Manor Lords Developer Explains the Reason Behind Not Revealing the Price

gamerant.com:

Developer Hooded Horse's CEO, Tim Bender, has addressed the ongoing query regarding the undisclosed price of Manor Lords, attributing this to management issues. Additionally, Bender took the opportunity to address concerns regarding Manor Lords market scams and unauthorized stores.

Manor Lords is a medieval city-builder and real-time tactics game created by Greg Styczeń and published by Hooded Horse. Set in 14th-century Europe, the game offers three distinct modes, each focusing on different aspects such as city-building, warfare, and a balanced experience. Players can customize various in-game elements, manage settlements' growth and internal stability, and tackle challenges like taxation, weather, and environmental concerns. Manor Lords promises a historical experience while offering both isometric and third-person perspectives for exploring settlements.

In a detailed Reddit post, Hooded Horse CEO Tim Bender shed light on the complexities surrounding pricing strategies for games, particularly on platforms like Steam where regional pricing plays a significant role. He emphasized that Manor Lords, like many other titles on Steam, will have regional prices tailored to different parts of the world where Manor Lords will be released. These prices are not merely currency conversions but are adjusted to reflect local economic conditions, allowing players in various regions to afford the game without facing undue financial burdens.

Bender explained that declaring a single price in advance could lead to misperceptions about affordability in different regions. «Sharing the US price alone will lead to misunderstandings,» Bender said. This approach aims to prevent players from prematurely concluding that the game may be unaffordable for them based on initial price announcements. Another critical factor influencing the decision to withhold pricing information is the rise of gray market and scam stores attempting to sell «pre-orders» for Manor Lords keys. These unauthorized