What kind of game is Wild West Pioneers?

A single-player city builder set on the American frontier, with an exploration and story layer. You build and supply settlements, run production chains, and send scouts across a world map to find new places to settle.

Does Wild West Pioneers have combat?

The store page describes no combat system. Bandits appear in story quests, and the publisher has said it has ideas for bandit features that it is considering making optional, with nothing decided.

Is Wild West Pioneers multiplayer?

No. It is listed as single-player, and the publisher has said there are no plans for co-op or multiplayer.

What you actually do in Wild West Pioneers

It is a single-player city builder with an adventure on top. You found a frontier town, keep your settlers housed, fed and watered, and build production chains to supply them. Then you send scouts across a world map to find new places to settle. A story about a debt and your missing father runs through it, but you choose what to chase next.

**Wild West Pioneers | Gameplay Overview: Your Journey Begins**Toplitz Productions · 3:49The lead developer at EmpireCraft Studios walks through the loop this page describes.

What does a session look like?

The lead developer’s overview runs in this order, and so does a typical game:

Found a town Start small: first buildings, roads, and whatever resources are lying around.
Meet needs “You will need to provide shelter, food, water, and services like church, saloon, barber shop, and more.” Decorations help keep people content. More on needs and whims.
Build production chains Collect materials from the surrounding area and turn them into goods, then make sure everything gets where it needs to go. The food chains page shows one chain end to end.
Pick a goal on the Journey “This is the heart of your playthrough.” Almost everything you do earns journey points to spend on new buildings ((per Steam announcement: Walk Your Own Journey (Dev Spotlight))); see journey points.
Explore Send a scout expedition out, meet characters, find resources, and settle a second town. The scouts page covers what that takes.

(Steps from Gameplay Overview: Your Journey Begins (Toplitz Productions))

Can you slow it down or speed it up?

Yes. “Of course, you are in total control of time. Don’t worry, it’s not a game where time is your enemy.” You can speed things up, or sit back and watch the town run. (Said in Gameplay Overview: Your Journey Begins (Toplitz Productions))

How free is building and road placement?

Fairly free: the store promises you can build roads and place buildings freely, and there are three kinds of road: “a wide main road, a standard road, and smaller paths”. Buildings can snap to other buildings or to roads, or you can turn snapping off. (Described in Steam announcement: A New Direction for Wild West Pioneers) During the playtest, building snapping and road snapping were made exclusive, so only one can be on at a time. (Changed in Steam announcement: Playtest Hotfix)

Deleting part of a road is still settling. The playtest fix list says roads can now be trimmed anywhere along their length (in Steam announcement: Playtest Hotfix), while the later retrospective says the team is still looking into trimming anywhere, including the middle. (Said in Steam announcement: Playtest Retrospective) Try it in your own build before planning around it.

What is the story?

Two threads. The money one: you need gold to pay off a debt, covered on the gold page. The personal one, from the store page: “But why did your father never return? Beneath the struggle to build new settlements lies a personal journey to find him and keep the promise you made.” (From the Steam store page)

The main quest carries the story and leaves the systems to you. Side adventures tell you upfront that they branch off the main line, so you can take them now or later. (Explained in Steam announcement: Know Where You're Headed (Dev Spotlight)) Along the way you step into dioramas, which the store describes as scenes “where you can interact with the environment or meet the people who traveled there before you”. (From the Steam store page)

A green frontier town beside a river, seen from above — A frontier town of timber buildings and dirt roads beside a river, seen from above. Screenshot: EmpireCraft Studios / Toplitz Productions, via the Steam store page.

A settlement at night with lit windows along a river — A settlement at night, windows lit, with a river running past it. Screenshot: EmpireCraft Studios / Toplitz Productions, via the Steam store page.

What is not in it?

A combat system. The store page describes none. Bandits do appear in the story: the playtest fixes mention a Bandit Camp, an End of Bandits quest that involves “sending off armed people”, and cutscenes for the death of bandits. (Listed in Steam announcement: Playtest Hotfix) As a system, the publisher said: “We have ideas for bandits and we need to plan when we can deliver them.” It is considering making them optional, but that “isn’t set in stone at the moment”. (Answered in Steam discussions: publisher reply on bandits and peaceful play)
Multiplayer or co-op. “As of today, there are no plans for coop or multiplayer.” (Answered in Steam discussions: publisher reply on co-op and multiplayer) Details on the multiplayer page.
A fixed path. The store says the game rewards progress toward your own goals “without forcing you to follow the main storyline”. (From the Steam store page)

What kind of city builder is it?

The team’s one-line answer: “Wild West Pioneers is a city builder for adventurers who want to explore the Wild West.” (Said in Steam announcement: A New Direction for Wild West Pioneers) Players on Steam tag it with these, top ten in order:

Early Access
City Builder
Simulation
Colony Sim
Sandbox
Strategy
Exploration
3D
Atmospheric
4X

Further down the list come Survival, Historical, Mining, Transportation and Western. (Tags from the Steam store page) It launched in Early Access with upgradable buildings, several biomes and a world map linking your settlements, and the team expects to stay there for about a year. The Early Access page has the roadmap, and games like it lists other city builders to weigh it against.