King of Dragon Pass

King of Dragon Pass
N/A
Metacritic
79
Steam
70.418
xDR
Our rating is calculated based on the reviews and popularity of the game.
Price
$11.99
Release date
28 July 2015
Developers
Publishers
Steam reviews score
Total
79 (352 votes)

Create your own epic saga of survival, mythology and diplomacy! Rule your clan, make strategic decisions that affect the game world, win battles and expand your influence in this unique mix of RPG, strategy and story-telling.

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King of Dragon Pass system requirements

Minimum:

  • OS: Windows XP/Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8
  • Processor: 1 GHz
  • Memory: 512 MB RAM
  • DirectX: Version 9.0a
  • Storage: 500 MB available space
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말리온
말리온

Adventure, Indie, RPG, Simulation, Strategy

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thesparkthatbled
thesparkthatbled

Awesome and unique old-school game with an interesting world, using combinations of influences not often seen today. Really great throwback, if you don't mind a heavily text-based game. Challenging too.

Ser Dokta Hachi
Ser Dokta Hachi

This game works out of the box with Steam Deck. Just need to adjust resolution to maximum in settings. Use the hamburger button for ESC key.

Megadeth
Megadeth

An amazing game full of rich detail and deep strategy. It takes time to build up, but persistence rewards you with a narrative experience that no other game can deliver. For fans of the fantasy world of Glorantha it is a must play.

ItsPrettyRare
ItsPrettyRare

Super easy to get into, simple to control, but it has awesome replayability.

Crazycafe
Crazycafe

it old it piss you off but it good

Gówno
Gówno

I love so much about this game, which frustrates me because despite the great art, lore, resource management, social complexity and variety of events that occur, its greatest flaw is glaring:

The warfare is futile.

Your clan can be wiped out, but you cannot do this to any other faction. You can kill 50+ enemies in a battle every year, but they will come back next year with similar strength, at best offering paltry rewards for a ceasefire if you defeat them enough. Trolls, nomads, boar-riders and other 'foreign' foes will often raid you, yet you can't do the same to them. If you seize another clan's land, they will just become harder to war with due to their relocating - and thus having to cross neighboring territory to reach them. Worst of all, there are at least two scripted massacres that you don't receive the option to go down fighting against - have every war blessing, 30+ thanes, a strong tribe and multiple war artifacts? Too bad, they don't come into play during these events. You're just immediately notified that your tula and people are wasted.

Somewhere down the road I'll try a Peace Clan playthrough, but I doubt that will go well since optimization guides don't recommend it.

pbnjello
pbnjello

No windowed mode and cut off side borders in many screen resolutions. They are not even trying to fix it ignoring many customers request.

KingOfCurtopia
KingOfCurtopia

I somehow missed the original back in the day. I read an article on best PC RPGs of all time and this one was in the top ten. Strange, never heard of it but further investigation pointed to King of Dragon Pass being a fine unique RPG. After playing it for a bit I can say that's true. Deceptivelly looking like a text adventure at start it soon evolves into a civilization manager that's far more complicated than it appears. This game obviously inspired many others to come later -- The Banner Saga comes to mind. This is the kind of casual deep thinking game I like to play when the show or movie I'm watching gets slow. Next thing I know I've missed the boring show or movie and only notice when the infomercial comes on interrupting my concentration. Be sure to turn your sound way down though as there is no volume setting in game, just on or off for three different sound events. Sound is not really important though as I think the original game ran on machines that could only dream of using more than the PC speaker's beeps. I love my retro, glad I finally found this one.

abibiliboop
abibiliboop

This a very fun and unique game. Definitely a good time waster. The only complaints I have about this game are the forced clan split mechanic and annoying autosave (you can only have one game running at a time).

You can have everything in perfect stats (i.e. clan is max happy, farmers are max happy, and warriors are max happy and have enough cows and food production to cover all people) and you still get spammed with splitting the clan over and over. It is not a fun mechanic and it doesn't really make sense from a story point of view (if people really wanted to split, then everyone wouldn't be completely satisfied on the info screens).

Other than those annoyances, there is a good balance of frustration and victory on random events and raids. You feel like you have accomplished something when your clan begins to grow (though the splitting headache definitely removes any sense of accomplishment you have).

The world and lore are also very well done and it makes you want to dig into it further. Hopefully, the upcoming game doesn't have the crappy autosave and clan splitting mechanics.

Lord Aeducan
Lord Aeducan

-Never neglect sacrificing to Urox
-Dont mess with ducks
-Dont mess with dragons
-When in doubt,buy food

and finally,

NEVER, listen to you trickster.

FelixVelitus
FelixVelitus

A hidden gem among narrative games.

KikiMofo
KikiMofo

This is one of those game where it's hard to explain it to other people. No other game really compares to how it plays or how you play it. It's very unique and I can find myself just lost in the game playing for hours on end. The only other games that really get me like that are the CIV games where you just want to keep on going.
I just really love this game. It's hard to find faults with it because everything in the game is basically just how the dev wanted it to be even if you find something that frustrates you it's probably there for a reason.
The only thing bad that I would say for this game is there is no windowed mode and nowadays that's a bummer but it is an old game though updated it probably should have had windowed mode added to it.
If anyone is reading this and wondering if you should buy it I'd say yes. Always yes.
I can't wait till Six Ages is finally on PC hopefully it's just as good as this(and hopefully it has a windowed mode)

Maximvs
Maximvs

I Recommend this game, it`s unique in its playability and this new version has a helpful tutorial.

What I don`t like of this version is the missing of the tula screen and the seasonal graphics atop the menu. It should return, at least copy the old ones.

