Being raised as the daughter in a noble aristocratic family in the 14th century, Amicia de Rune must protect her younger brother Hugo, who up until this point has been confined/quarantined to his room due to an unknown illness. Their mother has been working tirelessly to cure him, ignoring Amicia in the process, but it isn’t long before tragedy strikes when the Inquisition comes barging through the estate, leaving a trail of blood and bodies. Their goal, capture the youngest son of the de Rune family. Amicia becomes entrusted with her brother's protection, even though she has barely seen since his birth.

Considering Hugo has been restricted to the castle for his entire life, one of the many pleasures in the game is watching his curious nature interacting with wild animals you’ll come across as you journey through the French countryside. The narrative unfolds through each of the game’s seventeen chapters, starting with the simple task of visiting a doctor by the name Laurentius (who may be able to cure Hugo) in the nearby town. It’s not long before things begin to fall apart as the town itself is full of death and decay, leading to Amicia and Hugo fleeing for their lives. Although you’ll be spending the majority of the game hand-in-hand with Hugo, it never feels like a hindrance, like in many games that feature escort quests. Although, Hugo will panic and draw attention to himself if you venture too far from him. Along the way, you’ll interact with new characters, each with their own back story and reason for assisting you. Each of them provides much-needed support, whether it comes from a pair of sneaky thieves that can pick any lock or provide a much-needed distraction, an inspiring alchemist that seemingly always has something new for you to craft, and a blacksmith’s son, who uses his physical prowess to his advantage.

The game’s focus comes from the use of stealth, sticking to the shadows to avoid more than just the Inquisition. Although Amicia does use her slingshot throughout, both to dispose of enemy patrols and to solve the environmental puzzles (such as breaking chains or distracting patrols), the game does not shy away from the grisly and macabre theme of the period. If you allow a sword-wielding soldier to charge directly towards you unimpeded, you’ll witness a gruesome death for Amicia, as the sword horrifically pierces through her body. I wish I could tell you that is the worse you will face (I wish I could), however, setting a title within the same period as the Black Death means only one thing; rats...and lots of them.

The rats have been a main gameplay component to the game since the initial reveal and gameplay walkthrough a few years back. Your first interaction with these beady-eyed pests is not only highly cinematic but genuinely terrifying at the same time. If you aren’t careful, their glowing red eyes and constant, gnawing squeaking may be the last thing you see and hear before you become fully engulfed by the creatures without remorse. Whether you are in the middle of a spooky graveyard on the outskirts of a town, or the ruins of an ancient dilapidated castle, the rats can (and will) find their way through every crevice and every crack. Even the safety of a forest isn’t enough to save you, as hundreds and even thousands of these unholy creatures burst through the ground, saturating the landscape like a wave breaking over a beach. The only guarantee for survival? Light.

As much as the game is a tale about character growth and hardship between siblings, it also profoundly symbolizes the dynamic between light vs. dark, good vs. evil. Light becomes a death sentence to the rats, and light can come from many forms. The Inquisition learns this quite swiftly, as almost every soldier carry a torch or lantern. They have even devised a way to illuminate pathways using makeshift medieval spotlights (that can also swivel). A burning torch (or stick) can safely guide you through hordes of rats, but the game doesn’t shy away from allowing you to use this knowledge to your advantage against your foes. Although the game is quite linear with most branching paths leading to dead ends, but offer a chance to gather crafting materials or collectibles, most encounters give you a certain amount of freedom. Equipped with your slingshot, a well-placed rock to an exposed head can be deadly. Aim for a glowing orange/red lantern held by a soldier, however, and you doom them to the darkness. Where there is darkness, there are the ever-hungry rats. It is quite satisfying seeing the rats devour (and I mean devour) members of the Inquisition. Not so much when it happens to you, or one of the characters following you. It only happened a couple of times, but pathing can be a bit wonky for companions, who randomly decide to walk right through the darkness before being swallowed by the vermin. Additional items become available through story progression, aiding you on your journey — each one, adding a new dynamic to both encounters and puzzle solving. Being able to light smoldering torches, bonfires, etc. provides protection at night, while extinguishing them can dispose of soldiers, but also helps corral the vermin to desired locations. Eventually, you get a full suite of craftable concoctions, but I don't want to spoil all of the goodies at your disposal.

