Heritage of Kings is no different in this regard, and a track like “Mary de Fortfichet” with its gentle melody and orchestration, relying on lighter instruments such as acoustic guitar and solo flute, perfectly highlights these sonic qualities. Apart from some battle cues and generally darker material, on these albums the world is a sunny, inviting place that charms the listener into staying for a while - a characteristic that duly mirrors the fact that The Settlers franchise has always been more about building cities and empires, rather than combat and confrontation.

If there’s one thing that all of Dynamedion’s Settlers soundtracks share, it’s their pastoral sound and laid-back atmosphere. Looking at all the three Settlers soundtracks that Dynamedion would create - Heritage of Kings, Rise of an Empire, and Paths to a Kingdom - it’s certainly interesting to identify traits that all these works share, as well as those elements that give each work its particular identity. The soundtrack for The Heritage of Kings was published only as part of the game’s limited Gold Edition and thus remains a collector’s item. Musically, The Heritage of Kings marked an important change as well, with German game music production company Dynamedion taking over composing duties this was obviously to the developers’ satisfaction, considering that Dynamedion went on to create the music for following Settlers games as well. Instead, the gamer was busy keeping her workers happy by providing them with a house to live in, enough food and so on. This time, less emphasis was put on the complex trading and production processes necessary to generate resources. Along with the graphical changes, modifications were also made to the series’ well-established gameplay. In 2005, the Settlers franchise made the jump into the third dimension with its fifth instalment, The Settlers: Heritage of Kings. While phenomenally successful in Germany, the Settlers franchise never quite achieved the same standing and prestige on the other side of the Atlantic, where games like SimCity or Caesar remained more popular. The games’ light-hearted atmosphere and their generic medieval setting have become their trademarks, apparently without losing any of its appeal during the years.

With the series’ first game released in 1993, the franchise is still going strong in 2010, which saw the release of The Settlers 7: Paths to a Kingdom. If you were looking for proof that city/nation-building simulations with a period flavour are among the most popular computer game genres in Germany, you wouldn’t have to look further than The Settlers. The Settlers -Heritage of Kings- Original Soundtrack

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