Remember how much you loved SimCity when it first release? Then in 2013 EA promised us they could do it all again with a beautifully, full featured, reimagining of it. And then, they let us down HORRIBLY with a bizarrely limiting multiplayer hodgepodge. Well, if you were one of the ones hurt by this, Maria’s choice of game for 2015 is the game you were actually waiting for, Cities Skylines.
Unlike the 2013 SimCity, Cities Skylines features a huge world for you to fill with your own, incredible city – all without needing anyone else’s help.
You begin with a small 2k X 2k plot of land to develop, but as you develop the area with residential buildings, commercial outlets, police stations, and other public amenities, the area available to you will grow – opening up increasing more options and space until you are build observatories at the top of your 324 square km map.
To make it even better, the mod community has really embraced the game, in part down to the developer making the game so open to their work. You can download new buildings, district styles, vehicles, there are even options to grab community create custom sewage systems.
In fact the only thing Cities Skylines is really missing from the Sim City experience is the ability to be a horrible mayor, profiting from your citizens misery… well it’s there a bit, but it doesn’t feel as palpably evil.
My pick for PC exclusive is an odd one, because were you prepared to purchases it in its beta phase you could have been enjoying it – as I have – for years. Kerbal Space Program finally got its full release in 2015, and I couldn’t be happier.
This simulator has you take control of the planet Kerbal’s Space Program. Your lofty goal is leave the planet, set up satellites, visit the Mun, and travel beyond through the solar system.
Through building your scientific knowledge, successfully completing contracts, and - importantly – not constantly killing all of your experienced pilots, you can gain access to increasingly complex equipment. New modules give access to cargo delivery systems, more powerful thrusters, the ability to produce craft that can safely renter the atmosphere and land… if you are skilled enough.
It can be as fun as it sounds – but it is hard, really hard, to master. It isn’t a game you can just jump into and expect to know what is going on, a fact made all the more clear by the full release which extends the game beyond just being a fun sandbox into a bizarre mix of commerce, resource management, and aeronautical design.
Honestly, if you only want to dabble then this final game can be an overwhelming, but the sandbox mode does at least give you free reign over all of its tools to experiment and explore. But, if you are up for the challenge, the difficulty of both the science and career making for some satisfying play.
Dani choice of PC game is a bit more down and dirty. Rather than controlling and trying to manage the survival of a city or a space program, he chose a more focused game of personal survival… specifically Ark Survival Evolved.
This first-person survival experience has you trying to brave its wilderness either alone or in an online multiplayer. Its huge open world is made up of living environments that span from frigid to tropical, all teaming with life your you to hunt, use, ride, and survive.
On paper is sounds amazing, but that is nothing compared to the reality as you find yourself fighting giant scorpions and dragons from the back of your trained pterodactyl armed with spears and guns.
And it just keeps getting better… with the game is still early in development, improvements are constantly being made including a steady stream of new animals. Just recently a Kraken and a Megalania were added to further expand your options in the world.
It isn’t just a sandbox either, as ARK already features and endgame for dedicated players – featuring the deadliest of all creatures… the spider. I assume it’s a big one… Dani doesn’t say.
Unfortunately, the its scope, and early stage of development, mean ARK Survival Evolved suffers from a lot of performance issues. For an early development game this is to be expected of course, and the developer is actively chasing down bugs… but it’s something to keep in mind of technical issues prove a huge frustration.
Unlike the 2013 SimCity, Cities Skylines features a huge world for you to fill with your own, incredible city – all without needing anyone else’s help.
You begin with a small 2k X 2k plot of land to develop, but as you develop the area with residential buildings, commercial outlets, police stations, and other public amenities, the area available to you will grow – opening up increasing more options and space until you are build observatories at the top of your 324 square km map.
To make it even better, the mod community has really embraced the game, in part down to the developer making the game so open to their work. You can download new buildings, district styles, vehicles, there are even options to grab community create custom sewage systems.
In fact the only thing Cities Skylines is really missing from the Sim City experience is the ability to be a horrible mayor, profiting from your citizens misery… well it’s there a bit, but it doesn’t feel as palpably evil.
My pick for PC exclusive is an odd one, because were you prepared to purchases it in its beta phase you could have been enjoying it – as I have – for years. Kerbal Space Program finally got its full release in 2015, and I couldn’t be happier.
This simulator has you take control of the planet Kerbal’s Space Program. Your lofty goal is leave the planet, set up satellites, visit the Mun, and travel beyond through the solar system.
Through building your scientific knowledge, successfully completing contracts, and - importantly – not constantly killing all of your experienced pilots, you can gain access to increasingly complex equipment. New modules give access to cargo delivery systems, more powerful thrusters, the ability to produce craft that can safely renter the atmosphere and land… if you are skilled enough.
It can be as fun as it sounds – but it is hard, really hard, to master. It isn’t a game you can just jump into and expect to know what is going on, a fact made all the more clear by the full release which extends the game beyond just being a fun sandbox into a bizarre mix of commerce, resource management, and aeronautical design.
Honestly, if you only want to dabble then this final game can be an overwhelming, but the sandbox mode does at least give you free reign over all of its tools to experiment and explore. But, if you are up for the challenge, the difficulty of both the science and career making for some satisfying play.
Dani choice of PC game is a bit more down and dirty. Rather than controlling and trying to manage the survival of a city or a space program, he chose a more focused game of personal survival… specifically Ark Survival Evolved.
This first-person survival experience has you trying to brave its wilderness either alone or in an online multiplayer. Its huge open world is made up of living environments that span from frigid to tropical, all teaming with life your you to hunt, use, ride, and survive.
On paper is sounds amazing, but that is nothing compared to the reality as you find yourself fighting giant scorpions and dragons from the back of your trained pterodactyl armed with spears and guns.
And it just keeps getting better… with the game is still early in development, improvements are constantly being made including a steady stream of new animals. Just recently a Kraken and a Megalania were added to further expand your options in the world.
It isn’t just a sandbox either, as ARK already features and endgame for dedicated players – featuring the deadliest of all creatures… the spider. I assume it’s a big one… Dani doesn’t say.
Unfortunately, the its scope, and early stage of development, mean ARK Survival Evolved suffers from a lot of performance issues. For an early development game this is to be expected of course, and the developer is actively chasing down bugs… but it’s something to keep in mind of technical issues prove a huge frustration.
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Tech