The Nations

The Nations (released in German-speaking territories as Die Völker 2: Aufstieg zum Königreich and frequently referred to by fans as Alien Nations 2) is a 2001 real-time strategy and city-building game. Developed by JoWooD Vienna and published by JoWooD Productions, it is the direct sequel to the highly successful 1999 PC hit Alien Nations.

Retaining the quirky, vibrant, cartoonish art style of its predecessor, the sequel returns players to the planet of Lukkat. The narrative focuses on the three familiar, highly distinct factions—the portly Pimmons, the fierce Amazons, and the insectoid Sajikis—as they compete to establish dominance after a local Pimmon named Korn prophesies the arrival of a divine being. While the first game was a fairly straightforward Settlers clone, The Nations attempted to drastically deepen the simulation by injecting life simulation mechanics (similar to The Sims) directly into the city-building formula.

Gameplay

While The Nations maintains the core economic and production-chain focus of the original game, it introduces a massive shift in how the player interacts with their population. You are no longer just a macro-manager; you have to deal with the individual personalities of your citizens.

Key gameplay mechanics include:

• Individual Citizens: The most ambitious addition to the game. Every single citizen in your tribe is a unique entity with their own name, daily schedule, and individual personality. They will decide on their own when to work, when to sleep, when to eat, and when they simply want to go to the pub.
• Indirect Control: Because citizens are autonomous individuals, you cannot simply drag-and-select a group of workers to force them to build a sawmill. Instead, you act as a guiding hand—you place the blueprints, ensure the resources are available, and hope your citizens’ morale is high enough that they actively want to do the job.
• Expanded Needs System: To keep your autonomous citizens motivated to work for the good of the tribe, you must cater to their highly specific needs. This means ensuring complex production chains are running smoothly so there is always a steady supply of food, luxury goods (like cigars or schnapps), and entertainment venues.
• Merchants and Trade: The sequel heavily expanded on the original’s economic mechanics. Players can utilize merchants to establish complex trade routes, importing necessary resources that their specific faction cannot produce in exchange for their own surplus goods.
• Multiple Victory Conditions: The game explicitly encourages non-violent playthroughs. While military conquest is entirely possible (and expanded upon from the first game), players can also achieve victory through sheer economic dominance or by successfully uniting the rival tribes through deep diplomacy and peaceful trade.

Development and Legacy

Following the massive regional success of the first Alien Nations in Germany and Austria, JoWooD pushed for a sequel that would innovate on the rigid Settlers formula. By giving every single unit a personality and autonomy, they hoped to make the world feel incredibly alive and dynamic.

In late 2001 and early 2002, JoWooD released the Bonus Pack and subsequently The Nations: Gold Edition, which added 22 brand-new missions, introduced bandits to the map, and heavily tweaked the trade mechanics to balance the game’s notoriously steep difficulty curve.

Despite the charming visuals and the developer’s massive ambitions, The Nations received a lukewarm-to-mixed critical reception upon its release in June 2001. Critics universally praised the beautifully drawn, colorful graphics and the wonderfully quirky animations of the citizens. However, the core “individual autonomy” mechanic proved to be highly divisive. Many players and reviewers found that stripping away direct control made the game feel agonizingly slow and frustrating, as you often had to wait for a specific citizen to finish their pint at the tavern before a crucial building could be completed.

While it didn’t achieve the massive breakout success of its predecessor, The Nations retains a nostalgic cult following among hardcore fans of early-2000s economic simulators who appreciate its totally unique blend of city-building and indirect life-simulation.

Key Features:

• Return to Lukkat — Take command of the peace-loving Pimmons, the militaristic Amazons, or the bizarre Sajikis in a vibrant, cartoonish world.
• Autonomous Citizens — Manage a village where every single unit has its own name, personality, and daily routine that dictates their willingness to work.
• Indirect Management — Master the delicate balance of keeping morale high through entertainment and luxury goods to ensure your citizens fulfill your building commands.
• Expanded Trade and Diplomacy — Win the game peacefully by utilizing wandering merchants to build a massive global economy and establish alliances with rival factions.
• The Gold Edition — Play the definitively patched version of the game, featuring over two dozen additional missions, improved balancing, and new bandit threats.

Release Platforms:

Microsoft Windows (PC) — June 2001 (The Gold Edition is currently available via digital storefronts like GOG.com)