animation. They have too much frames and every movement seems like put into x2 speed (on x1). The issue is extremely glaring on soldiers' animations. The world is also too sterile. Remember wildlife, dogs, cats and chicken in Settlers 6, settlers wandering around the town, etc? You will find none of that in Settlers 7. Say goodbye to different architecture (already limited in Settlers 6) - everything is the same in Paths to a Kingdom. But the above is just a nitpicking, really. The real problem lies in the gameplay. It's awfully stale and ultimately boring. It's even more simplistic than Settlers 1. There are production chains, but they don't come out of 2 levels. Settlers don't have any needs other than food (which is partially optional). And the worst of all - the building itself is extremely limited. You can't rebuild the main routes (as you are able in Settlers 6), every structure needs a road which placement is extremely limited, you can't even build walls. Their placement is predetermined. I bet you hated control zones in the previous Settlers game. Well, it's worse in Settlers 7. The outposts are prebuilt and you can only order your armies to attack/retreat. They're limited to roads (it's even bigger limitation than Settlers 2!). All maps are boring and even quest zones don't change anything. It's all about send quantity X of resource Y or kill some bandits. Settlers 7 have technology trees, but every single technology = % bonuses for your soldiers and structures. I guess the sandbox where you can put together your headquaters is nice... Other than that, you're better off with the original 2-4 Settlers and even Settlers 6. It's better than the 5th game, but that's not saying much. »

« I've never played a settlers game before but I found it to be quite good and enjoyable. Certainly one of the good strategy games out there. The story line and dialogue is very basic but is very childlish. The downside I find is the game does not help you find where the bottle neck in your warehouse distribution chain is. The combat is a bit too simplistic. The AI is too weak. There should be stronger tiers of AI available. You want the AI to be more like a human player too. »