While there are a handful of thrilling escape sequences, most of the game features stealth-based gameplay and environmental puzzle-solving. You may be forced to lure soldiers away from specific areas, giving you the option of avoiding them, killing/incapacitating them, or letting the rats do your dirty work. Most of the puzzles involve pushing crates to access ledges, sending Hugo through small passageways to open locked doors and using the light to traverse the environments safely. The character growth in the game is undoubtedly phenomenal, especially when you realize that Amicia and Hugo have barely interacted with each other before the events in the game’s opening. There are a bunch of little moments that help breathe life into the characters, such as Hugo’s purity about the real world, his cheerful and curious nature about all living things, especially frogs and ducks. Then there are moments where Hugo places a freshly picked flower in Amicia's hair, even with everything going on around them. Life is a struggle, and the bond that grows between them is enough to bring a tear to anyone’s eye.

The game has an almost painterly like quality visually, bringing a world so full of death and decay to life. The moments of calm serenity never last, serving as a glimmer of hope. You may enjoy a relaxing moment in the countryside beside a flowing river full of life, Hugo certainly does, but knowing that soon after you may be walking across a bloodied battlefield overflowing with corpses or fleeing from the swarms of vermin that want nothing more than to eat you alive. The music elevates the incredible atmosphere in the game, especially with the sheer amount of tense moments.

Simply Put

A Plague Tale: Innocence is one of the most compelling adventures I’ve experienced not only this year but this entire generation. I felt enthralled throughout the 12-15 hours it takes to complete the game and didn't want to put the game down. There are explorable side areas that can trigger additional scenes and conversations about your companions and plenty of items to collect. At the end of my first playthrough, I realized I missed the majority of them, and I thought I was quite thorough in my exploration, but thankfully the game does have a chapter select that shows how many items are missing in each one. Load times can be bit on the long side for some of the chapters.

As an industrial simulation, you must figure out what the public wants to purchase, by understanding supply and demand across multiple cities/towns. Not paying attention is essentially a swift death sentence for your business and chosen industry. Without the need of city building, the first step is figuring out what products are currently in demand, which leads you down the path of what crops to grow, items to craft, and how to properly maintain and supply all of the local establishments with the desired goods. On paper, the goal may seem quite simple, but in practice, things spiral out of control if you don’t have the proper mindset required to keep a thriving business booming amongst the thirsty AI competitors.

There are plenty of options available, allowing you to customize the procedurally generated maps to your liking. There are preset regions, such as the United States, Spain, Germany, and more, influencing the naming conventions of the randomized locales, but Rise of Industry also lets you adjust the minuscule details, affecting the map size, number of rivers, the amount of AI, required upkeep/loan settings, and more. You can even enforce the US to start driving on the left side of the road. There are three key modes in the game; career, scenario, and sandbox. The latter of the three is a more relaxed experience, giving you unlimited funding, and everything unlocked in the tech tree from the start. Scenarios provide the toughest challenges, featuring different objectives and constraints, while the core “career” experience feels almost the same as sandbox, but with tech tree and funding limitations in place.

As your new entrepreneurship journey begins, you must click on the heart of a city (town center), giving you a list of the various types of stores, and products in demand. You may want to begin closer to a town that has a high amount of nearby natural resources that can feed your production. By matching the need for the requested goods, you get the general idea for the type of industry to carve out your empire, at least at first. For me, the most requested items were quite simplistic to produce; wool for the hardware stores, and mutton for the farmers market. When viewing the menu for each store type, a single click displays the exact recipe for the selected items. For wool, you need water (1x), and wheat (1x) to sustain your sheep, which can be turned into sellable wool (2x) and mutton (1x). With this as a base, I built water siphons across the nearby river, with a farm next door to produce the necessary crop. Once you advance deeper through your tech tree, may want to move to more complex (and multistep) production, such as furniture, potato chips, or automobiles.

Rise of Industry features a lengthy, but mostly basic tutorial. It serves to set the groundwork, but I found it doesn’t cover enough, leaving you directionless. For example, warehouses are the backbone of your industry, but I can’t recall them ever being mentioned. It wasn’t until I spoke with other team members that were playtesting the game, that I understood the significance of sending all of your resources into these buildings for storage and distribution. As long as your harvesters and production buildings are within range, the entire process can be automated. If not, you need to manually transport resources to and from each of your premises, as well as to retail locations for profit. Thankfully, the game’s unique low-polygonal visual style works well with the colorful UI panels and icons.

