Does the city-building feeling also work as a board game?
3/4/2025
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Lorenz Keller
Stacking houses, creating parks, planning water areas - "Cities" brings the topic of urban development to the game board. But is it really fun as a family game?
Build a tower block, embellish the park with a fountain and create a lake: In the 1990s, I spent nights in front of the computer playing the city-building simulation "SimCity". Building, optimising cycles, testing strategies - that worked perfectly for me in the video game.
Can the board game "Cities" from Kosmos-Verlag create a similar feeling? The starting point sounds promising: two to four players aged ten and up build a city district. The aim is to fulfil as many of the city council's requirements as possible and collect points for doing so.
Round after round, we deploy workers to get hold of tiles with building spaces, building parts, parks, water fields and additional building orders. Each round, all players receive elements from all four areas until their own neighbourhood consists of three by three tiles.
Points are awarded for different things: Three missions apply to everyone - the faster you fulfil them, the more points you earn. There are also eight personal missions that you have to collect and fulfil over the course of the game. Sometimes blue buildings count, sometimes the largest possible park. There is also a reward for different park and water tiles.
Game idea and originality
The game really does have a SimCity feel to it. During the eight rounds, a neighbourhood with different buildings, parks and water areas is created. As it is not clear from the start which combination will score the most points, you have to constantly adapt your tactics.
This is what makes classic "worker placement" so exciting. It can be worthwhile to fulfil the general orders quickly - or to concentrate on your own, particularly high-scoring orders.
Play material and quality
Building up to four-storey tower blocks with the stackable plastic pieces is fun. The cards and tiles also feel high-quality and are thoughtfully designed.
There are still a couple of marks: the graphics are an indefinable mix of realism and comic - neither fish nor fowl. A clear stylistic decision would have done well. From my point of view, a realistic realisation would have been more coherent.
In addition, the game comes in a box without compartments. The small parts are filled in plastic bags, only the little houses come in a cloth bag. The large building boards and the order cards are loose in the box. The box is also so small that putting it away is like a game of "Tetris". If you just throw everything into the box, you'll hardly be able to close the lid.
Rules and comprehensibility
The rules are clear and well explained on just four pages. Even teenagers and older children will have no problem finding their way around. The Kosmos explanation app, which is available free of charge for iPhone, Android and Amazon, is very practical. This means you no longer have to read the rules of the game. Tip: The app can also be tried out without playing the game and offers a first impression before buying.
Fun and engagement
Building a city is already a great attraction and provided great motivation in all rounds. The fact that I can build immediately and continuously and no long preparations are necessary ensures a continuous arc of suspense.
However, the multitude of options is challenging and expands with every round. I'm constantly in a dilemma: I have dozens of good plans, but can only realise a handful. If you can't stand it, you quickly become frustrated.
Positive: There is no clearly superior strategy. If you make a mistake in one round, you can catch up again in the next. The score was close in all games - and made the evaluation exciting right up to the last victory points.
Because the balance is right and the luck factor remains low, "Cities" is actually suitable for the whole family. People with different levels of gaming experience can easily play together.
One weak point: The game runs less smoothly with two players. Because each person gets twice as many missions, decisions take longer and the game loses pace. This makes the results seem a little more arbitrary.
Interaction between the players
I have to constantly adapt my building plans to the changing scoring conditions. I have to weigh up whether I should secure the desired component immediately or take a suitable building tile first. As I can only take one element per turn, there is a high risk that someone else will beat me to it. Although each person builds their own neighbourhood, I always keep an eye on the competition.
Replay value
Thanks to the close results, the motivation to do better in the next game remains high. A round lasts 45 to 60 minutes - which is usually enough for families. Nevertheless: "Cities" has the potential to become a modern classic that will be taken out of the games cupboard for years to come.
The eight city maps, each with its own focus, provide variety. In New York, for example, tall buildings count, while water features dominate in Venice.
In a nutshell
Candidate for the "Game of the Year"
The strategy game is not aimed at experts, but at families and casual players. However, the construction of city districts with high-rise buildings, parks and water features will also appeal to experienced players.
The ability to be successful with different tactics is particularly impressive - without the game becoming unnecessarily complex. The rules are easy to understand and the material is of high quality. Only the small, impractical box spoils the overall impression.
Games with three or four people are best - with two players, the fun is somewhat reduced. Nevertheless: "Cities" deserves to be in the running for "Game of the Year". And even if it doesn't win the title, it will find a permanent place in many family game collections.
Pro
- Exciting urban development topic
- Balanced batches
- inspires a large target group
- Haptic building experience
- Low luck factor
Contra
- weaker with two players
- Material barely fits in the box
Lorenz Keller
Senior Editor
Lorenz.Keller@digitecgalaxus.chGadgets are my passion - whether you need them for the home office, for the household, for sport and pleasure or for the smart home. Or, of course, for the big hobby next to the family, namely fishing.
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