Empires and Tribes
Released Dec 2023
Empires and Tribes is a unique hybrid of a medieval city builder and a role-playing game. You will undertake the duties of a mayor in the 13th century and manage the expansion of your city, ensure the production of resources and raise a powerful army to protect yourself from rival principalities.
66% positive · 419 reviews
Done
All announced content has been released
High confidence
Done
All announced content has been released
High confidence
Where to buy
Steam $24.99
Can't confirm — worth a look
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Evaluation
Empires and Tribes launched on December 21, 2023 after approximately 3.5 years in Early Access, shipping its largest update — the Winter Update — at the same time. The game received a steady stream of content throughout its development, including a major campaign mode in February 2023 and numerous feature patches.
On February 14, 2025, the developer published a direct statement alongside the Version 1.51 patch notes confirming that this update marks the end of new feature development for Empires and Tribes. The team cited the increasingly competitive and technically demanding game market as the reason they could no longer sustain long-term development. They stated that the game's core mechanics and visual presentation will remain as they are, though bug fixes and some minor audio additions may still follow. The game will remain playable and maintained.
This was reinforced by the developer's February 22, 2026 announcement of their next project — Civica: Italian Renaissance — described as the spiritual successor to Empires and Tribes, built from scratch in a new engine. A demo and Kickstarter for Civica launched on June 15, 2026. The studio's full creative focus has clearly moved to Civica, consistent with their February 2025 statement that Empires and Tribes feature development is complete.
The content of Empires and Tribes is finished as of February 14, 2025, when the final feature update (Version 1.51) shipped.
Evidence
Developer announced Civica: Italian Renaissance as the spiritual successor to Empires and Tribes, built from scratch in Unreal Engine. The studio's focus has fully shifted to this new project.
Developer explicitly announced that Version 1.51 marks the end of new feature development for Empires and Tribes. They stated the basic mechanics and look of the game will remain in their current state, citing the unsustainable economics of continued development. Bug fixes and some audio work may continue, but no further major content is planned.
Media
Details
Developer
Publisher
White Vertex Studios
Achievements
—
Platform
Windows, macOS
Controller
—
Steam Deck
Not rated
Players
Single-player
About this game
Empires and Tribes is a unique hybrid of a medieval city builder and a role-playing game.
You will undertake the duties of a mayor in the 13th century and manage the expansion of your city, ensure the production of resources, develop innovative technologies, negotiate new laws with the city council and raise a powerful army to protect yourself from rival principalities.
In Empires and Tribes you will find the classic game principles of a real-time strategy game combined with the possibilities of a role-playing game in first person perspective. In addition to city planning and economic decisions, you can expect political power struggles in the city council, an indecisive priest, a strike-hungry population, bandits, begging monks, thieves and four hostile principalities in the immediate vicinity.
Demonstrate leadership, economic and diplomatic talent to maintain your place in the challenging world of Empires and Tribes. Plan and expand your settlement wisely and with skill, and you will lead it from a small fishing village to a thriving hub of trade. Tap natural resources, create residential areas and build public buildings such as chapels and taverns to meet the growing needs of your inhabitants. Protect your settlement by building castles at strategically important points and expanding them with towers, gates, courtyards and various expansions. Recruit units and construct siege weapons to finally bring your opponents to their knees in tactically demanding sieges.
Features:
You will undertake the duties of a mayor in the 13th century and manage the expansion of your city, ensure the production of resources, develop innovative technologies, negotiate new laws with the city council and raise a powerful army to protect yourself from rival principalities.
In Empires and Tribes you will find the classic game principles of a real-time strategy game combined with the possibilities of a role-playing game in first person perspective. In addition to city planning and economic decisions, you can expect political power struggles in the city council, an indecisive priest, a strike-hungry population, bandits, begging monks, thieves and four hostile principalities in the immediate vicinity.
Demonstrate leadership, economic and diplomatic talent to maintain your place in the challenging world of Empires and Tribes. Plan and expand your settlement wisely and with skill, and you will lead it from a small fishing village to a thriving hub of trade. Tap natural resources, create residential areas and build public buildings such as chapels and taverns to meet the growing needs of your inhabitants. Protect your settlement by building castles at strategically important points and expanding them with towers, gates, courtyards and various expansions. Recruit units and construct siege weapons to finally bring your opponents to their knees in tactically demanding sieges.
Features:
- 3 population levels -peasants, craftsmen and townsmen- with different needs
- Complex economic cycle with over 20 different goods and 35 different buildings, most of them upgradeable one to three levels
- Large battles and sieges with more than one hundred units involved
- 6 different combat unit types such as swordsmen, archers, knights or trebuchets
- Individual design and layout of castles and defensive fortifications with a variety of extension buildings
- AI, which develops its city depending on the given conditions and attacks the player if necessary
- Simulated daily routine of the NPC's and 19 different professions for the city population
- Simulated day-night cycle and variable weather
- Disasters such as fires and lightning and events such as bandits, sale of indulgences or mendicant monks
- Crafting of tools, weapons and all resources and trade goods used in the game
- Skills system, equipment and inventory for the player
- Interaction and communication with the NPC's
Are these done yet?
Last evaluated Jun 25, 2026
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