Summary
By popular request, Slavic Magic is adding fishing ponds toManor Lords, the studio has announced. The much-requested feature is planned to roll out as part of the nextManor Lordsupdate.
Manor Lordssurpassed one million saleswithin 24 hours of its late April release, thus immediately establishing itself as one of the most successful indie games of 2024. Many of its players have been providing feedback to Slavic Magic ever since, not least because the one-man studio has been actively soliciting it, on account of the city builder being an early access title that’s still in active development.
Fishing Coming to Manor Lords Soon
One of the first palpable results of this ongoing fan input influx is now set to arrive in the form of fishing ponds, with Slavic Magic confirming as much in a July 15 tweet. The studio’s founder and sole developer, Greg Styczeń, said this addition was prioritized because “it was requested a lot,” adding that fishing ponds will be part of the nextManor Lordsupdate. While the patch is still without a concrete release date, Styczeń revealed that the current plan is for the update to roll out “in a few weeks,” so ostensibly no later than August 2024.
The arrival of fishing ponds will mark the first post-release expansion ofManor Lordsfood types. The game currently supports seven such resource categories: meat, vegetables, bread, berries, apples, eggs, and honey. Styczeń has yet to elaborate on the specifics of the city builder’s fishing implementation. But given the game’s overall design philosophy, it’s plausible that the feature will offer similar challenges to hunting wild animals by, e.g., forcing players to think about things such as the ecological impact of overfishing and how that relates to their sprawling medieval village.
Manor Lords Reiterates Plans to Add Butcher Profession
Styczeń’s recent social media interactions with fans also saw him reiterate plans to add the butcher profession to the game, also by popular request. And though the developer confirmed that butchers are currently “on the priority list,” he has yet to commit to a firm time frame for the feature’s release. In the meantime, the upcoming fishing pond update will also see the game migrate from Unreal Engine 4 to UE5. The move to a newer engine version will enable some additional eye candy like virtual shadow maps, which players will be able to toggle from the game’s settings.
Manor Lordshas so far received one big updateand two smaller patches since its April 2024 debut. Styczeń previously said he intends to keep the game in early access for about a year, depending on fan feedback.
Manor Lords
WHERE TO PLAY
Manor Lords is a strategy game that allows you to experience the life of a medieval lord. Grow your starting village into a bustling city, manage resources and production chains, and expand your lands through conquest.Inspired by the art and architecture of late 14th century Franconia, Manor Lords prioritizes historical accuracy wherever possible, using it to inform gameplay mechanics and visuals alike. Common medieval tropes are avoided in favor of historical accuracy to make the world feel more authentic, colorful, and believable.Manor Lords provides a gridless city-building experience with full freedom of placement and rotation. Building mechanics are inspired by the growth of real medieval towns and villages, where major trade routes and the landscape influenced how settlements formed and developed.From boots to barley and hides to honey, Manor Lords features a great variety of goods fitting of the era. Materials need to be transported and processed into finished products through production chains, and you must balance the basic needs of your people against the desire to produce luxury items to ensure happiness, manufacture trade goods for export, or forge arms and armor to aid in your conquests.
