TownsFolk

ยป Strategy | City Builder | Pixel Art

Lead your people into an uncharted world as they rebuild after ruin, endure harsh challenges, and carve out a thriving settlement. Manage scarce resources, face dynamic events, and never forget to pay tribute to the kingdom.

Review

Annie here!

This week we have the ultimate definition of a Hidden Gem: TownsFolk.

This game is a perfect example of a simple but satisfying mechanic built into a responsive and addictive gameplay loop. It's easy to learn but hard to master, and I had a really hard time putting it down.

But the real kicker is this: TownsFolk only has ONE review on Steam, which means it's basically undiscovered! I'll be honest, this shocks me, because this game feels like it should be on the new and trending page. Maybe we can get it there?

Gameplay

The gameplay is what really matters here. The main thing you do as you play is manage 5 resources, watching how much they yield per cycle and how much you currently have on hand. As you play, a bunch more complexity expands, like progressing your research to unlock new structures (essentially "advancing" your civilization), reacting to special events, and meeting specific goals to complete zones.

I'm not sure about this, but during my hour-long playthrough I also got the sense that there might be some political or warfare elements in the later game, too. 

There really is a lot of complexity here and I would highly recommend checking it out to see for yourself.

Graphics

It's pixel art! There's not much else you need to know, but I will say that I found everything very visually digestible, so there's another big point for the devs.

Audio

Honestly, I didn't even notice the audio. There is music, and it's good, just the right amount of catchy. But the sound design is so nicely balanced that it just blended into the background like a bay leaf in a soup. 

Final Thoughts

Play this game!!!

It's really very good, I'm serious.

I played the FREE DEMO and I didn't even near the end of the content available. I can't imagine how much there is to explore in the full game. That being said, you only need about 20 minutes to get a feel for this game. If you like city builders or if you've ever wanted to play Settlers of Catan against yourself, play TownsFolk!

Coming Up...

Have you been watching our YouTube videos??? We recently released one where we talked about our top newsletter games of 2025! Go check it out!

See you next week,

Annie