I can confirm that if you’re not paying attention you’re entire city can disappear under an avalanche. Pain.

Welcome to Laysara: Summit Kingdom, a game that takes you to new heights, quite literally! Releasing in 2024, this game is currently available on Steam Early Access for PC players (and this review is based on the early access version). Laysara is a strategy city builder created by the talented team at Quite OK Games from Katowice, Poland.

In Laysara, you’ll find yourself building on majestic mountains, each with its own unique tests and objectives. These mountains range from snow covered summits to volcanos. They also offer their own unique shapes and different plants, to resources, and even different weather that changes and require you to adjust your strategy. You’ll always have something new to face. And I can confirm that if you’re not paying attention you’re entire city can disappear under an avalanche. Pain.

But nature is unpredictable! You may also deal with snow storms, rain, and even a possible hurricane as well. It’s up to you to plan and think ahead to keep your city safe from these natural disasters. Don’t let your city get buried, trust me. It hurts. There are various different structures you can build around your city to keep your people safe. So be sure to use it. Seriously.

You’ll need to craft a smart transport system to connect everything in your city on top a mountain. With mountains, canyons, and rivers in your way, it’s a real puzzle! Getting food and other resources to your people or areas can be a real pain too if you’re not familiar with the routes and lengths some resources can take and need. This was one of the things I had a harder time with. Planning your city’s layout can be crucial. Later in the game you can unlock carriers that can take your stuff longer distances and that makes it more bearable in suppling the peoples needs.

As you climb higher and higher, your ultimate goal is to build a Summit Temple at the very top. It’s a race against the elements, but with a little determination, frustration, and skill, you can reach the summit and celebrate your triumph! Sounds easy enough as I type and read this, but either I suck or I suck. I think it’s both the former and latter in this case. But I’ll get there. LOL!

The complete version will include a story mode, extra end-game content, additional maps, and plenty of updates, enhancements, and user-friendly improvements. Currently there are a few mountains with different atmospheres and objectives you can play along with a sandbox mode with all the buildings unlocked and no consequences. Getting the early access will also count as a discount towards the full game later on.

Results

I enjoyed playing Laysara: Summit Kingdom on early access even though I’m not good. The mix of building, strategy, and beautiful mountain landscapes kept me hooked but frustrated at times. If you’re a fan of city-building games or love a good challenge, this game has something for you. I am interested to see what the campaign mode will introduce and what other features will be added later on to the game. So, grab your gear, brace yourself for adventure, and start climbing!