History VideoGame / UnrealWorld

Developed by Finnish indie team Enormous Elk, ''Unreal World'' is a computer role-playing game with {{roguelike}} elements about survival in a mythologized iron-age Finland. The player must struggle against starvation, thirst, dangerous animals, the vicious Njerpez, and greatest of all, the winter. On the other hand, there are many possibilities: building your own log cabin, making a long multi-kilometer fence of traps, raising a hunting party, eradicating enemy villages, and more. It recently became a free donationware game available [[http://www.unrealworld.fi/ at the official website]].

* {{Abandonware}}: Gloriously averted. The game was first released in 1992, and still receives regular updates to this day. It even got named the "game with longest update history" in the 2017 Gamer's Edition of the Guinness Book of Records.
* AlwaysChaoticEvil: The Njerpez, who attack all non-Njerpez on sight. They are also the only faction in the game to practice slavery.
* AnAxeToGrind: Along with knives, axes are some of the most necessary and most versatile tools ''and'' weapons in the game. Though you probably won't be doing much fighting against people in most of your playthroughs, virtually all axes can be used as potent weapons when need be, in addition to common timbercraft and carpentry tasks.

* BearsAreBadNews: This game is realistic, so, bears are not to be taken lightly.

* BottomlessMagazines / InfiniteSupplies: ''[[AvertedTrope Forget it !]]'' Even crafting the most ordinary, weakest arrow requires you to gather basic resources for its shaft, fletching and some tying material to put it all together. Once you shoot that arrow and it gets damaged beyond repair or reasonable retrieval, [[TruthInTelevision you'll simply have to manufacture another arrow. Each and every one of them, in fact.]] And that's not even getting into the necessary daily routine of gathering basic supplies like firewood, basic food like fish or berries, and other items you need to stockpile, depending on the season. Luckily, things get easier as your character builds up their housing and supply-gathering infrastructure and gains experience along with the player.

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Every tribe represents some historical group or region of people living in iron-age Finland. The northern cultures and some of the technology (e.g. ''kota'' huts) are inspired mainly by the Sami, the western cultures reflect the more advanced cultures of the old Finnish southwest, and so on. Averted for the Njerpez, who are generic "foreign invaders" and do not represent any specific people.

* MedievalPrehistory: Played with, in a more plausible way. This is set in a world inspired by late prehistoric and ancient Scandinavia, so there are already things like swords, mail armour and iron axes, but at the same time, all of these items are [[AwesomeButImpractical the most expensive and rarest in the whole setting]], as [[TruthInTelevision iron tools are still a precious and valued rarity]], even among the more developed cultures that trade abroad. Though there are larger villages and some of them are occassionally lightly fortified, there are no towns or urban society yet, no feudalism, no real nobility and no coin currency. It's a setting of fairly advanced cultures, but still largelly a primordial northern wilderness where the only abundant resources are those found in forests and lakes. A player character can own a few iron tools if they want, but can still live a lifestyle not too different from that of the Neolithic or Bronze Age. Due to TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold nature of the chosen setting, many people seem to confuse the game for a medieval one, even though it's better described as set in late prehistory or antiquity, just in the far north. All of the animals and plants appearing in the game also exist in the current world, and any fanciful extinct megafauna is avoided entirely.

* PlanetOfHats: Each tribe has a special hat. For example, the Kaumo are tough hunters, the Driik are physically-frail city builders, the Njerpez are violent slavers, etc.

* RockBeatsLaser: Throwing rocks isn't the best ranged hunting or ranged self-defence method, but if you have nothing better at hand, ubiquitous rocks can come in fairly handy as improvised throwing weapons, especially within short distances.

* CreatorProvincialism: A healthy dose of it, in ''[[TropesAreNotBad a very smart and positive way]]''. The two devs behind the game, Sami Maaranen and Erkka Lehmus, share a life-long interest in historical crafts and archery, early Fennoscandian history, Finnish archaeology and ethnography, in addition to home-brewn game development. After just a few years of working on the initial StandardFantasySetting version of ''Unreal World'', they decided to change the entire setting in the mid 1990s to a Finnish-themed one, and ever since then, have focused on increasing immersion into the semi-historical Finnish-style setting ever since.

