Written Transcript below from our video Review - https://youtu.be/fjminm6oLyU
"Let's Play series #1" - https://youtu.be/Twllb7hQjfY
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Graphics 3/10
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In a time when low poly graphics seem to be all the rage I find it unforgivable to see such low res graphics in any game. From the blocky map to the fuzzy buildings to the bizarrely fast cars that drive up and down the road. Citystate simply looks like a game that was made 10 years ago. With extremely dated graphics the game holds very little in visual appeal. Maybe though it can trigger nostalgia from an old title like SimCity?
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Gameplay 8/10
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As with all of our reviews we break a game down into ten separate categories and with the fundamental one being the gameplay... I am pleased to say CityState scores much higher in this area than how it looks. From the custom map design at the start to the simple and very intuitive UI to navigate around, CityState keeps things nice, crisp & clean. With no lengthy boring tutorial. This is a game any fan of the genre can pick up and play. The game offers a different twist with the focus & emphasis more on the political aspect of your City as opposed to the micromanagement of your community itself. Manage the economy, immigration, stocks to imports & exports. Each decision you make will shape how your city grows & evolves. You gain a real sense of intrigue before you discover the next important decision you will have to address, as the random legislation choices pop up. Overall the gameplay is fun and rewarding.
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Value 7/10
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The City Builder genre is heavily populated enough with some exceptional releases over the years with a wide range of prices. For a budget release, Citystate is great value & will go on sale at $9.99 on steam.
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Audio 5/10
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The audio in Citystate is somewhat scarce, from the various soundtracks that seems to sit in the background without annoying me to much. To the simple thud noises when you place a building, or the cheers of joy or despair when you make an important political decisions. CityState has an subtle array of in-game sounds that work just fine even if nothing spectacular.
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Content 5/10
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Load up into a game of CityState and you have two options. One, start a new game, two, load a game. Now you think to yourself,
Ok apart from the main single player campaign there isn't anything else to do? And you would be right! But that is fine, as with many games today, there is so much content, information, tutorials, mechanics, micro-transactions, dedicated servers, user created servers, the list goes on. It is cool to just load up a game and dive straight into what you have spent your money on. Yes, currently it lacks any cooperative or multiplayer modes, maybe it would have been good to add various scenarios? As it stands, even though it lacks in content against other titles in the genre, we feel what you have is ample enough.
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Potential 5/10
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It is hard to see what direction CityState is going to go? As mentioned, what we have is the vanilla single player mode only. We feel maybe some kind of scenario editor or user creator content could be appealing. Only time will tell if or when the game may evolve.
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Replayability 6/10
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As the game stands I have a question mark over how long you will play CityState? Sure, it is a cool indie City Builder, but with the current lack of content I am not sure how long the game will keep you hooked once you have grown your state on the default map. As mentioned, the possibility of added, or user created content could be enough to keep you coming back for more.
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Social 5/10
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With no multiplayer option available at launch unfortunately you will be playing CityState in single player. That is not to say some kind of multiplayer choice isn’t to be added in the future....although I believe this isnt sadly on the agenda
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Technical 10/10
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I can honestly say after around many hours gameplay CityState is in a great state! I haven't experienced one single crash or bug. How often can we say that about a game upon release? With the game running nice and smooth, no frame rate drops or noticable glitches or bugs.
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Developers 8/10
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Alongside the gameplay category I like to see a high score for the developers. If you have a good game as well as active, passionate developers it is always a great start to a new release. With CityState being a one man team I sense real passion in his product. He is active on social media. Most notably Twitter. Of course, only time will tell how responsive and interested he will be when it comes to feedback and suggestions moving CityState forward, if he of course chooses to do so.
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Overall 62/100
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So what do we think overall about CityState? Well, for an indie release into the City Builder Genre the game has a lot of fierce competition. Although this game offers a slightly different twist which we like very much. The game is very simple to pick up and play with an equally simple UI system, yet has deep mechanics that can have you scratching your head as you ponder your next political decision on legislation. For someone new looking to get into the genre it would be hard to recommend CityState as 1st choice, yet on the other hand without a hugely complex learning curve it could be the ideal choice. For the seasoned tycoon, City builder I can't recommend this game enough...what you have is a great value game to add to your collection that you will enjoy ploughing through. With only the graphics and a lack of content lowering what is a very respectable 62/100.
Graphics - 3
Gameplay - 8
Value - 7
Audio - 5
Content - 5
Potential - 5
Replayability - 6
Social - 5
Technical - 10
Developers - 8
Overall - 62/100