Events appear randomly and may assist or hinder your progress, such as skyrocketing the export price of a particular product for a set period. You may be tempted to send most or all of your water production out of state for massive profit, but that means that the rest of your factories, won’t have the necessary surplus of resources to continue production. This is why warehouses are vital, as you can ensure that everything you collect is correctly divided between multiple locations at the same time. You’ll also need to keep an eye out on auctions, where you bid against the AI businesses for various things. If you aren’t careful, they will also creep up against your territory in the blink of an eye, taking precious natural resources for themselves.

There are a lot of moving parts in Rise of Industry, and thankfully, the game has ample options to keep your business afloat. The budget overview panel gives you a quick breakdown based on profit and production. You can take that a step further, and really dig into all the details you want based on specific products, to ensure that your ROI (return on investment) stays healthy. If not, maybe it is time to shift your core business to a product.

One thing that the game doesn’t do all that well (besides the lacking tutorial) is letting you know when things are running smoothly. While there are ample pop-ups, icons, and warnings if things are broken, such as factories or farms not getting the required resources or if roads are not properly connected, but it took some time to figure out if I was profitable. The game prioritizes monthly budgets, so if you are playing the game at the highest speed, you’ll notice your money continually fluctuating, as it resets each month. I was initially confused as to why the numbers would drop from six-figure profit to negatives in a moment’s notice (the cost to keep the lights on and your delivery trucks functioning) every month. Many of the advanced features the game offers isn't explained, so it will take a few games before you feel entirely comfortable. This seems to be a running theme with the game, and you can find links to user created videos and the game's Discord directly in-game to assist you.

Simply Put

Rise of Industry is such a delight and a much deeper experience than I was expecting. Almost every aspect of your budding empire can be maintained and tweaked to your personal preference, although you’ll have to give the customers what they want. Competition is fierce, and not only is the AI cutthroat, but you’ll have to properly build a transportation network to ensure traffic doesn’t slow down your profit margin. On top of that, pollution becomes a concern, and when you throw the random events and auctions into the mix, there is so much that you have to track to keep your business flourishing. While I may have built my empire on wool, nothing came between me and my desire to become the ultimate supplier of potato chips and berry pies. The game launched with Steam Workshop support, ensuring the game has a bright future due to the endless possibilities.

Fade to Silence has already been available for almost a year and a half thanks to Steam Early Access, although the full release brings the game to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Coming face to face with a representation of death, literally, the opening sequence briefly walks you through some of the games basic mechanics, attempting to ready you for the harshness of the blistering cold winter. Survival comes in many faces in Fade to Silence. Not only do you have to deal with a world full of horrible monsters, but you’ll be managing food, and warmth meters for not only yourself but all of your followers. On top of the survival elements, you’ll be constructing a camp, a place to process all of the raw materials and resources you harvest, as well as provide protection from the swarming monsters of the Eclipse. Once rescued out in the wilderness, you can choose to have these local inhabitants live with you at the camp, and although there are benefits in doing so, there are also drawbacks. The more people that you save, the more mouths you have to feed and protect. While this was more an issue in the first few hours of the game, it becomes a moot point once you have ample supply lines for easy resource gathering and processing.

Progression in the game comes from exploration, finding new hunting grounds (deer hunting), new forest regions for precious wood, rock quarries for stones/minerals, and clearing out corrupted areas. The highly dangerous nested locales populated with spiky tentacles, sharp teeth and swarming foes must be cleaned if you are to uncover new areas and outposts. The process in doing so drains the maximum health of Ash, requiring you repeatedly mash buttons, but leaving you vulnerable to attacks. The survival book accessed through a menu serves as a knowledge base; complete with all of the information that the tutorial doesn’t cover. The game is quite vague with instructions, and unless you take the time to read about how the advanced mechanics' function, you aren’t going to get far. Important things, such as proper base building, and how to command and direct your followers is only found in this spot. One tip, the leftmost meter (resembling a crystal) warns you of impending attacks at the refuge, and if I didn’t read about it in the survival book and how to build proper fences and towers, my base would have been nothing but smoldering wood and ash ages ago.