* NonLethalKO: Blunt arrows don't damage the flesh and skin of their animal targets, make them good for dazing various small prey.

* BottomlessMagazines / InfiniteSupplies: ''[[AvertedTrope Forget it !]]'' Even crafting the most ordinary, weakest arrow requires you to gather basic resources for its shaft, fletching and some tying material to put it all together. Once you shoot that arrow and it gets damaged beyond repair or reasonable retrieval, [[TruthInTelevision you'll simply have to manufacture another arrow. Each and every one of them, in fact.]] And that's not even getting into the necessary daily routine of gathering basic supplies like firewood, basic supplies like fish or berries, and other items you need to stockpile, depending on the season. Luckily, things get easier as your character builds up their housing and supply-gathering infrastructure and gains experience along with the player.

* BottomlessMagazines/InfiniteSupplies: ''[[AvertedTrope Forget it !]]'' Even crafting the most ordinary, weakest arrow requires you to gather basic resources for its shaft, fletching and some tying material to put it all together. Once you shoot that arrow and it gets damaged beyond repair or reasonable retrieval, [[TruthInTelevision you'll simply have to manufacture another arrow. Each and every one of them, in fact.]] And that's not even getting into the necessary daily routine of gathering basic supplies like firewood, basic supplies like fish or berries, and other items you need to stockpile, depending on the season. Luckily, things get easier as your character builds up their housing and supply-gathering infrastructure and gains experience along with the player.

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Every tribe represents some historical group or region of people living in iron-age Finland. The northern cultures and some of the technology (e.g. ''kota'' huts) are inspired mainly by the Sami, the western cultures reflect the more advanced cultures of the old Finnish southwest, and so on. Averted for the Njerpez, who are generic "foreign invaders" and do not represent any specific people.

* WriteWhatYouKnow: Combined with a healthy dose of CreatorProvincialism, but in ''[[TropesAreNotBad a very smart and positive way]]''. The two devs behind the game, Sami Maaranen and Erkka Lehmus, share a life-long interest in historical crafts and archery, early Fennoscandian history, Finnish archaeology and ethnography, in addition to home-brewn game development. After just a few years of working on the initial StandardFantasySetting version of ''Unreal World'', they decided to change the entire setting in the mid 1990s to a Finnish-themed one, and ever since then, have focused on increasing immersion into the semi-historical Finnish-style setting ever since.

* MedievalPrehistory: Played with, in a more plausible way. This is set in a world inspired by late prehistoric and ancient Scandinavia, so there are already things like swords, mail armour and iron axes, but at the same time, all of these items are [[AwesomeButImpractical the most expensive and rarest in the whole setting]], as [[TruthInTelevision iron tools still a precious and valued rarity]], even among the more developed cultures that trade abroad. Though there are larger villages and some of them are occassionally lightly fortified, there are no towns or urban society yet, no feudalism, no real nobility and no coin currency. It's a setting of fairly advanced cultures, but still largelly a primordial northern wilderness where the only abundant resources are those found in forests and lakes. A player character can own a few iron tools if they want, but can still live a lifestyle not too different from that of the Neolithic or Bronze Age. Due to TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold nature of the chosen setting, many people seem to confuse the game for a medieval one, even though it's better described as set in late prehistory or antiquity, just in the far north. All of the animals and plants appearing in the game also exist in the current world, and any fanciful extinct megafauna is avoided entirely.

* MedievalPrehistory: Played with, in a more plausible way. This is set in a world inspired by late prehistoric and ancient Scandinavia, so there are already things like swords, mail armour and iron axes, but at the same time, all of these items are [[AwesomeButImpractical the most expensive and rarest in the whole setting]], as [[TruthInTelevision iron tools still a precious and valued rarity]], even among the more developed cultures that trade abroad. Though there are larger villages and some of them are occassionally lightly fortified, there are no towns or urban society yet, no feudalism, no real nobility and no coin currency. It's a setting of fairly advanced cultures, but still largelly a primordial northern wilderness where the only abundant resources are those found in forests and lakes. A player character can own a few iron tools if they want, but can still live a lifestyle not too different from that of the Neolithic or Bronze Age. Due to TheGreatestHistoryNeverTold nature of the chosen setting, many people seem to confuse the game for a medieval one, even though it's better described as set in late prehistory or antiquity, just in the far north.

