Looking for some inspiration for your weekend gaming sessions? Why not let your creativity run wild in our favourite city builders?
We asked around the Overclockers UK office and put together this little round-up of some great city builders that we think are perfect to play this weekend. Plus, if you’re in need of a battle station, we’ve got a tasty PC and laptop showcased as well. Don’t say we don’t spoil you!
Manor Lords
Manor Lords is a stunning medieval city builder in which you live out your medieval lord fantasies. Grow your small dwelling into a bustling city by managing resources, production chains, and ensuring your citizens remain happy. Consisting of a central marketplace, you’ll need to carefully select where you want to expand. Build lush farms based on soil fertility or even hunting grounds surrounding big animal populations. As your city grows, more residents will want to move in, and you’ll need to assign them areas for housing to allow them to build their homes.
You aren’t the only settlement trying to survive. Rival lords will threaten the future of your city, meaning you’ll need to lead your people into war to defend your land and ambitions. Command real-time tactical battles in which you’ll need to plan every move strategically but watch out! Fatigue, weather, and even equipment can make all the difference.
Official PC System Specification
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 | Windows 10 |
| Processor | Intel Core i5 4670 or AMD FX 4350 | Intel i5 7600 or AMD Ryzen 3 2200G |
| Memory | 8GB RAM | 12GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 or AMD Radeon RX 460 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 580 |
| DirectX | Version 12 | Version 12 |
| Storage | 15GB available space | 15GB available space |
We covered even more about the incredible gameplay in Manor Lords, along with showcasing a few of our top-notch PCs to play this medieval city builder. Take a look at our dedicated blog post below.
Civilization VI
Civilization VI is the sixth addition to the hit franchise. Construct a thriving empire spread across multiple cities as you actively fight against rival leaders to dominate. Victory can be achieved through one of five ways – religion, culture, diplomacy, domination, and science. Each city within your empire is split across different districts, designed to provide unique and powerful bonuses. From a Commerical Hub to an interstellar Spaceport, you’ll need to pick which districts you want to build to fit your ambitions. Just make sure you build better than your opponents to ensure you become the very best civilisation on Earth.
Civilization VI also features an expansive multiplayer mode in which you can team up with two or more friends to play against each other or AI opponents.
Official PC System Specification
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 7 – 10 | Windows 7 – 10 |
| Processor | Intel Core i3 2.5GHz or AMD Phenom II 2.6GHz | 4th Gen Intel i5 2.5GHz or AMD FX 8350 |
| Memory | 4GB RAM | 8GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce 450 or AMD Radeon 5570 | NVIDIA GeForce 770 or AMD Radeon 7970 |
| DirectX | Version 11 | Version 11 |
| Storage | 17GB available space | 23GB available space |
| Additional | Steam Client now requires Windows 10 or later | Steam Client now requires Windows 10 or later |
Preserve
Preserve is a brand-new puzzle-based city builder, recently released on August 8th 2024. Your only objective is to build and sustain a thriving ecosystem of diverse biomes. You’ll need to strategically place a plethora of animals and plants to create a bustling environment. This includes lush alpine forests, hot savannas, and stunning Caribbean reefs. Each biome features its own unique set of plants, animals, and environmental challenges, which you’ll need to discover and overcome.
With plenty of different game or puzzle modes to choose from, you can let your creativity run wild in Preserve. Creative Mode allows you to freely build with no limitations, whilst Photo Mode lets you capture these stunning designs and share them online.
Official PC System Specification
| Minimum | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Windows 10 | Windows 10 |
| Processor | 2.GHz CPU | 2.5GHz CPU |
| Memory | 8GB RAM | 16GB RAM |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 or AMD Radeon HD 7700 | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 or AMD Radeon RX 560 |
| Storage | 1GB available space | 1GB available space |
In Need of an Upgrade to Fuel Your City?
Are you in need of a premium PC or laptop upgrade to help ensure your dreams come true in these city builders? At Overclockers UK, you are sure to find your next great upgrade, with plenty of computers and gaming laptops to choose from.
We’ve showcased our top two faves below, but if these don’t feature the power you need to build your city, you can shop all our PCs and laptops by clicking the relevant buttons.
Refract Gaming Jade Pre-Built PC
- Pre-built gaming PC
- Designed for mid tier gaming and budding content creators
- AMD Ryzen 7 7700 CPU and NVIDIA RTX 4060 Ti
- Up to 32GB DDR5 RAM
- 1TB M.2 SSD
Gigabyte G6X Gaming Laptop
- 16.0” FHD+ display
- 165Hz refresh rate
- Intel i7 13650HX CPU and NVIDIA RTX 4060
- 16GB DDR5 RAM
- Windows 11 Home
Your Weekend Gaming Plans?
What game will you be venturing to this weekend? Are you getting the squad together for a Saturday night marathon? Let us know in the comments below.
*Prices correct at time of writing and PC specs are subject to change.
- 5 min read
Ruth Rowley
Author
Ruth has been with Overclockers UK for over a year and has gone on to write about everything ranging from in-depth hardware guides to monthly game releases.
Outside of writing blog posts, she can be found wrapped in a blanket with her black cat, engrossed in a book or playing life-simulation games such as The Sims, Stardew Valley, and Animal Crossing.
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