Northgard vs Virtual Villagers: Origins
Northgard
Northgard is a rather unique city-builder/strategy game that allows you to lead a group of Northmen to unknown new shores in hopes of making a life there. Like most city-building games, you'll need to help them set up a home, assign your Vikings to perform various roles, ensure there is enough food to feed the entire village, and amass a small army to help defend your territories from other hostile clans. The strategic aspects of the game may not be obvious at first but you'll quickly realize that new territories that you discover (you don't exactly need to conquer it for this to work) will present new strategic opportunities for your clan to expand or grow, be it new sources for food or a nice place to set up a new trading post. There are many victory conditions as well, so it's not always "kill or be killed" in this game.Northgard offers players a single player experience by playing with AIs with various personalities or with their friends online. However, many players have reported that the game does have a somewhat flawed AI-player relationship. Even if you're best buddies with an AI's clan through healthy trading relationships, their clan members will still attack your people, which frankly feels a lot like a betrayal. It'd be nice to have a tutorial as well.
That said though, Northgard is an impressive game especially if you enjoy a bit of city-builder/strategy game like Valhalla Hills.
Virtual Villagers: Origins
Virtual Villagers: Origins is the village simulation game that is developed to answer the question of "what if The Sims is set in tribal times" and it did so perfectly. In this game, you'll need to help the fellow members of your tribe to survive in a mysterious new island by getting them to take up important roles, like farmers, builders and scientists. Grow your tribe and send them to explore the island they have now made their home on. There are also plenty of fun and challenging, random events that will spice up the day-to-day routine, allowing you to make use of your excellent problem-solving skills.In many ways, Virtual Villagers: Origins is very similar to other life simulation games like Virtual Families or, as mentioned, The Sims. For fans of such games, you'll find Virtual Villagers: Origins a suitable alternative.