Light and heavy attacks are the cornerstones of the combat system, prioritizing, timing and spacing with parrying and blocking, in a similar fashion to the Dark Souls franchise. However, it lacks the finesse and responsiveness that is needed in providing an overall satisfying experience, and instead, feels mostly cumbersome/clunky. From attacks to dodging, every action drains stamina, punishing those who overexert themselves. For example, rolling and light strikes use a small percentage of your overall endurance, while a heavy attack completely drains it. Even then, the combat can be exploited, as the heavy attack stuns/knockbacks the frequent basic creatures you’ll come across throughout the entire game. Simply backstep after every attack, and you become nearly invincible. Of course, this practice is wasted on tougher foes, but it works well enough as a starting strategy. However, ranged attacks from spitting foes are frustrating to dodge, as they seemingly follow you, changing their trajectory in mid-air.

Before starting a new game, you are given an option of two different difficulties, exploration and survival. In the easier of the two modes, you’ll not have to worry about a limited amount of lives and losing resources, ensuring you can play at your own pace; however, achievements/trophies are disabled and you are unable to gain improvements through the Circle of Torment (minor stat bonuses to health, stamina, hunger, and warmth can still be earned). Survival on the other hand, can reset your progress after you lose all of your lives. Starting over, even if some bonuses is not my idea of fun. Regardless of the mode selected, if you are finding the combat too difficult, followers can accompany you on expeditions once they join your refuge. In my experience, they serve as a good distraction allowing you to attack without the Lovecraftian horrors targeting you directly. An online friend can take control of the follower, adding a cooperative element to the game; however, both players are tethered, limiting how far players can travel from each other.

Although the base building is a significant component to the game, crafting at a campfire out in the environment is just as crucial. Inventory space feels quite limiting at first, but once you can craft additional pouches to hold more resources, on top of actual weapons and armor, the game starts to feel more fleshed out. Of course, I learned the hard way after spending a solid hour trying to survive with nothing but a torch to protect myself. I appreciate games that attempt to give players freedom without overly hand-holding them throughout, but a bit more of a structure to the opening sequence to the game would have gone a long way.

Exploring the massive open-world tundra can be tedious, and slow, but you do gain access to a teleportation system once you cleanse outposts by defeating bosses located across each of the central regions. This in itself does help to decrease travel time, not to mention also providing large amount of resources, but you’ll want to prioritize the dog sledding building once you rescue a couple of wolves. Although the controls are slightly clumsy, and I’ve seen the sled fly up into the air more often than I can count, it does provide additional storage and a faster traversal option. It also comes in handy when attempting to dodge falling cars and wreckage from the floating sphere of death in the sky.

Simply Put

Fade to Silence does leave its mark on the survival genre, namely the terrific use of a dynamic weather system. However, everything else in the game is slightly cumbersome, from combat to item management. With player inventory being limited, your only option is to transfer items to your stash at the camp. However, the only options are to place items one at a time, or everything you happen to be carrying. There isn’t any way to transfer individual stacks of items. The game needs a better introduction to many of the game’s mechanics, especially when playing on the harder difficulty that can leave you with starting over with nothing, outside of the permanent unlocks.

Age of Sigmar reminds me of a mixture of Gwent and Magic; using the Gwent system of lanes combined with the casting/rotating pieces of Magic's table management and card actions. Even the players' health systems and card damages directly of Magic, and I think these comparisons can help draw in fans of both games as a smooth transition in the card management of Age of Sigmar.

Games work out in this fashion: your Champions are assigned to lanes before the match starting. Each Champion has their unique attributes, such as bonuses or a focus on spellcasting, making their placement vital in prepping for the game. Once everything is ready, players are given two actions per turn - play two cards or end early and either draw one or two additional cards depending on how many you've played. Some played cards, like abilities, might activate immediately before discarding. Others, like some creature cards or spells, require you to cycle a few turns before they can be enabled. Keeping everything limited to two actions will keep your focus on planning and strategizing - leaving a champion's lane open might give the enemy a chance to earn a damage bonus or more.

