wfmag.cc \ 65Demanding more supplies from The Settlers II
f this page of the mag was called ‘extra
review’, or ‘stuff we forgot to talk about
but probably should have’, you wouldn’t
be seeing something like this here.
Blue Byte’s classic game of strategy and
zero haste saw a 10th-anniversary remake – which
is the version I’m playing – released back in 2006.
That’s 13 years ago, time fans. And yet here I am,
still prodding away at my little proto-city in The
Settlers II and trying to understand why my iron
smelters refuse to smelt any iron even though they
have everything they need to smelt iron.
What is it that keeps the experience so
captivating, even 20-odd years
after the original release?
It’s hard to outright state the
indirect method of control as
a positive, especially when it
comes to combat, but it really is
that hands-off management of things that makes
it so engaging. Rather than just selecting your
units and telling them to grab those berries, join
in construction of that hut, and act as cannon
fodder on that flank – akin to something like
Age of Empires – in The Settlers II you give broad,
village-planning instructions.
Build a woodcutter, build a forester so there
are more trees once the cutter has cut them
down, build a sawmill to process the felled logs
into usable planks. A quarry for rocks. A farm for
wheat (and a mill for flour, a bakery for bread).
It’s straightforward supply and demand, and in
this respect shows The Settlers II – and the series
as a whole – for what it is: an exercise in craftedautomation. The same can be said of other
city-builders, of course – still, The Settlers II and
its ilk have more in common with something like
Factorio or SpaceChem.
Your work isn’t focused on the end game;
you aren’t looking to tank rush an unseen enemy,
nor does your actions per minute measurement
matter in the slightest. You’re focused on the
initial setup – getting your settlement into
some kind of workable shape, making sure the
basics are provided and your people aren’t
overstretched, and making furtive plans towards
expansion. Once your feet are steady and
planted on this new land, it
becomes about that expansion- and with it, it becomes about
efficiency. Anyone can build
myriad paths winding about
the place with all raw materials
technically ticked off for the supply line, but only
those paying attention – those really focused - will be able to make A-to-B-to-C run like tiny
people-powered clockwork.
There’s genuine pleasure to be had in
just making stuff work, and there’s even more to
be had in making it work properly. The Settlers II
handled it so well back in 1996, it’s easy to
see why it got a 10th-anniversary version, and
another re-release (of the original version) in
- Some games let you live power fantasies,
some make you question the nature of the form,
while others offer up basic blockbuster treats.
The Settlers II, meanwhile, lets you show
off your competence. Bliss.
I
“There’s pleasure
to be had in just
making stuff work”Settled habits
Cities: Skylines
PC / Mac / Linux / Consoles
Stealing the crown from Sim
City as the best game focused
on making a metropolis that
doesn’t immediately burn
down, Skylines is a modern
masterpiece.Factorio
PC / Mac / Linux
This long-gestating early
access title has been brilliant
fun to play for years now, so
don’t let the unfinished tag put
you off. Automating factories
should not be this captivating.SpaceChem
PC / Mac / Linux / Mobile
Less open-ended than other
titles, SpaceChem instead
presents you with a series of
smaller, contained puzzles
that need to be solved using
automation. It’s another great
of the efficiency genre.Settled habitsNow playing
Wireframe
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