''Unreal World'' is a computer role-playing game with {{roguelike}} elements about survival in a mythologized iron-age Finland. The player must struggle against starvation, thirst, dangerous animals, the vicious Njerpez, and greatest of all, the winter. On the other hand, there are many possibilities: building your own log cabin, making a long multi-kilometer fence of traps, raising a hunting party, eradicating enemy villages, and more. It recently became a free donationware game available [[http://www.unrealworld.fi/ at the official website]].

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Every tribe represents some historical group or region of people living in iron-age Finland. Averted for the Njerpez, who are generic "foreign invaders" and do not represent any specific people.

* TheMarvelousDeer: Yep, great stags are in the game.

** The Runaway Slave starting scenario. All you've got is a few pieces of clothing and a knife. And you start in the middle of a Njerpez camp. Each of them is more heavily armed than you are. Good luck, you'll need it. If that's still not enough for you, try starting it in winter.
** Hurt, Helpless, and Afraid. Same items as the above scenario, only you now also have a random collection of injuries ranging from bruises to broken ribs. Even more so, the Njerpez who did it to you have long since left; unlike the Runaway Slave scenario, where a very skilled player can kill one Njerpez, take his weapon, and use it to eliminate the rest one at a time in order to accumulate the entire wealth of their camp, there is no corresponding guaranteed boon of raiders to raid, even if your injuries permitted it. Best of fortune should you start this scenario in the dead of winter and end up with a bad arm injury.

[[IThoughtThatWas Not to be confused]] with [[VideoGame/{{Unreal}} the FPS series]] created by Creator/EpicGames (or their namesake {{game engine}}s, for that matter).

[[IThoughtThatWas Not to be confused]] with [[VideoGame/{{Unreal}} the FPS series]] created by EpicGames (or their namesake {{game engine}}s, for that matter).

* GoodBadBugs: You can build a door between two water tile and deconstruct it to terraform it into land. The developer decided to leave the bug in.

* FinnsWithFearsomeForests: You play as an iron-age Finn and get to deal with the fearsome forests.

* SprintMeter: Quite important, as it affects ''all'' skill checks. It is also used up by attacking and dodging.

* WideOpenSandbox: This game doesn't even have quests. You simply are.

* BackStab: The opponent has no chance to block/dodge one.

* NintendoHard: Hunting - whether animals or Njerpez - takes quite a bit of practice to accomplish without getting killed.

* ImAHumanitarian: Nobody bats an eye at human flesh and fat. The only thing you can't do is skin humans for leather.

* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Nearly as much as in the adventure mode of ''VideoGame/DwarfFortress''.

* PracticalCurrency: There is no money in the game, but everything does have a set trade value (invisible to the player) based on rarity and utility. Arrows, good meat, furs, and iron weapons and armor are the items most desired by NPCs. An enterprising player can also construct dozens of "[[http://unrealworld.wikia.com/wiki/%22Käpälälauta%22-fox_trap käpälälauta]]" fox traps, as their only material component comes from any large tree.

* PracticalCurrency: There is no money in the game, but everything does have a set trade value (invisible to the player). Therefore, good meat, fox furs, and in desperate situations the "[[http://unrealworld.wikia.com/wiki/%22Käpälälauta%22-fox_trap käpälälauta]]" fox traps are the main units of exchange.

* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Every tribe represents some historical group or region of people living in iron-age Finland.

[[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused]] with [[VideoGame/{{Unreal}} the FPS series]] created by EpicGames (or their namesake {{game engine}}s, for that matter).

[[IThouhtItMeant Not to be confused]] with [[VideoGame/{{Unreal}} the FPS series]] created by EpicGames (or their namesake {{game engine}}s, for that matter).

* BackStab: They always automatically hit.

* PracticalCurrency: There is no money in the game, but everything does have a set trade value (invisible to the player). Therefore, good meat, fox furs, and "[[http://unrealworld.wikia.com/wiki/%22Käpälälauta%22-fox_trap käpälälauta]]" fox traps are the main units of exchange.

* CallToAdventure: You can give this to others, especially sages.