Westward Review

Taking the same village sim formula from Virtual Villagers and blending in a smooth helping of real time strategy and structure building, Westward puts you in control of entire towns and lets you manage citizens, harvest resources, and found new settlements as you strike out across the great western frontier. There's loads more to do in this excellent simulation game, and in many respects, it makes Virtual Villagers seem confined and limited.

About Westward

Westward puts you in control of entire towns, giving you the reins from settlement to a glorious population boom. Dig your training spurs into the mud and work through the tutorial to get your bearings. Once you learn how to move units, issue commands and navigate the game's menu, you're ready to roll.

Taking Care of Business: Strategy and Tips

With each town you set up, you'll need to establish a few basic things before you can branch out. First, make sure you have some sort of camp for your citizens to live in. Each person also needs a job, so put them to work gathering lumber, gold, and food right from the start. As soon as you can build farms, get some folks working the fields to keep everyone fed. Soon, you'll need to build a well to provide water, and then a mining camp to gather gold. Once these basics are met you can begin expanding your town by erecting new buildings. These structures let you work more efficiently and bring more resources (and citizens) into your town at a much faster pace.

In addition to meeting their basic needs, you'll also have a main goal to complete, along with several smaller (optional) tasks. These side quests offer you the chance to get away from the main quest and perform small, focused jobs that often net you extra gold, supplies, or even new structures and items to use. They really spice up the gameplay and provide a welcome change of pace and scenery.

Westward Review: Conclusion

Westward culls a lot of great ideas from popular games such as Virtual Villagers and even World of Warcraft. Its subtle mix of real time strategy gaming and town management is simple enough for anyone to dive into, yet there's enough complexity to keep you coming back for more. Add to that an excellent game pace and the thrill of exploring and setting up new towns on the frontier and you have a winning game on your hands.

Westward is an excellent game on all fronts and should definitely be on your play list!