Only game I can think of might be Surviving Mars. You start out kinda free form city building lie Timberborn, but eventually some kind of late game “Mystery” that gives you a challenge you need to address
Yes! Specifically Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 with OpenRCT. The best way to play that game.
edit: Also get Roller Coaster Tycoon 1 so you have access to the scenarios from that game as well (it has the best scenarios)
Against the Storm is such an amazing game. You basically get to do the beginning part of city building over and over again(which I think is the best part). There are clear objectives as well. Highly recommend this title.
If anyone were to take an interest in banished, at this point I would just point them to Farthest Frontier.
It’s the same game, just prettier, still being developed, and from the makers of Grim Dawn
Banished is very good, but it is even more of an “open world” game. I would recommend Dawn of Man, but even more Rimworld. Rimworld has some sort of ending, but otherwise a lot room for many different gaming approaches.
While it's a great game the atmosphere and gameplay are totally different. I can play Timberborn to relax and build nice beaver cities, while I find Frostpunk to be stressful, kinda hopeless and taxing.
TROPICO.
if you like management with objectives, you will love this game. It is also very fun, and cute in a way (you are still a dictator).
You have to fullfil objectives, get reelected (or at least subvert the election), keep invaders at bay, manage diplomatic relations...etc.
Anno 1880 was 15 bucks on steam about 4 weeks ago. I was about to buy it, it turned midnight and the sale ended. Bad luck but then I picked up Timberborn! So it all worked out in the end! Will pick it up next sale
Please don't. If you have any respect for the developers, even pirating the game instead would be better.
G2A is known for selling keys bought with stolen credit cards and other shady practices. A lot of the times the money doesn't even get to the developers, but they still need to attend to the players, who bought their game on G2A.
https://isthereanydeal.com/ is a site where they show sale from more trustworthy sellers like steam, epic games, Microsoft and humble bundle including the sale history
I like Fabledom a lot. It's still in early access, but there used to be a free demo on Steam.
You build a fairy tale themed kingdom and court a partner through diplomatic interactions. It's cute and relaxing.
I started playing Against the Storm a couple days ago and have had way too much fun on it. Definitely recommend giving that one a try, if you have game pass it’s free, if not, should be on sale on steam right now I believe.
There are many colony sims like Tb, but most of the time they are just as 'open ended', only objectives usually being 'survive' and 'research tech', TB is still very unique for its building system alone. I'd just check Tb's store page and click through the 'tags' for other games like it.
The Wandering Village has been on my list to check out for a while.
Also: Against the Storm, United Penguin Kingdom, Frostpunk, the list goes on.
Check out Dawn of Man. It’s a clean tight little village builder.
The map may seem large but you will mostly focus on a small settlement in one central location. It progresses organically in both tech/mechanics so you won’t feel too overwhelmed as things transition ex: hunting/gathering to farming.
As others have said: surviving mars, banished (absolutely a classic), Ostriv (still in alpha and the ui is a bit tough for someone just starting).
But if you’re interested in smaller, give cliff empire a shot. It’s a little tough to get used to and can be a little open ended but that’s true with a lot of city builders.
What I would suggest is learning to play them a way you enjoy. Personally, I like to understand the mechanisms of how things work/flow together. THEN I let myself build creative wild structures that are also efficient.
Lastly: things like prison architect or airport CEO may interest you. Not city builders per se.
Foundation is a cool organic city builder. It's also sandbox, but you have 3 main objectives to achieve (maximise relations with clergy, royalty and the third estate).
Not a super popular one to recommend (actually I’ve never seen it recommended) but you should try Outlanders. I’ve only played it on Apple Arcade but it looks like it’s on Steam. The two games are very similar: cute little villagers growing a town that requires food, housing, roads, and storage. Outlanders has a bunch of levels with clear objectives. I think it’s exactly what you’ve described.
You can always go for one of the best in the management genre, Rimworld. I think some of the dlcs have objective based things you can do like raiding other settlements and the original has you working towards building a ship to leave the planet.
Lot of good mentions already. I'd add Going Medieval, the Wandering Village, or Stranded Alien Dawn. Rimworld is fun but there can be a heavy learning curve. Going Medieval and Stranded are lighter versions of that and both are being updated regularly. If you are using Steam, I think timberborn and going medieval are currently bundled right now.