007
007

Really cool game. Unfortunately during battle the game will sometimes glitch and not provide any input. The only way around this has been to exit the game and reload, picking up after the battle. When I take another action, the prompt for the battle return even if I am at a completely different menu. The most recent time this happened, I was given four inputs and "NO TEXT" for a prompt. Upon selecting an input, the game would freeze. Really frustrating to play something for a few hours that has nothing but AN AUTOSAVE FEATURE, only to hit a dead end like that.

Sloppy port.

fredichak
fredichak

I've been a huge fan of King of dragon pass, replaying it for hundreds of times on PC (From GOG) and can't wait for it's sequels. So I didn't wait, I brought Six ages on AppStore, it's proud sequel to KoDP and I enjoyed it on my phone so much.

As a fan, I support KoDP by collected it again on Steam, I opened this "new version" on my Mac and I'm horrified by the game port. The bad UI, annoying green "help" box that's not helpful and no way of turning off. Speech bubble overlapping visual. Buttons scatter around in random place on different pages. It lost tons of contents. All the lovely details on my GOG version is gone. Instead of a proper update on the old KoDP, it looks like a cheap port from phone app back to computer with no love.

The original KoDP is legendary. To re-release, it deserve love instead of a casual port. It should have PC/Mac screen and control in mind and things need to be done right. It should be richer, bigger and better than the phone version. Hopefully it will get a proper update and they will get things right again. I love KoDP.

Hydra
Hydra

Port of the Mobile Phone remake. Not the real King of Dragon Pass, lacks a large amount of content and has horrible settings options (lacks even something as basic as a volume control slider). Developers should be utterly ashamed of this lazy trash.

Orderly
Orderly

All right...

DOOM can go to hell. X-COM can go to Mars. THIS is the best game from the 90s.

What's so good about it? The audio-visual artstyle? It's very good, but there are games as pretty or prettier.
The setting? But... It's just fantasy, right? There are trolls, beastmen, dragons and even elves, so... What's the big deal?

King of Dragon Pass stands out among most strategy games with its three aspects.

1. It embraces common sense. Cows breed over time. You sow in spring. You reap in autumn. If you go to war in these seasons, your harvest will be poorer, due to lack of hands in fields. If you send out scouts in winter, you might lose them. If you upset someone, you will have trouble with them. If you give gifts, they will feel more benevolent towards you. If you favor and appease a god, you will have better chances at everything that god is responsible for. If you do not do well by your ancestors, they will make your life feel like modern-day Paris.
You do not need to think about everything you do in numbers like you would in most strategy games. In fact, most numerical values in the game are hidden from you, and you will have to rely on your feel and impressions.
How much does the cow-goddess Uralda like your clan? Well, she's a goddess, so who knows, but judging by the fact your cows have been bringing exceptional offspring for the last four years, looks like she's okay. Maybe we should do the mystery play where one of our women reenacts her feats of old?
What do the people of the Batavi clan think of ours? Well, they are Batavi, so who knows, but judging by the fact that we've been snatching each others' cows for the last two years EACH SEASON as well as by that blood-feud that's been going on between a family from their clan and a family from ours, probably, they don't feel for us all that much. Maybe, we should do a full-fledged assault on them and seize some of their land? You know, before they get the same idea?
And at the same time, everything influences everything to a greater or lesser extent - the level of complexity in this game's design is astonishing, but even more astonishing is how easy it can be for the player to work within it relying on intuition and common sense.

2. It's not just fantasy. Unlike 99,9% of fantasy books, movies and games on God's green earth, this one doesn't do elves or trolls just because Tolkien has them. Instead, King of Dragon Pass is a folklore game. It recreates the thinking of a tribal man, his preoccupations, his beliefs, his interactions with other members of his society. People behind it were (and still are) actually ears-deep in history and pagan religions, so what you're playing is in fact a reconstruction of sorts.

3. King of Dragon Pass is personality-based. What it means is you will have a ring of elders (not necessarily old, mind you) who will help you govern your tribe. Each one is better at something: some - at warfare, some - at agriculture, some - at leadership, etc. They are also all devotees of some god out of your big pantheon. A follower of Umakt the Raging Bull will fight like an ox and prevail against unnatural creatures. The worshipper of Vinga the Adventuress will be good at scouting new lands. The man of Issaries, the god of Trade, will probably be your minister of foreign affairs. And the devotee of Eurmal the Trickster is... Um... Well... Oh, look, he's charmed the rats who've been terrorising your barns for a while and tricked them off your land! And now he just beat a trollwoman at an eating contest! Hey, the neighbours are complaining: they have a rat infestation. Wait...

Just go ahead and play it. Even if you don't normally play strategy games. And look forward, for the same people are working on the Six Ages series, the direct successor. As of now, June, 02, 2019, it can be bought on iOS and wishlisted on Steam, and yes, it's a direct advertisement, because who wouldn't want more of KoDP?

PS

Back in 1999 King of Dragon Pass was a commercial failure. Becasue of course.

teh_doggen
teh_doggen

This is an amazing game. There is not much I can add to what other reviews have said, but this is a classic among storytelling games. If those appeal to you at all, play this game. Also, use the default difficulty level for your first playthroughs; games from 1999 view difficulty differently than modern ones.

The port is not great. It's not terrible, broken, or unplayable. However things like text overflowing containers, interfaces designed for touch that are painful with a mouse, and even compression artifacts on some of the art are present. These things are a constant annoyance, but not enough to seriously affect enjoyment of the game.

Beerpj
Beerpj

Really unique gameplay. Love it.

Persival
Persival

An incredible mix of choose-your-own-adventure books, strategy and well represented atmosphere of the world of Glorantha. This game managed to give me a sense of nostalgia even though I could barely talk when it was coming out. Definitely a worthwhile experience if you're looking for storytelling unlike and at the same very alike to things you have seen before.