To add a bit a thrill to the game, Champions have a set of objectives attached to them in every game (these tend not to differ). They can be as simple as "deal damage to the enemy" using a creature card or ability, or they can be something more difficult like "spawn a beast-class creature" which can be entirely impossible if you don't have any in your deck. Managing to complete these four objectives unlocks the Champions' blessing, a powerful ability that can quickly turn the tide of a match.

Honestly, the craziest thing about this game to me is the fact the physical cards themselves are scan-able into the game. Given it's a free-to-play title, there are many items available to purchase in-game on top of a 30-day Champions Pass for $4.99. There are gems available for purchase in the Nintendo eShop (and presumably the other stores this is available on) which are used directly for special gems-only purchases or general items, which can also be bought with gold earned from completing objectives/leveling. However, for those unwilling to purchase gems, using physical cards is still possible via scanning them onto your account, but unfortunately, that does require either a smartphone or computer in order to do so. But all versions of the game are connected, so adding one will grant access to the card across all versions of the game. That piece blows me away since it adds an entirely new layer to the game - you can play both digitally and physically with the same cards.

One significant aspect for this game is the interconnectivity being the Nintendo Switch, smartphones and Steam. The fledgling community isn't limited to just Switch, meaning gamers should be able to find a robust and active community to play online against. I know I only waited a minute or two at most when looking for opponents (then getting beaten), but it was an unexpected and pleasant experience to see there are ample challenges out there. However, the game does require a constant online connection for pretty much any mode, so keep that in mind when you're out and on the go with the Switch. This continuous connection is even required if you're planning on managing your decks and swapping out cards, so it can be a bit frustrating for some if you're not in an area with stable wifi coverage.

Simply Put

Given that it is a free-to-play title, I'm genuinely surprised and actually delighted by the polished feel of the title. There are several available modes (requiring a constant internet connection), an active community to play against, and ways to get by without having to pay for anything out of pocket. Considering there are some pay-to-play titles can really put the onus on gamers almost requiring buying something from the developer, overall it's a nice change of pace, making Age of Sigmar: Champions a solid title.

Much like Diablo, Chaosbane is an action-RPG with core mechanics that differ depending upon your chosen class. There's the Slayer, a dwarf hellbent on revenge and destroying his enemies, an Imperial Soldier who uses shielding and tactics, the Wood Elf Scout with her bow, poisons, and deadly traps, and the High Elf Mage with his repertoire of deadly magic. Each class has its own unique approach to combat and considering this is a cooperative game, each class pairs exceptionally well with each other. I'm sure a full party of four would be incredibly devastating given how each can tackle different aspects of the engagements.

I spent the bulk of my time with the Slayer, getting a strong sense of how the game operates. Generally these style of games are prevalent on PC, especially considering the sheer amount of buttons and hotkeys that can be used, but lately more and more of them have been making their way onto consoles. With that said, I never felt overwhelmed as the game smartly makes use of every button on your controller (I played the Xbox One version of the beta). Using the vengeful dwarf for example: the left thumbstick controlled movement, while, the four face buttons (A-B-X-Y), right trigger and right bumper powers your different abilities. Health potions are infinite, but have a recharge timer before you can use them again. Your special ability can be triggered using the left trigger. Since the Slayer is akin to your "barbarian" class, his focus on using Rage Charges builds over time, powering your abilities in the process.

Throughout the game, I snagged new pieces of loot and gear via chests and fallen foes. Loot comes in different qualities: common, uncommon, rare, etc. In typical fashion, the higher the tier, the better the stats will be. Although the game is going to include plenty of difficulty options, a must for games focusing on gear advancement, the beta wouldn't go any higher than hard, which wasn't too hard in my opinion. Chaosbane throws hordes and hordes of enemies at you, which is the perfect reason to bring a friend or two (or three). Abilities level up along with your character, but the higher level they are the more skill points they cost to equip.

While the game is nearing release, it's got the makings of an enjoyable cooperative experience. However, I did come across a few different glitches, namely invisible walls and the Xbox One version has terrible loading times. The inventory system can be daunting at first but swiftly becomes second nature as you play through the game's chapters. The UI does change depending upon if you are using a controller or a keyboard and mouse. Given the scope of the Warhammer universe, I'm sure there will be plenty of upcoming content for the game, further expanding its life for years to come.