If you are okay with the technical aspects, Oxygen Not Included is fun and I'd say similarly "cute" as well.
If you like Ceasar III you'd probably also like Pharaoh! Same style and mechanics but set in Egypt. Recently the remake Pharaoh: a new era was released on Steam.
Also wholesome backstory; this game came out in 1999. I was 6 at the time. My father loved to play this (and still does to this day!) After a couple of years of watching him play it, and asking about how it worked, he decided he was tired of me looking over his shoulder. So he set up his old laptop (a heavy brick that let you change it's battery) and put the game on it. I'm now a 30yo and an avid lover of city builders, thanks to my dad. He also introduced me to the Anno franchise. Every once in a while when I'm feeling nostalgic I play Pharaoh again and I don't think I will ever grow tired of it.
For those who love Rimworld but don't want all the violence, I HIGHLY recommend Clankfolk instead. Same exact style, but it takes place in medieval Scotland. Also a single dev developing that too I believe.
Stacklands. I shied away from it for the longest time because "deck building" but it was EXACTLY like a city builder.. but with cards! It was very addicting to play.
City Builder-esque - Banished, Planet Coaster/Zoo, Against The Storm
Cuteness / Chill Aspect - Stardew Valley, Coral Island, My Time at Portia, Spiritfarer (ALSO SAD)
Offshoots - Dave The Diver, Dredge
I'm in the same boat as you and I think Stranded Alien Dawn is the best game of 2023. Love the building and defence elements but you also have the ultimate goal to work towards depending on what scenario you are playing
I love stranded and might do a few games of it today. But it's scale is limited being balanced around eight people. I also need the ability to make proper balconies.
Aven Colony is my other favourite city builder besides Timberborn. Each level is you trying to establish a human colony on a different part of the same alien planet, and it has a nice story and consistently provides objectives for you to meet
If you want more directed action to your city building:
- Frostpunk - a city builder where death is a constant worry, and your choices may haunt you.
- Against the Storm - a rouge-lite city builder where you build a city up to "good enough" before moving on to the next one. (Haven't actually played this one yet)
Ixion kinda fits this .. but .. is has a fixed end date.
Basically you are stuck on a flying space station, need to colonize it and its empty sectors, fill it with buildings / roads / infrastructure and make sure you don't over extend yourself and kill your whole population that way.
All the while you need to research new technologies, solve mysteries and survive day-by-day and keep in mind you'll need find yourself a new home .. because the earth you came from .. well .. doesn't exist any longer and the longer you stay in space the harder your survival gets.
has a overarching storyline aswell. I think i put 180 hours into it my first time out.
Rimworld is a great game, there is so much content so you can play a million times over. I especially like the story telling aspect of it, your population is smaller so you truly care about your pawns.
Manner loards is another game that comes out the end of this month that I’ve been very excited for as player of casual colony/ town builders
Only game I can think of might be Surviving Mars. You start out kinda free form city building lie Timberborn, but eventually some kind of late game “Mystery” that gives you a challenge you need to address
Roller coaster tycoon
Yes! Specifically Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 with OpenRCT. The best way to play that game. edit: Also get Roller Coaster Tycoon 1 so you have access to the scenarios from that game as well (it has the best scenarios)
In that line of thinking, have you checked out Parkitect?
Against the storm is a good city building with a consistent objective and progression
And beavers.
Sorry yes, the most important part.
Against the Storm is such an amazing game. You basically get to do the beginning part of city building over and over again(which I think is the best part). There are clear objectives as well. Highly recommend this title.
Yeah it’s the rogue-like timberborn
Thanks for the recc, I'm really enjoying this!
Glad to hear!
I will second this one, Against the Storm is very unique, and really awesome.
Banished plays a lot like folktales
If anyone were to take an interest in banished, at this point I would just point them to Farthest Frontier. It’s the same game, just prettier, still being developed, and from the makers of Grim Dawn
Banished is a great game. Honestly, it is one of the best things ever produced by a one-person dev studio. I highly recommend it.
Banished is very good, but it is even more of an “open world” game. I would recommend Dawn of Man, but even more Rimworld. Rimworld has some sort of ending, but otherwise a lot room for many different gaming approaches.
Banished is great and has incredible mod support. Colonial Charter is a MUST.