Mario Huebai
Mario Huebai

This game is great. I wish there were more games with higher decision keeping your interest inested making instead of endless micromanagement keeping you busy. The ambience and culture stuff is really cool too.

dweller86
dweller86

Simply had to get it. Original game was great and better in some aspects like having an option to save game. Now if there happens some gamebreaking accident only options are to start all over or replay from previous year losing all progress. Still, the new product is relatively bugfree and works fine. Good game while waiting the six ages to appear.

Campbell
Campbell

Highly addictive, clan/house/dynasty building gets you attached to you clan so whenever someone insults or raids you it makes you want to get revenge.

R8.50 Mango
R8.50 Mango

The original was better, but the only way to get that is to pirate the ISO or to, somehow, track down a CD. The devs used to send a burned CD-ROM with the game on it in the mail, how wild is that? The port isn't amazing, and lacks some key features, but the core of the game is still there, and still one of the best games ever made. Just remember, watch your back, keep your sword straight, and never, ever piss off the ducks.

2nd Class Janitor - Wilco
2nd Class Jani…

Tags: Tycoon&Simulator&Sim&City
Additional Tags: Delete Local Content & Remove from Library

TLDR: Intriguing mechanics get buried in a visual novel style engine with over burdened UI. Primitive village management on a time limit. Niche.

horusofoz
horusofoz

Game play is menus, sliders and retro 2D art. I didn't make it past the tutorial as it didn't feel like I was playing a game.

There are a lot of fans for this classic re-make but based on my small experience, I can't recommend this game.

CBT Wizard
CBT Wizard

This game is falsely advertised. Somehow an old simulator beloved CRPG from the past is actually just a nothing more than rogue-like because they changed the save system to ONE SLOT ONLY. The game is tedious and mind-numbing since a single mistake or two will shut down your entire will to chug through a normal playthrough. The newly-made TUTORIAL made me outlaw my Trickster from being placed back on the RING, it TOOK DECADES TO FINISH STORM TRIBE HERO-QUEST WITHOUT A TRICKSTER. IN MY LAST GAME, THEYA & my chief died hero-questing ON A YEAR WHERE HERO-QUESTING SUCCESS WAS BOOSTED. I put two magic points into hero-quests. THEN BOTH OF THEM DIED ON THE LAST STEPS OF ERNALDA FEEDS THE TRIBE PLUS ORLANTH & AROKA. After playing the original, I would never recommend this piece of garbage after too many unaccounted "Quality of Life" changes that are completely neuter the good intentions of Glorantha vibes gave you. In the original, you had a chance to either play RNG with the abused save slots or get accustomed to the disasters that come out you right left letting the player figure out whats right & wrong so that players controlled their means of PROGRESS. The single save slot system should have been saved for HARD MODE instead of fucking up the rest of the game. Also N =/= neighbors it means NEARBY.

TL;DR SINGLE SAVE SLOT = NO PROGRESS

Moose Thirteen
Moose Thirteen

This game is truly one of the all time greats, I was thrilled to find it on Steam because now I don't have to carefully protect the CD I bought back in 1999. It's not complicated, you manage a settlement with the help of a group of advisers and lots of little pop up "choose your own adventure" type stories happen with long ranging implications. It's all just done so well. The artwork, the music, the writing. One of the neat little touches I always liked was that there were three character pictures for your advisers, one used when they're young, one in middle age, and one when they're older. It's just this attention to detail that made this game an all time classic.

Fenris
Fenris

As much as I'd love to recommend this game, I cannot do so. I love the concept and the idea behind it, but it is simply too harsh to play. 9 out of 10 times, nothing will be in your favor, 9/10 times all the choices you do will be wrong. 9/10 times enemy clans will manage to "sneak" way over 100 soldiers to steal for you or attack you by surprise while 9/10 times you try to do the same, you fail.

It feels like this game is rigged for failure, and so I see no point in recommending it. Save your money for a fair game with fair gameplay instead.

Sir Edward
Sir Edward

What can I say, it's like living in the prose edda or the icelandic sagas, mixed with a choose your own adventure. It's amazing for anyone who loves story games and mythology and even touches on the religiously minded.

CampyBastard
CampyBastard

Try this game out for an engrossing task of keeping a clan of barbarians together.

Karma_Dragon
Karma_Dragon

Sometimes really archaic and inscrutable. Some visibility on your choices and quality of life would turn this already legendary game in something even better. If you can go past the janky, it's a piece of art.

Sammy Hayden
Sammy Hayden

Oldie but goody. In some respects I like it as much as the new Six Ages: Ride Like the Wind. Hero quests are a bit clunky and a little to complex though

TeWano
TeWano

Theere are so many variations in the game, which I love, that you have to play it so many times just to be able to see them all. So many different things you can do and so many outcomes

valkeera
valkeera

In a nutshell, “King of Dragon Pass” is a fantasy manager of bronze-age barbarian clan. In this turn-based strategy, you take control of the clan’s leaders, manage resources (mainly magic and cows), explore the land, trade goods with your neighbors for cows, set out on quests to gain favor of the gods, and do other funny barbarian things (like raiding your neighbors to steal cows). Every turn there are random story-related events, where you need to make decisions that either increase your wealth and renown, or (more often than not) bring misfortune and can have long-term consequences. The game consists only of static screens, there is no animation to speak of; but the events are illustrated by nicely drawn pictures, and accompanied by catchy medieval-style music. Thanks to the random events and different disposition of your clan (peace, war or balanced), gameplay can vary a lot, ensuring good replayability and countless hours of fun.

