Thinking of buying this game? Well let me help you out with that. First take the time to look at these two youtubers, Start with TotalBiscuit's WTF is ... Banished, still interested? Now take the time to watch quill18's "Let's play : Banished" it has 18 videos of game play for you to sink your mind into.
Now that you've taken the time to watch the video's take this into consideration. This game was devoloped by a one man show , Luke Hordorowicz. (Shining Rock Software) He started making this game in Aug. 2011 and in 3 years has made something I have been really enjoying. This game isn't really a city/town builder as it is a survival game. There is no invading hordes, ninja's, bandits or jabba-walkies, but to me it's not needed. Micro managing your town is plenty, for now. There is going to be mod support for this and with the talent I've seen out there I'm sure new buildings and other things you might miss will surely be added.
The game itsself does start at a slow pace like most building games. (there is the ability to increase the speed x2, x5, x10) but that can change pretty fast. My first two towns ended up ghost towns from thinking I could afk for 10 mins. Lesson learned. Starvation, disease, fire, etc. will make short work of your town if not ready for it and it willl happen. There is no money in this game, more of a barter system once you set up your trader. Exchanging items your town has crafted for new crop seeds, live stock and other supplies. Finding the balance in your town is key which can be tricky, placing a bunch of houses down and not having food for your new rapid growing town will end poorly.
This game isn't meant to be rushed, take time to pause the game and look at your map and plan ahead. There is no winning in Banished only failing. You either find the right groove and keep getting bigger or watch your little towns people turn into compost. Three dificulty levels, I find medium or hard a lot more fun. Random map generator which is nice to see. 3 different map sizes, plus a choice of valleys or mountains. Weather and seasons, and plenty more.
In closing I'd like to say the game is worth 19.99$ and honestly I find any game I can spend hours playing on the first day well worth my money. I've bought 60$ games from the big AAA companies and either have them beat in 5-6 hours or lose interest in 30 minutes. This game is going on my favorites list for sure. Thanks for reading, cheers!