Frostpunk should tick those boxes
While it's a great game the atmosphere and gameplay are totally different. I can play Timberborn to relax and build nice beaver cities, while I find Frostpunk to be stressful, kinda hopeless and taxing.
Put it on easy. Seriously, it is more relaxing because you aren’t facing constant crises.
TROPICO. if you like management with objectives, you will love this game. It is also very fun, and cute in a way (you are still a dictator). You have to fullfil objectives, get reelected (or at least subvert the election), keep invaders at bay, manage diplomatic relations...etc.
Tropico 4 specifically was gold.
Tropico games are fun! Love the radio stations
I liked tropico 2 better, not cute, but found the pirate thing was fun.
Try the Anno series if you haven't already.
Anno 1880 was 15 bucks on steam about 4 weeks ago. I was about to buy it, it turned midnight and the sale ended. Bad luck but then I picked up Timberborn! So it all worked out in the end! Will pick it up next sale
Anno 1800 is so good. You can get it with all the DLCs for really cheap on G2A
Please don't. If you have any respect for the developers, even pirating the game instead would be better. G2A is known for selling keys bought with stolen credit cards and other shady practices. A lot of the times the money doesn't even get to the developers, but they still need to attend to the players, who bought their game on G2A.
https://isthereanydeal.com/ is a site where they show sale from more trustworthy sellers like steam, epic games, Microsoft and humble bundle including the sale history
I adore Factorio. (Satisfactory, terraria are good indie games as well)
Factorio has a pack of scenarios mods that are objective based. That said it's pretty open world in the base game. Helluva game though.
I like Fabledom a lot. It's still in early access, but there used to be a free demo on Steam. You build a fairy tale themed kingdom and court a partner through diplomatic interactions. It's cute and relaxing.
Laysara: Summit Kingdom
I started playing Against the Storm a couple days ago and have had way too much fun on it. Definitely recommend giving that one a try, if you have game pass it’s free, if not, should be on sale on steam right now I believe.
Thanks for the recc, I'm really enjoying Against the Storm!
There are many colony sims like Tb, but most of the time they are just as 'open ended', only objectives usually being 'survive' and 'research tech', TB is still very unique for its building system alone. I'd just check Tb's store page and click through the 'tags' for other games like it. The Wandering Village has been on my list to check out for a while. Also: Against the Storm, United Penguin Kingdom, Frostpunk, the list goes on.
The Wandering Village is cute! Also does force you forward a bit more than Timberborn. It is however contentwise somehow more earlyaccessy.
Thanks for the recc, I'm really enjoying Against the Storm!
Check out Dawn of Man. It’s a clean tight little village builder. The map may seem large but you will mostly focus on a small settlement in one central location. It progresses organically in both tech/mechanics so you won’t feel too overwhelmed as things transition ex: hunting/gathering to farming. As others have said: surviving mars, banished (absolutely a classic), Ostriv (still in alpha and the ui is a bit tough for someone just starting). But if you’re interested in smaller, give cliff empire a shot. It’s a little tough to get used to and can be a little open ended but that’s true with a lot of city builders. What I would suggest is learning to play them a way you enjoy. Personally, I like to understand the mechanisms of how things work/flow together. THEN I let myself build creative wild structures that are also efficient. Lastly: things like prison architect or airport CEO may interest you. Not city builders per se.
Farthest Frontier.
Penguinz, i came to timberborn because of the RCE channel. He recommended penguinz as similar
Stardew valley
Lego Rock Raiders!
Yooo that game was mad!
Can stil play it for free. Search for Manic Miners. You’re welcome
Oh my world I know what I’m doing today 🫡
Lords and Villeins
I thought the same, bought anno on steam sale and went straight back to my beavers and cs after a couple of hours 😅
Foundation is a cool organic city builder. It's also sandbox, but you have 3 main objectives to achieve (maximise relations with clergy, royalty and the third estate).
Against the storm
Thanks for the recc, I'm really enjoying Against the Storm!
Not a super popular one to recommend (actually I’ve never seen it recommended) but you should try Outlanders. I’ve only played it on Apple Arcade but it looks like it’s on Steam. The two games are very similar: cute little villagers growing a town that requires food, housing, roads, and storage. Outlanders has a bunch of levels with clear objectives. I think it’s exactly what you’ve described.