Killer Bean
Killer Bean

Quite a fun text based game, can be frustrating and isn't for everyone but I enjoy it.

DiscoEra
DiscoEra

Revisited this jewel after completing Six Ages.

PapaGamer
PapaGamer

What a hidden pearl!
I'm in love with this game... The art and design are simple but the story, roleplay, strategy and simulation parts are truly incredible!
Totally worth its full price!

Jake
Jake

waaaaay to complicated to get into.
I dont want to study to be able to play a game

22jjk91
22jjk91

Unique game. Excellent balance between rpg and strategy

nathaniel frey
nathaniel frey

I picked this game up because of some recommendations and immediately became obsessed with it. 30 hours of playing later I finally won the long game and I'm ready to stop thinking of it 24/7, but I'm certainly coming back. It IS a little dated in some aspects but it's very well built and engaging; the lore of Glorantha is especially interesting to me.

Sus Amogus
Sus Amogus

I actually spend time on the game. which compared to most of my steam library means that it's in the top 10% of games ever made.

gabrieljoseozanan
gabrieljoseozanan

Any game with badass ducks gets my vote!

rachelcarriemore
rachelcarriemore

This is a great game to play for minutes or hours. A bit like a choose your own adventure novel crossed with a Sid Meier game.

Lujo
Lujo

It was really great, and you can see how it stuck with people back in the day so much that it became the cornerstone of it's own genre. It really is the granddaddy of the Paradox-style society-manager-with-events and its quite a little gem aside from its historical importance.

I was honestly afraid to install it and start it because it was made so long ago that I wasn't able to tell whether some of the achievements would be too hard to do, but it didn't disappoint. The game requires you to master it to get them, even dig around the net for solutions to some, but you can get them all and see it all without shennanigans. And the game itself is pretty gripping once you get into it, so much so that it makes you wonder whether Crusader Kings and such kind of just bloated a great concept with system requirements. It had a lot of impact, but after having played it, I have to say I'm sorry it didn't have more.

rompier02
rompier02

I have played this game to the end before. Then forgot about it. Recently some friends asked me about it. So started playing again meticulously. Game is story book style. No 3D graphics as such. The objective is to create a clan & guide them to prosper & eventually becoming The King/Queen in the Dragon Pass. Player compete with other NPC clans. Try to achieve goal via conquest/diplomacy. Some of the scripted events are excellent as to be able to provoke the player's emotion. However a lot do not make sense. For example forcing the Player to split their clan on the basis of over population. If player refused to heed this & delay, then they will be harassed in the game by events concerning their ability to grow food. This will eventually lead to famine & destruction of the Players clan. This will happen even if the Player have more than enough resources in terms of manpower/lands to do so. Yet the game provides an option for the Player to seize their enemies lands. For what purpose is a good mystery. I have never seen the NPC clans having to undergo the same treatment.

Should one play on the Hard difficulty & long period the scripted events for the negatives effects will be frequent & illogical. Guess that is how they raise the difficulty bar. Not much management too except for elevating farmers to thanes or turning farmers to hunters & vice versa. Combat involves raiding or counter raids. On hard difficulty the RNG for success is bad for the Player. Many times my clan with 30 - 35 thanes & 200 spear men aided by 4-5 magic will be overrun in the fields. Sometimes with treasures too. This against enemies lesser in numbers too. On this difficulty level it is imbalanced.

Should you get this than good winds. For me will not recommend it to anyone.

Edit : Some events will refer to specific type of animals. According to this game's manual CATTLE means a mix of all 3 animal namely cows, sheep & pigs. However when the events scripted by the Developers is enforced on the Players, always the cow will be deducted should one fail totally/ succeed partially. The other 2 type will not. Even if this script refers to sacrifices to specific deity that presides over specific animal types i.e. Nevala for sheep & Uralda for cows. Player should note that they can lose the game for not having enough cows. Guess the difficulty for the game is raised through imbalanced mechanics & conferring undue advantage to the A.I. To further drive the point check out the explanation under CATTLE RAID. It specifically refers to cow even though cattle according to the manual comprises of all 3 live stocks namely cow,sheep & pigs.

Bran Mak Morn
Bran Mak Morn

Yeah, get it if you are new to it, its a novel way to make a game, and fun to play through, it takes a while to learn how to be a party to the culture and the music is the best thing about it.

As a veteran since I had to buy my copy from the obscure website back in 99, its not the same, and upsetting.

Things I Miss A Lot:

1) Saving the game manually before hard quests or uncontrollable game events, like major wars, or king election.
2) Boundary map showing your clan territory from the start and as you capture turf from rivals.
3) The fantastically done village 2D graphic page, showing what shrines, fortifications, tree growth, patrols, and buildings at a glance.
4) The patrol settings for inner and outer patrols, that was important to warfare, so you could take only the outer patrol out on raids and leave some behind for cattle thieves, having to set the patrols if you took too many was a great way to insure you didn't take too many weaponthanes away from their duty.
5) The ability to slaughter pigs and sheep for meat in a food crisis. I don't know if its a feature I need to build a building to get or discover a god mystery to unlock it, but it was a big part of how you could dominate the game in the original CD versions.

The thing I hate the most:

The fact you can't save before the quests and big events. The dev's took the best features and shelved them, while retaining the most frustrating aspects of the randomized system as if it was the source of all fun to fail inexplicably over, and over, and over....

Your saga used to look like a history that you'd be proud to show the net with the odd big battle loss you might have ate simply to add realism to reader enjoyment. Now, you're best play through looks like constant abysmal failure peppered with victory no matter how seasoned a Gloranthan you are.