Warhammer: Chaosbane is coming to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on May 31st for Magnus Edition and Digital Deluxe owners, and June 4th for everyone else from developer Eko Software and publisher Bigben Interactive. Fans of games like Diablo and Victor Vran will undoubtedly love the cooperative gameplay and a narrative deeply set within an intricately detailed universe consisting of demons, cultists, and more.

In order to progress through the game, you’ll always need to race against the AI. However, a two-player local race option does exist, but it's counter-productive in the long run as you don’t earn any cash for competing against a friend. It’s not something the game tells you either, but after battling for about 20 minutes with a friend, I realized I still only had $16 in my pocket — what a waste of time. The races themselves are quite short in length, and you’ll only have to contend with moving left to right across the track, or in this case towards or away from the camera. During the race, you have two options; boost and shoot.

Hazards populate the race track, whether you are in a pixel-based urban environment, or the empty wasteland of the Red Planet. Robots resembling TV monitors attempt to disrupt your concentration by shooting large pink bullets at you or by merely cluttering the racing area. The scarcity of ammunition ensures you aren’t trying to play the game like a shoot ‘em up, however, if you run out during a race (and you will multiple times), a refueling vehicle appears at the bottom of the screen, allowing you to boost into it, replenishing your stock. Helping you figure out if you are in the lead or trailing, the music during races will be audibly louder when you are winning, and softer when you are falling behind. Winnings, however, are quite paltry, making the entire game feel like a never-ending grind to the finish line. It’s a simple gameplay loop, and once you found a way that works for you, you’ll probably have no trouble winning every race. With that said, I’ve had a "warning" message appear randomly, removing my ability to boost, ensuring I would lose. I still have no idea why it occurs, if it is something that can be triggered or if its a bug.

After scrounging up enough cash on Earth, you head to Mars to keep competing in races to earn the required $10,000 entry fee into the Grand Prix. Winning a race may net you $100 (or less), where you have to manage your spending by repairing your hoverbike, keeping your hunger satisfied and leaving some in the bank to ensure you eventually reach your goal. Lose, and you’ll have to settle for the couple bucks that you picked up during the race. The city of Olympia is comprised of interconnected stylized corridors that you must walk through each time you want to race. After every run, you are dumped back into the town to spend your money, and must painstakingly walk back to the racing headquarters to compete in another fast race. Although stylistic and fitting with the game’s atmosphere and visuals, I found some of the looping songs in the game quite irritating, especially during prolonged play sessions.

I found it odd that parts for your hoverbike (although made on Earth) are hard to come by on the Red Planet, especially considering you spend most of your time there. After a race, you may find another hoverbike parked next to yours. If you are so inclined to do so, you can attempt to steal a part through a timing mini-game. There’s a good amount of installable upgrades for your bike. Power cells and components are placed on a grid, and afterward, you can junction power to them to boost their performance. Like much in Desert Child, I had to discover this for myself. These parts can improve your chances of winning, by increasing both the size of your bullets and the maximum amount you can carry, as well as increasing the amount of money that comes out of the TVs when they explode. There are different weapons in the game, but the choice is set in stone once you begin, so you have to start a new game if you want to try something else.

Simply Put

Desert Child has its moments, but most of the experience feels shallow. The repetitiveness of wandering through the town after each race was more of a distraction than anything. The retro-inspired pixel art is enjoyable, and most of the game’s music works within the racing setting, but I had to mute the game when walking through the town. I understand the overarching theme of the game, the hardship of survival and earning the right to live in a society where the rich have all the power, but I feel it missed the mark considering how little of a narrative exists.

Tropico 6 doesn't reinvent the series, but naturally evolves the core gameplay that fans have come to expect over the years. However, some small changes leave a lasting impact on how you'll develop your tropical nation. Instead of focusing on one main island, Tropico 6 allows you to expand your society across smaller sets of islands. Thanks to the inclusion of bridges and tunnels that can be connected to your central city location, you can quickly gather resources from outlying areas. Steep mountains and rivers are no longer a roadblock, as you can tunnel and build bridges through and over them, granted you have researched the technology and reached the required era.

