Let’s School is teaching us Sims fans what it means to run the world’s strangest educational institution. Tasked with restoring our old alma mater to its former glory, you’re entrusted by your old headmaster in this simulation game to bring order and – more importantly – style to the school as its new principal. If you’re a fan of My Time at Portia or My Time at Sandrock, then it’s worth noting that Let’s School comes from the same developer, Pathea Games.
The 3D low-poly graphics are cute and much of the gameplay seems similar to the Build and Buy Mode from The Sims 4. The only difference is, once you switch to the Live Mode, you aren’t just in charge of one Sim or their household – you’re suddenly leading an entire school, and it’s up to you to see everything through, from the building’s construction to the student and teacher management.
If you want to be a strict principal following in the footsteps of your own headmaster, you can do just that. If you’d prefer a more Montessori-style experience for your school’s students, you can craft that freely. All of the students will have their own aspirations and personalities, similar to how Sims work. All of this should add to the game’s difficulty as you have to juggle the prestige rankings with the students’ basic needs, ranging from food to travel.
On top of all of these academic struggles, you will also need to ensure your school performs well when examination season rolls around. Pathea has alluded to “mysterious evil forces and all sorts of potential threats that might cause you to go bananas.” Despite all of the possible management difficulties, Let’s School looks like a chill – if decidedly strange – experience with only the odd roadblock for you to overcome. If you’re interested in checking this one out, you can play the demo on Steam here. If you want to wait until the full launch, the Let’s School release date is Thursday, July 27.
Let’s School kind of reminds me of a cross between Two Point Hospital or Two Point Campus and The Sims 4. As a huge fan of all of those games, it does seem like it could devour my life a bit. Sandbox is pretty much my middle name at this point, and the added challenge of needing to keep the school’s lights on should just make it even more fun.
Excited about Let’s School? You can check out some other great upcoming PC games via that link. Alternatively, have a look at some of our other favorite life games or sandbox games for titles with similar vibes to Let’s School. If you want a bit of a change but nothing too drastic, you should also browse the best farming games, as they can provide an equally charming yet relaxing time.