Final Thoughts:

In spite of that, I'm playing the heck out of it, but please take the omissions into patch consideration, it was perfect the way it was on release in the late 90's, and I like the new character additions and additional story lines, but the new accompaniment scene and dream art is too different (well done and lovely but too different a style) also.

Knoest
Knoest

It's a nifty little sim that hides its mechanics behind storytelling. Your dialogue choices are both expressive and strategic.

peterlesliegordon
peterlesliegordon

Definitely a game to play if you play Runequest.

Miss Highest Heels
Miss Highest Heels

Cool game. Got me one on my mobile too. Can trade and gift food; and grow into the largest allotment easily. Nice touch with the tribe of multiple clans and managing them.

1LT KASHLUK
1LT KASHLUK

Incredible game. There's really nothing quite like it.

Turn-based tribal simulator in a fantasy world that is so rich with lore!

One of my favorite games of all time and I was so glad to find it on Steam since I lost the original physical copy long, long time ago.

Tranx
Tranx

A fun game you can sink hours into.

torisinift
torisinift

I absolutely love this game! The art is beautiful and there is such an extensive mythology to read (you do not have to actually read it all to do well, its optional and interesting), there are so many events it takes tons of play throws to see even half of them. It is a fairly old game, but honestly it really holds up. I've played it here on steam but probably logged a hundred hours when I was in high school and had it on my ipod, and it is still just as wonderful to play now.
Balance food, wealth, magic, blessings from gods, and raiding neighbors. A fairly in depth clan management type game that doesn't get tedious trying to balance the different aspects but is difficult to fully "win" and will give you plenty of ways to do so.

Animal Mother
Animal Mother

198 footmen and 25 thanes lose to 67 footmen and 5 thanes 3 times in a row.. makes sense..

GrimRATS
GrimRATS

Very unique game worthy of many hours of playtime

anemochore
anemochore

Too many unfamiliar lore texts makes me... sick. Despite its nostalgic wonderful art style (and rather unique lore), I cannot enjoy this one.

Rex Wrex Wrecks
Rex Wrex Wrecks

This seems to be a PC port of the mobile game, and it shows in some areas, particularly scrolling.

That being said, it's still a really enjoyable text adventure, and is fairly accessible to beginners because you don't have to open a spreadsheet to do calculations. Go with your gut, or with logic, and it will usually hold you in good stead.

Iggy
Iggy

I know you don't hear this very often from game developers, but CHOICES MATTER! (no really) Honestly if you could take this structure and adapt it to all manner of environments and scenarios, you would be on your way to something special. Love the setting and you can really sense the interconnectivity of the events and decisions you make. Only drawback for some, having read other games' reviews and SMH at this complaint too often, would be the importance of reading and getting the nuance of the generated text because it often gives details on the most effective choices I found. I like reading and you should too. Scratched an itch for sure

Rudra
Rudra

A fun blend of CYOA and Civ management. Set in the world of Glorantha, a nice little setting with just enough lore to support the game. Music is good, no masterpiece but catchy.

oneone
oneone

Well, what can I say. It's King of Dragon Pass, a goddamn classic. Put some Wardruna or Skyrim ambience in the background and get immersed into a world of tribes and myths.

KyleMcClovdSr
KyleMcClovdSr

This is a very strange game. I think it's got some good parts to it, but it's sometimes very unclear what results will happen from what choices you make. It seems that you're encouraged to be sort of ruthless and not really follow basic instincts, more to what would lead your tribe to being more powerful than the others (usually in kind of outlandish ways). Not exactly my favorite, but it does have some interesting elements to it.

MarkDey
MarkDey

I had a lot of fun with this game decades ago, and I was glad to see that it was available on Steam. I might do another run through now that Six Ages is out!

CSH Picone
CSH Picone

If you can persevere with a steep learning curve and non-intuitive interface while you read a really thick manual to work the game out you'll enjoy this deep and thoughtful text-based kingdom manager.

For more niche curation, follow me at: https://store.steampowered.com/curator/27440015-CSH-Picone/

Ronald McFondle
Ronald McFondle

Wonderful, intricate game that absorbs you for hours. Love it!

Delphi
Delphi

I would recommend this game. I purchased it during the Summer Sale, and it was more entertaining my other purchases. Played it non-stop for a couple of days, and was thoroughly engrossed. The game has a decent amount of depth, though eventually, you will reach a point where you've digested the entirety of the game's content, leaving little room for replay value after that point. Also, do bear in mind that this is a port of a mobile app, and as such, there are some clunky interface and ui issues, but nothing that is a dealbreaker. Overall, do give the game a try; it's a unique fusion of a CYOA and a management sim, and the events are fun, surprising, varied, and never leave a dull moment between turns of the game.

dsnow3
dsnow3

Tired parent review: I ain't got time to figure this shit out.

Aswerty121
Aswerty121

A cult classic game that's a mix of strategy, colony sim and roleplaying. Very immersive and really gets you feeling as if you are a single clan in a world that's fantastical and unknown, with morality being based on your clan's lore and history with the world not being afraid to kick your shit in if you get too big for your britches and think you can take the world on.
Highly reccomended if you like well built fantasy worlds and unique perspectives.

The Rabid Otter
The Rabid Otter

If you like RuneQuest, and text-based adventures, you should give this simulation a try. It even has the ducks!

