The solo developer of the most anticipated city builder on Steam says his girlfriend expected him to get around 7,000 wishlists - but now he's crossed two million.
Manor Lords is a medieval city builder that combines the management aspects of games like Banished and Going Medieval with combat and diplomacy systems that look more like something out of Mount & Blade than Sim City. Manor Lords also happens to be one of the most-anticipated games on Steam, with the second-most wishlists on the entire platform, behind only Hades 2, and several spots above the next biggest city builder on the charts, Frostpunk 2.
Manor Lords has recently crossed two million wishlists, according to a press release from publisher Hooded Horse, which blows the figure its developer expected to get completely out of the water. In a statement, developer Greg Styczeń says that "when we first launched the announcement trailer in 2020, my girlfriend said she expected me to get 7,000 wishlists."
Styczeń had slightly more optimism than that, putting his own personal estimate at 14,000 wishlists. "Suffice to say," he says, "I did not expect the game to pick up so much interest and hit over two million. I hope this is encouraging for other devs who struggle to get their games out there. I had no idea how the game would be received or if I'd be bad at marketing, but luckily I wasn't discouraged and kept going."
While solo developers don't necessarily have the odds stacked in their favor, the gamble of making and marketing an entire game on your own can sometimes pay off. Stardew Valley's Eric Barone remains arguably the most famous example of a solo success story, but more recently Lethal Company developer Zeekers found themselves within the top ten highest-earning Steam games of 2023.
Manor Lords releases into early access on PC via Steam, GOG, and Game Pass's Game Preview program on April 26, whereupon Hades 2 and Hollow Knight: Silksong will retain their battle for the top spot.
