The settlement builder genre is a large genre with many different games, from big names such asCities Skylinesto more niche outings. Many settlement/city builders are set in the modern world, while others are set in a kind of medieval/renaissance era to provide just the right kind of vibe for would-be urban planners to get their thing on.
But some games go in a completely different direction and invite players to build settlements in an unusual time or place. Here are ten settlement builder games with unique and interesting settings.
For centuries humans have longed to colonize Mars, Earth’s sister planet. InSurviving Mars,players can do just that. But it’s not all easy going - Mars as in real life is a harsh, unforgiving environment, and it takes a lot of effort to build a functioning colony there.
Surviving Marsincludes challenging gameplay designed around the harsh environment of Mars and the skills ofthe colony’s colonists, presenting several unique challenges to the player.
Dawn of Manby indie studio Madruga Works is a charming settlement builder set right at the dawn of man—hence the name. Players get to take charge of a Stone Age group of wanderers as they decide to settle down for the very first time, finding a permanent home inDawn of Man’send of the Ice Age setting.
Gameplay challenges involve weather, along with the more normal resource management, as well as the literal invention of farming, warfare, and buildings.
Per Asperais a sci-fi settlement builderset on Marsby developer Tlon Industries. Not content with simply colonizing the red desert planet Mars,Per Asperatasks players with terraforming the planet to make it a nicer place to live.
Featuring a branching, nonlinear story with multiple endings,Per Asperagives players a unique terraforming mechanic to go along with all the usual challenges of resource and citizen management, providing a very interesting setting for the game.
Inspired by classic city-buildergames such asPharaoh, theMesopotamian settlement-builder gameNebuchadnezzaroffers a more historically focused experience than some other games in the settlement-builder genre. Dripping in historical references and esthetics,Nebuchadnezzaris a pleasing look at early urban life in ancient Mesopotamia.
Players are tasked with building some of the most famous cities of all time, including such heavy-hitters as Ur, Nineveh, and Babylon itself.
Aquaticoby developer Digital Reef Games takes place entirely underwater at the bottom of the sea. This is an unusual and picturesque setting for a settlement builder game, and the game even features a tech tree for researching buildings - including a sushi house.
Aquaticooffers a charming and more relaxed approach to the genre, and its unique setting helps set it apart from other, similar games.
Clockwork Empiresfeatures a steampunk-inspired world with elements of Lovecraftian horror. Sent forth by the eponymous Clockwork Empire to colonize a new world filled with fish people, cannibals, and all sorts of other obstacles, players inClockwork Empiresneed to manage the sometimes incredibly weird desires of their citizens to keep their cities functioning.
Clockwork Empiresallows players to design their own buildings and floorplans, too, which gives the whole setting a different kind of feel every game.
A kind of spiritual successor toDwarf Fortress,Rimworldis a roguelike settlement builder sim set across the vastness of space. Players are tasked with building up colonies on vastly different worlds, some with very unusual challenges such as roaming bands of mutant cannibals.
Rimworldoffers an intricate, deep sim where dozens of things can go wrong for a given settlement. Citizens can turn to cannibalism, become depressed, or start cults - and every world is different, offeringnew kinds of challengesevery time.
Set in a post-apocalyptic frozen world, the setting ofFrostpunkand its sequel,Frostpunk 2,is a harsh one. Produced and developed by 11-bit studios,Frostpunkis a challenging game that presents the player with a number of ethical decisions.
Ostensibly the last city on Earth, players need to contend with thefreezing cold worldand a hostile environment - while managing their citizens and their needs so that the whole city doesn’t erupt into revolution and collapse.
At first glance, the setting ofTimberborn, a surprise hit in early access by devs Mechanistry, seems quite ordinary. It looks like the typical pseudo-medieval setting common to many settlement builder games such asBanishedorManor Lords.
ButTimberbornis a world populated entirely by talking beavers. Not only that, but it’s a post-apocalyptic world in which humans have long since perished, relinquishing control of the Earth to its new beaver masters.
Unusual for settlement builder games,Airborne Kingdomas the name suggests takes place not on the ground but in the skies. And not on a mostly stationary sky island - no, the cities produced by the player inAirborne Kingdomcan travel the world.
They in fact need to travel the world in search of resources and personnel, givingAirborne Kingdoman entirely unique feel as players need to scour the environment for resources. This unique setting also comes with some interesting game balance decisions - literally, since players need to ensure the settlement is balanced so that it doesn’t topple over.