✟DEUS✟ Quercus
✟DEUS✟ Quercus

The calamity was initiated when the succubus entered my kingdom, her winged talons etching intricate, arcane runes across my mattress that I had concocting after intertwining a fishing net, with a fragment of birchwood. This succubus, presented a missive, an ultimatum. The messengers leader, a polytheistic individual, who frequently donned furs, in an attempt to emulate a wolf, was demanding to regularly pollinate with all female relatives weekly, with refusal to his ludicrous demand resulting in my kingdoms imminent destruction. I was not dubious of the notes sincerity in fracturing my kingdoms Arcadia, as several kingdoms nearby had befallen a similar fate, with their gates being barred open, their men flayed or impaled upon a spike, with their womenfolk being ravaged by hedonistic, raving fanatics, who fervently regarded themselves as animals. There was only one course of action, an absolute necessity, imperative for my peoples survival. My kingdoms populace would be forced to engage in a nomadic shift, onto a remote, distant plain, to escape the wrath of the residing warlord.

We travelled with ease, traversing through open wheat fields and into ominous caverns, to enter a location, that with Vraccus' favour, would be our utopia. The journey was a mere trivial concern, with the main predicament being the end location itself. I was wary about the destination, as rumours, derived from frantic messengers, would digress on the dubious survival rates of this newfound realm, uttering it's perils with such ferocity that even scholars would solely ruminate upon the distant plains. Although, daunted my tribe persevered and soon we encroached upon our new lands.

All was relatively simplistic. In these ambiguous lands, we worshipped our deity, raided the neighbours cattle, while simultaneously incriminating rival tribes for unethical activities, accusing them for abducting and subsequently utilising children as sustenance. All, in all, usual tribe activity was occurring, warring clans were prevalent, pacifists were frequently subjugated, while the threat of a foreign incursion remained perpetually slim. All was mundane, until I envisioned her, my beloved Alpstice, commonly referred to under the alias of Snuffykins.

When my tribe encountered a horde of sentient ducklings, my life changed irrevocably, as I laid witness upon her. She laid their, dormant, eyes fully intent on harvesting the latest batch of cabbages. Her physical characteristics were unlike any other, her orange beak was majestic, the quiet quacks emitting from her chest, reverberated throughout the pond, plucking away at my aura and overall, her stature betrayed an innate lustful desire to pollinate with a squirrel. Time had barely transpired, as I laid a royal wreath upon the leader of the duckling tribes head, intent on securing a mutual alliance. During my attempts at cultivating an alliance, I analysed and became adept in regards to the anatomy of these ducklings. I learnt how they possessed various distinctive talents, such as their slightly hobbled stature, innate ferocity and tenacity, particularly in regards to demanding that one relinquishes their stockpile of cabbage. All of these discernible traits were utterly noble and further alleviated my tallying concerns, regarding the Knights Of Drey. These calm, peaceful creatures had one predominant desire, cabbage and thus an idea was seeded and sprung. I concocted an elaborate ploy, in exploiting the ducklings susceptibilities and seducing Alpstice. By combining cabbages together, to emulate propellers, that at the push of a button swung incessantly, I mesmerised the simple duckling, endearing the feathered creature to my side. After many jovial interactions henceforth, she became my loyal concubine and was subsequently bequeathed with a pond and cabinet, designed for her to reside upon. Ever since then, Alpstice, also referred to as Snuffykins, has splashed about in the duck pond, chattering incessantly regarding ribbons, all the while simultaneously extorting my assistants, to relinquish their troves of cabbage. Alpstice in essence, is a pure duckling, albeit has a slightly erratic temperament, which frequently causes her to be placed inside the cabinet, where she then erotically dances to uplifting songs, until her crazed demeanour fades. Overall, I earnestly appreciate Dragon's Pass, for I ruminate that without these peculiar lands, I would never have encountered my beloved wife, who will reside perpetually adjacent to my side.

Maple Syrup
Maple Syrup

You've suceeded at making a game by making the losing experience an integral part of the storytelling. No matter how many games I play, I keep coming back to it.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

They don't create games like this anymore. Don't let my playtime fool you, I have played this game for more than thousand hours on my phone.

jtrummer
jtrummer

Hypnotically addicting. Nuanced and complex. Easy to learn, difficult to master. Never the same story twice.

Rick
Rick

My favorite video game?
It's so good?

Play it?

Anonymous
Anonymous

I love the strange and beautiful world of Glorantha. This game drops you into Dragon Pass and gets you making survival decisions for your newly migrated clan, but with a real feeling that these decisions resonate with the complex web of forces that surround your lands, as well as with the deep history of your ancestors and deities. I love to roleplay with the quirky characters in my clan ring and can't help but become attached to my favourites which makes dangerous situation decision making all the more tense. I play on normal level for pleasure, not hard level for completion.

imre
imre

An intriguing game of tribal ruler-ship, along with cattle raiding and hog farming. It is more a text adventure than some 3-D real time interactive game. Steeped in the lore of Glorantha (from the Runequest role-playing game) this game produces a rich mythical experience. The events and activities are loving illustrated with hand drawn watercolor style pictures. Only downside is some of the important event results are a bit random. One may have try an event several times before getting the right lucky roll needed to complete it.

it's me david p.
it's me david p.

the greatest video game ever produced, king of dragon pass. if you're not leading a clan in a bronze age fantasy world crafted by Greg Stafford, what are you even doing?

RoseDungeonwrecker
RoseDungeonwrecker

Nice way to get my Glorantha fix between tabletop sessions!

youtube.com/maddmike
youtube.com/maddmike

Steam Curator

+ Dynamic event-based gameplay, a wealth of mechanics that are fun to unravel, and an intense focus on fleshing out its world make King of Dragon Pass well worth a play.

+ It's not about formulating the most perfect strategies, its about how you respond when those strategies inevitably fail

+ Come learn the stories of Glorantha... and become a chapter in its history

- UI is clearly a mobile port; take a look at the GoG version if your a stickler for that kind of stuff

- Its over-reliance on its least random mechanic (Heroquests) means that late-game attempts start to feel samey compared to the excellent events

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIm9xICHldc

Orlanth the Comrade
Orlanth the Comrade

The gods ordained this game, and Ernalda, the Earth-Mother ordained that I beat it.

