TownsFolk icon
TownsFolk Review: Strategic Settlement Management on Android

by Short Circuit Studio

4.4
ANDROIDStrategy Games
TownsFolk delivers a premium colony-building experience where players manage resources, expand settlements, and survive frontier challenges. This one-time purchase game targets strategy enthusiasts seeking depth without microtransactions.

Detailed Review

TownsFolk by Short Circuit Studio presents a comprehensive colony-building simulation that stands out in the mobile strategy genre through its premium business model and focused gameplay mechanics. The application positions itself as a mid-core strategy title that avoids free-to-play pitfalls while delivering substantial content depth through a single purchase unlock system. The core gameplay revolves around four primary resource systems—Food, Gold, Faith, and Production—that require continuous balancing as players expand their settlement. The fog-of-war exploration mechanic gradually reveals the game map, introducing both opportunities and threats that demand strategic adaptation. Building placement, citizen assignment, and technology research create interconnected systems where decisions have lasting consequences on colony viability. User experience benefits from intuitive touch controls and a clean interface that presents complex information without overwhelming players. The game employs a real-time with pause system that allows careful consideration during critical moments, though some users have requested additional control options. Performance remains stable across Android devices, with no significant reports of crashes or technical issues according to user feedback. User reviews consistently praise the game's value proposition and balanced complexity, though specific suggestions for improvement emerge. Matt H (2025-05-25) noted the compendium interface could benefit from categorization, while Sheldon Hebert (2025-05-15) suggested implementing turn-based day progression options. Multiple reviewers including Idont Know (2025-05-28) identified science point acquisition as potentially requiring rebalancing in campaign modes. The application's primary strength lies in its complete premium package without recurring monetization, though this requires upfront payment that some users note as a barrier. Game depth satisfies strategy enthusiasts but may overwhelm casual players, while the current lack of multiplayer or faction-specific content represents opportunities for future expansion. TownsFolk excels as a thoughtfully designed single-player experience that respects player time and investment.

Key Features

  • Four-resource management system (Food, Gold, Faith, Production) requiring constant balancing to maintain colony stability and growth
  • Fog-of-war exploration mechanics that gradually reveal map territories containing resources, threats, and opportunities
  • Single purchase premium model that unlocks all game content without additional microtransactions or advertisements
  • Building placement system with strategic considerations for efficiency, defense, and resource adjacency bonuses
  • Technology research tree that provides permanent upgrades and new capabilities through science point investment
  • Event system that presents narrative choices with consequences affecting settlement development and citizen morale

Why Users Love It

No recurring monetization
Stable performance

Perfect for: Strategy gamers seeking deep colony management without microtransactions

Screenshots

TownsFolk screenshot 1TownsFolk screenshot 2TownsFolk screenshot 3TownsFolk screenshot 4TownsFolk screenshot 5TownsFolk screenshot 6

App Preview

Ranking History

Track TownsFolk's performance in Strategy Games over the last 30 days

Top 5
Top 10
Top 15
Below 15

Current Rank

#43

1 from last week

Best Rank

#27

All-time high

Average Rank

#36

30-day average

User Reviews

Matt H
May 25, 2025

The perfect mobile game. One IAP unlocks the game, and you definitely get your money's worth with this one. It's not overly complex, but feels great to play and manage your resources. One suggestion is that the compendium could use a little work, maybe categories instead of having to flip through the pages, and maybe a way to find similar buildings or locations. Press and hold to highlight all similar locations or something like that. Otherwise, fantastic mobile game, other devs take note.

Andrew Varcoe
Jun 2, 2025

very nice game, easy to pick up and play. price is ok to unlock unlimited play and settings. all that it needs now is either a multiplayer option and/or some race specific buildings...ie: elven tree fortress or dwarven mine, some events and maybe some new building skins to spend gold coins on besides just flag decorations.

Idont Know
May 28, 2025

Great game. However, i would like to say that science points are too hard to gain. It's especially so in the campaign because I got limited resources already and also limited objectives like "You got to pay two tributes and get a small amount of science points." It'd be nice to keep paying tributes, even after the objectives as a way to allow us to get our science up.

arjun bittu
May 5, 2025

This is a great strategy game and probably one of the best mobile strategy games ever. There is (in my opinion) no bugs , glitches , crashes. I think there are no improvements to be made because it doesn't need it. Devs , one suggestion - can you change the price to ₹50 ($0.6). Anyways Hats Off Devs , Hope You Make More Great Games In The Future. Edit: Thanks for your kind review devs , there is lot of potential in you guys and this game. Hope You Be Successful.

Mike
Jun 14, 2025

The game is overall great and in my opinion worth it for the price. You can play the best part for free which is skirmish. a few suggestions would be the ability to have terraformed things like mountains, stone, trees for a min/max base. or maybe a sandbox mode. Also, maybe a slight nerf to the tributes it seems like i.can only get past maybe 4-5 before I have to scale 1 resource an insane amount to try and keep up. Oh and animal farms being able to "destroy and rebuilt" unless I overlooked that

App Details

Developer

Short Circuit Studio

Platform

android

Rating

4.4

Last Updated

10/7/2025