In Cities Skylines 2, you’re basically free to do whatever you want. There are influences and restrictions – you need to keep the people happy, manage the economy, and meet various municipal requirements – but if you want to make a new subway system or invest in dozens of parks and schools, it’s your prerogative. Taking cues from Slay The Spire, Balatro, and maybe a little Frostpunk, a new city building game adds drama and pressure to metropolis management with a smart roguelike twist. Original and challenging, you can try it for yourself right now.
Technotopia is a city building game that subverts the concept of choice. In a dystopian future where the planet is all but destroyed, humanity creates a would-be benevolent AI to design the ideal city. You are that AI, and on the surface, you play the same pseudo god role as Cities Skylines 2, SimCity, and all the rest. But then things get more complicated. Your programming only allows you to act within certain parameters. You can’t just build anything and everything you want – you draw cards, which represent new roads, districts, services, and housing projects, and have to play them tactically depending on the current needs of the people.
And speaking of the people, they’re going to be much more demanding than in your usual management or strategy game. There are four factions in Technotopia – the capitalists, the aristocrats, the politicians, and the common people – and they all have competing ideas about what the ideal city should look like, and how you, the AI, should behave. Everyone wants different things. You need to maintain a delicate balance between the needs of each faction, and not tip the scales too far in any one group’s favor. Remember, this isn’t about you, it’s about the good of the city.
A combination of city building and management games, with a robust roguelike system and a smartly satirical premise, you can try out Technotopia for yourself right now. Just head over to Steam and request access to the playtest – it’s available here.
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