Ironicus
Ironicus

Still a unique and great game. Wish there were more like it.

Saitoro
Saitoro

Game crashed after 10 minutes, could not select certain options. Refunded.

Ricetafarian
Ricetafarian

Do you like furries? And girl-power? And CATS?! Because this dev sure does...

THE GOOD

Excellent writing (for the most part - more on that later).

Deeply immersive gameplay that feels highly original and creative.

Combat system that does a great job of simulating tribal/clan warfare in classic "pen-and-paper" style.

I love managing the economy of the clan and its leadership circle (with minor exceptions).

Most of the random events about various disputes among members of the clan are very well written.

THE BAD

[CONTEXT] I used to rescue animals. Mostly stray cats and dogs, a few injured wild animals. At least a hundred of them over the years. Currently I live with three "old lady" rescue cats who I love like my family.

This dev is 100% some kind of "crazy cat lady". And she hates dogs. They literally worship cats in this game. There is even a random event where you find out another tribe owns dogs; everybody freaks out over the idea and suggests you KILL them all or make them slaughter their pets!

The writing of the lore and in particular the "mysteries" of the gods is *terrible* compared to the rest of the game and makes me wonder if it came from some older side-project the dev just inserted into the game so that more people would read it.

This would be excusable but the dev deliberately chose to force the player to MEMORIZE their bizarre pagan/furry fanfiction by using in-game mechanics to punish you if you ignore it and don't do special "hero" quests.

Also there is no significant penalty for repeatedly genociding other human clans BUT if you poke the furries too many times it triggers a game-ending event that is basically Furmageddon!

Scalies are a big part of the game and make frequent appearances in various forms.

I should point out that none of the furry art is overtly sexualized - props for that I guess?

There is at least one badly written feminist character that seems to "randomly" pop up in every playthrough and the story will punish you severely if you don't handle her the "right" way.

This is much less jarring than the furry stuff but the writing still feels forced and rather "preachy".

Managing the clan ring is fun until you run into the arbitrary population limit; then it suddenly becomes impossible to keep them happy and this seems very "gamey" compared to most other mechanics.

Not so much a "problem" but a personal preference - I don't like being forced to become king and would rather be able to endlessly manage the clan for generations without having to split up or build an empire.

Also Humakt's Raven Banner is just...broken. Guaranteed victory for the cost of one skilled warrior? Too easy. Once you have this item you will never lose a battle again unless you forget to click the "auto-win" button.

TL;DR

This game had a LOT of potential but was let down by the rather eccentric personality of the dev and their need to insert furries into everything. The generally superb writing is tarnished by the awful quality of the background lore. The same applies to immersion, which is excellent - until you run into one of the "crazy cat lady" events that has to do with everyone hating dogs or the very unsubtle "Mary Sue" character who must be given special treatment OR ELSE!

Apparently the dev is working on a spiritual successor - here's hoping they focus on their strengths and avoid inserting too much of their woke politics and furry fetish art that constantly disrupt an otherwise great game.

bethend
bethend

Something that sets this game apart from other text adventures is the outstanding and creative art, It really helped the world of Dragon's Pass come alive for me.

ShadesOfKnight
ShadesOfKnight

I've just started this game and I have to give it a thumbs down. I read all the lore, memorized most of it and made print-screens for myself as crib sheets for when I will need them.

Then, on a hero quest "Elmal Guards the Stead" I follow the lore EXACTLY, and every step fails - ultimately I lose the rather well-skilled member of my clan, never to be seen again.

I'm sorry, but why bother with lore for hero quests if it's just a prayer to RNGsus?

So for now, I've got to call this a thumbs down.

Polarbark
Polarbark

I can't recommend this game enough. I mean it's an entire world with rules that are both cohesive and abstract.

Yes there is a lot of RNG, but every playthrough for me over the years has been so very unique and enjoyable.

And the art! The art is so lovely!

Shin 真 Caragenan
Shin 真 Caragenan

An interesting take on the adventure genre. It's part choose your own adventure and part village management. I never saw a game quite like this. To make it even more unique add in a lot of magic elements, unique gods, and a large mythical history.

A Runequest video game.

Well the game works for the most part but unfortunately it fails to deliver a newbie friendly adventure.

Negatives

    • As if it was made for "Game Masters" or people who like reading textbooks. I mean don't get me wrong, I like reading in video games but I don't want to memorize pages of lore. Something that you will need to do in order to win important parts of the game.

    • The interface is a bit clucky, sometimes tooltip popups will get in the way of buttons, sometimes some parts of the interface cut out abruptly at the edge of the window. Drab colors make it hard to see sometimes. I know it's a "style" but people with difficulties with their vision may have issues with the lack of color contrast.

    • A lot of the mechanics are hidden from the player. You can't recruit new craftments in order to make a valuable resource, but you can hire soldiers. The combat feels RNG based and it looks like your choices don’t matter. You can use magic to help in combat or out of combat but you rarely know how efficient it is or if it’s worth it.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2606506686

Positives

    • All the artwork is great, it's hand drawn and looks like drawings mixed with paintings. The couple of music tracks are fun and well done, but they get repetitive fast. The random events are also very interesting to play and see what story elements turn out.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2606507640

Summary

Overall, I enjoyed King of dragon pass for a few hours. It's an experimental original style of video game. But it lacks feedback on some important game mechanics. It also throws a mountain of lore that you have to memorise. I wish I could give it a neutral rating, but overall I find it hard to recommend.

