Border Pioneer (2025)

Developer: Yahzj Games
Publisher: Yogscast Games
Platforms: Windows, macOS
Genres: Action, Strategy
Rating: 4.3 of 5, 1,866 player ratings
Typical playtime: about 11 hours
Where to get it: Steam

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

You manage resources and build a frontier settlement while using a card-based deck to handle threats and expand your territory.

pixel artstrategicmanagementdefensiveprogressioncard-basedcolorfulchallenging

What players say

Players praise the creative mix of tower defense and city building, but many find the strategy shallow and the difficulty too low, even on the hardest setting. There is strong disagreement: some call it a fun casual diversion good for 20-30 hours, while others report it gets boring quickly and note that saving can break, losing progress. Long-time players say development has stopped.

Screenshots

More games like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.