The campaign in Tropico 6 follows the rise of the dictator from his meager beginning as a lowly governor, serving The Crown. Objectives and other requests come from multiple sources, given you an option to increase your favor with the Empire or with the revolutionaries praying for the day where you will declare independence. As you are not yet your own nation during the colonial era, you must complete any political request from the Lord in charge of the island; otherwise, you'll have to restart or load a previous save. It wasn't initially clear at first, and I ended up in an unwinnable loop where I didn't have enough time to complete an export priority from the autosave location and wasn't able to declare independence as well.

At the same time, you'll want to bolster your forces to turn against the Empire and win the hearts of your people. Maybe you'll want to construct a pirate's cove to secretly smuggle gold away from the tyranny of The Crown and keep it for your young nation, or create a new way to generate necessary supplies. There is a fine line between keeping the population happy, with a steady amount of food, work, entertainment, and protection against crime. The overlays do a great job of showing you exactly what and where you need improvements. The color-coded overlays certainly play a significant role in how you develop your economy, based on the available natural resources. If one of the islands has a considerable surplus of sugar cane, rum flows like water improving the happiness of your citizens, as well as working as a major export to line your treasuries with gold.

Things aren't always that black and white; however, as you must be dutiful in figuring out the needs of the nation. Why aren't your storerooms full of corn? Why is it taking months to complete a simple construction? Do you lack housing near places of employment? Can workers support their families with current salaries? Did the latest edict have a negative effort that you weren't expecting? Is it worth avoiding a war with a world superpower at the cost of your own citizen's freedom? These are the questions that are constantly rotating through my mind. If you are like me, you'll be continually juggling a queue of buildings under construction. When cash begins flowing steadily, you may opt to complete construction by spending some benjamins (money) instantly. If you can't spare the extra money, the priority order informs the workers which need to be completed first and which can wait a little longer.

The series has already moved to the modern era years ago in an expansion for Tropico 4 and Tropico 5, but I still get giddy advancing your struggling colonial nation of plantations through the years with shopping malls, space programs, and amusement parks. Heck, why not add a few local fast food joints in for good measure. Eventually, you'll airlift entire world wonders, with the help of some fancy diplomacy, such as the Great Sphinx, the Statue of Livery, Taj Mahal, and even Hikone Castle.

I've always been of the mind that Tropico is at its best when you are people watching. Although the game offers a 4x speed option, I can count the number of times I've used it on a single hand. There is just something enjoyable and relaxing about watching your workers travel to and from a construction site and slowly seeing progress being made. In Tropico 6, your nation is brimming with life, as every one of your citizens can be viewed and followed through their daily routines. Considering the population limit can be increased to a maximum of 10,000 citizens, that is undoubtedly impressive. Each member has their own needs, desires, and ideas of how the government should run. I have never paid so much attention trying to appease my people on an individual level before in any game. It also gives you an insight into which members of society need to be thrown in jail, have an "accident" at work, or publicly assassinated for speaking out against the government. Foreign powers and rebel factions are inevitable, and each player will have a different way of handling these situations. A few guard towers with heavy machinery and questionable abuse of power never hurt anyone, right?

I've always seen the campaign portion of the series, and most simulation titles as an appetizer to the main dish; sandbox mode. Tropico 6 features robust options whether you are playing offline or online multiplayer with up to four players. Instead of some of the asine political requests, that must be completed; such as having multiple taverns or a crazy amount of exports, the requests generally look to improve your island nation. During the campaign missions, you are always given a partially prebuilt country, but in the sandbox mode, you genuinely start from scratch (something I still want to do). The map can be preselected from over 20 existing presets, or you can generate and share your archipelago using a wide arrange of options, such as setting the climate, amount of islands, total land mass, and size. There are a handful of different victory conditions, all of which are quite standard for a strategy game.

Simply Put

Tropico 6's evolution and depth take the series into new heights, or in this case, new islands, stretching your nation across multiple islands with the inclusion of advanced traverse options. Throughout lengthy sessions, the game's soundtrack may see a bit repetitive, but it is so easy to catch yourself humming along even after you've exited the game. I've already put dozens of hours into the sandbox mode thanks to the randomization options and can see myself putting many, many more in the future, especially with the planned upcoming downloadable content /expansions that will surely alleviate the experience evener further.