Low recomendation

GiantPipeWrench
GiantPipeWrench

KODP is a real gem. complex, deep, pretty

bluedao
bluedao

Most of the mechanics are hidden, and combine that with a lot of RNG and formulating a strategy is just frustrating. The tutorial and in game text smacks of an arrogant "play our brilliant story". The story is very not brilliant. I picked it up years ago and decided to give it another try with the update, but nope, still a cool concept executed poorly.

reddragondown
reddragondown

This game is an intresting mix of a civilization type game and a light novel I've never played or heard or played of another game that's quite like it and for that alone it's worth checking out.

Pros
* At the start of the game this game requires a bunch of strategic choices and weighing of options
* The seven members of your clan ring advise you on every choice, this gives you a good look at the full depth of your options, and various viewpoints others might give. It lets you stay much better informed than you have any right to be. This means part of the challenge is balancing those opinions, figuring out when or who to listen to and when to ignore them.
*An extremely well thought out fantasy world with cool world building.

Con's
*After awhile your clan just sorta stabilises, you become the strongest and all around best clan in Dragons pass and yet the game keeps going, this especially in the long game can make the game rather monotonous. Your not struggling to get ahead any more your just preserving the status quo well you slowly but surely make your way too victory, when problems come up most of the time you can just throw your surplus resources at the problem and be done with it. Though this kinda fun in a power fantasy type of way, besides after struggling through the early game, you earned your supremacy.
*You can get screwed by RNG really, really hard. On one game I sent my legendary hero destined for greatness on a basic exploratory mission and she randomly never came back. Almost everything in this game is decided by some sort of random chance. On the plus side you can save scum as much as you want the game even helps you do it by letting you go back to any specific year in your games timeline.
* Particularly competent leaders are almost always right. This means you can pretty much just do what they suggest every time and get by just fine, which kinda takes the bite out of the challenges. Though you need too put effort into garnering that kinda of competence, and it can be kinda convenient if you don't feel like thinking something through.

Overall I think the positives out way the negatives and this game is well worth your time.

paziu
paziu

Fajna gierka tekstowa/zarządzanie

Melwing
Melwing

An absolute classic, and the Steam version seems great.

As some other reviews point out, the game has been 'mobile-ized'. I don't mind for the most part, except sometimes it's really a drag to have to drag and scroll (like a finger swipe). I assume I will get used to it quickly, though. I've also had it (in 1920x1080) have the button to close a screen not be visible, until 'swiping' down, to reveal just the 'x' was hidden. Nothing else there, just the one way to close the window being hidden behind a swipe. Yuck- Kind of annoying, but very minor.

This is probably one of the best PC games ever.

ccwscott
ccwscott

Really solid game. Always fun to find something so unique it lives in a genre all it's own, sort of a colony management game, combat that plays out through story based choices, very creative thematically dense gameworld based around the gods these tribes worship.

aujye
aujye

Tremendous narrative depth, many ways of playing.

King Gheedorah
King Gheedorah

Really fun but many of the mechanics make no sense. You'll dedicate many resources to making allies, forge an alliance, and then constantly get your cows stolen by your "allies" with absolutely no recourse. Similarly, the hero quests are necessary for progression but are pretty heavily RNG-based, which means a good run can be totally spoiled by shitty luck.

Fun game, but absolutely brutal even on the easiest difficulty.

Omelette du Fromage
Omelette du Fromage

This game, with a very nice setting and an interesting gameplay, had the potential to be a good game.

Sadly, it fell short of it, in no small part due to poor gameplay design choices that usually plague this kind of « indie » game, namely a very infuriating RNG (on which the game depens way too much, of course), a poor pacing, as well as a very hard to understand choices and bonuses system.

No, I shouldn’t have to savescum 10 times to succeed a simple heroquest whose steps I follow perfectly.
No, I shouldn’t lose the tribe king elections without any explanation despite being the largest and richest clan of the tribe and showering my neighbors with gifts.
No, there shouldn’t be a hard-coded clan size limit forcing you to split off, thus deleting entire years of your careful population program.
Yes, the « non-clanish » invaders should consider the futility of trying to invade me after 3 attempts where I slaughter 70 of their warriors without losing a single one. Also when I kill 50 warriors from a clan, I expect that clan to be pretty much broken, not ready to invade in full strength the next year. Do you know how catastrophic the loss of 50 persons is to a clan of a few hundred people ?
Yes, at some point I should be able to conquer and assimilate other clans instead of attempting to take a ridiculously small amount of their lands and fail 90 % of the time because « muh spirits ». I get that we’re celtic-like primitives, but come on, we have imperial neighbors, you’d think that at some point someone would have the idea to do like them.
Why can’t I try to breed the dinos once I receive them ? You know, to ensure a steady advantage upon my enemies, and also because that’s what any leader with common sense would do. Or at least explain me why I can’t.
Why can’t I build buildings or stuff besides temples ?

So no, I don’t recommend it, and I regret the time I wasted on it. I’d definitely re-use the setting for a ttRPG tho.

Krapula
Krapula

I've been playing this game on and off since probably 2001. The immersion, roleplaying, lore, storytelling. This was my introduction to Glorantha, Heroquest, and the like, but I primarily play this (and Six Ages!!). It's easy to learn, hard to master. It rewards many playthroughs especially if you are alright with sticking out a saga from start to finish, whatever that finish may be. I get attached to my clan, even when it's the same characters in name, the same healer, same warrior, in a different playthrough, the dramas feel unique! It probably affords more playstyles than this. I'm bad at writing reviews, but this game is worth any review. It's a mythological gem with beautiful art.

Silencero
Silencero

More of a numbers and guessing game. Not enough visuals to let you see the bigger picture, and random outcomes seem to be a thing.