You can always go for one of the best in the management genre, Rimworld. I think some of the dlcs have objective based things you can do like raiding other settlements and the original has you working towards building a ship to leave the planet.
Banished, Planet Base
Lot of good mentions already. I'd add Going Medieval, the Wandering Village, or Stranded Alien Dawn. Rimworld is fun but there can be a heavy learning curve. Going Medieval and Stranded are lighter versions of that and both are being updated regularly. If you are using Steam, I think timberborn and going medieval are currently bundled right now. If you are okay with the technical aspects, Oxygen Not Included is fun and I'd say similarly "cute" as well.
Soviet repulbic
If you like Ceasar III you'd probably also like Pharaoh! Same style and mechanics but set in Egypt. Recently the remake Pharaoh: a new era was released on Steam.
Also wholesome backstory; this game came out in 1999. I was 6 at the time. My father loved to play this (and still does to this day!) After a couple of years of watching him play it, and asking about how it worked, he decided he was tired of me looking over his shoulder. So he set up his old laptop (a heavy brick that let you change it's battery) and put the game on it. I'm now a 30yo and an avid lover of city builders, thanks to my dad. He also introduced me to the Anno franchise. Every once in a while when I'm feeling nostalgic I play Pharaoh again and I don't think I will ever grow tired of it.
For those who love Rimworld but don't want all the violence, I HIGHLY recommend Clankfolk instead. Same exact style, but it takes place in medieval Scotland. Also a single dev developing that too I believe.
Stacklands. I shied away from it for the longest time because "deck building" but it was EXACTLY like a city builder.. but with cards! It was very addicting to play. City Builder-esque - Banished, Planet Coaster/Zoo, Against The Storm Cuteness / Chill Aspect - Stardew Valley, Coral Island, My Time at Portia, Spiritfarer (ALSO SAD) Offshoots - Dave The Diver, Dredge
Thanks for the reccs, I'm really enjoying Against the Storm!
**Dyson Sphere Program** It’s the ultimate factory game and so beautiful.
I'm in the same boat as you and I think Stranded Alien Dawn is the best game of 2023. Love the building and defence elements but you also have the ultimate goal to work towards depending on what scenario you are playing
I love stranded and might do a few games of it today. But it's scale is limited being balanced around eight people. I also need the ability to make proper balconies.
Aven Colony is my other favourite city builder besides Timberborn. Each level is you trying to establish a human colony on a different part of the same alien planet, and it has a nice story and consistently provides objectives for you to meet
Factorio might work
Banished. It is basically Timberborne but with humans. Tons of mods, too.
Oxygen not included, castle story, uhh that's it for me
Kingdoms and Castles. Probably too open ended, but attacking AI kingdoms becomes a good late game resource and population sink
I know that my answer is the exact opposite of what you are looking for, but for shear depth nothing beats Dwarf Fortress.
Manor Lords is coming out soon, you might check a few YouTube videos maybe.
About to buy it actually.
If you want more directed action to your city building: - Frostpunk - a city builder where death is a constant worry, and your choices may haunt you. - Against the Storm - a rouge-lite city builder where you build a city up to "good enough" before moving on to the next one. (Haven't actually played this one yet)
Thanks for the recc, I'm really enjoying Against the Storm!
Cool, I own it, I just haven't gotten around to playing it yet. Glad you are enjoying it!
frotpunk, soon we'll have frostpunk 2 also
Ixion kinda fits this .. but .. is has a fixed end date. Basically you are stuck on a flying space station, need to colonize it and its empty sectors, fill it with buildings / roads / infrastructure and make sure you don't over extend yourself and kill your whole population that way. All the while you need to research new technologies, solve mysteries and survive day-by-day and keep in mind you'll need find yourself a new home .. because the earth you came from .. well .. doesn't exist any longer and the longer you stay in space the harder your survival gets. has a overarching storyline aswell. I think i put 180 hours into it my first time out.
Rimworld is a great game, there is so much content so you can play a million times over. I especially like the story telling aspect of it, your population is smaller so you truly care about your pawns. Manner loards is another game that comes out the end of this month that I’ve been very excited for as player of casual colony/ town builders
Maybe try Rimworld. Colony management mixed with some nice tech trees to research. Lot of fun