When one thinks of building cities in video games, playing games that seek to replicate the complex and arduous process of city-building comes to mind. Such games are usually fun for people who enjoy them, but they might appear intimidating to people who aren’t well-versed in the genre. Games like Cities: Skylines and SimCity 4 usually opt for a realistic or simulation-based approach, meaning there isn’t much scope for not taking things seriously.
On the antipode, games like Go-Go Town! by Prideful Sloth give you plenty of relaxation and are silly enough to alleviate stress after a long workday. That doesn’t mean that they don’t possess gameplay elements found in games the hyper-realistic simulation-based games I mentioned earlier, but they do it their way, with a bit of style, and don’t require a NASA computer.
Go-Go Town! Releases for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S in 2024.
City Building Doesn’t Have to Boring at All if You Play Go-Go Town!
To put it bluntly, I had no idea what I was going for when I first booted up the game. I had never ventured into the world of a city-building Go-Go Town! But as soon as I hit play and started to witness Go-Go Town!, I found myself getting sucked into the game. Everything from its cute visuals to its soundtrack felt cozy. Another highlight of the game is that it features couch co-op, a breath of fresh air.
The core gameplay loop of the game is simple and effective. You are given the reigns to a town that was recently run down. It is a piece of land occupied by no one apart from you and the employees from TownCo. The in-game company that hired you.
You populate your city, build houses and shops, and engage in Terraform building, mining, farming, and fishing to gather raw materials and items you need for your ventures. You must also transport raw materials or automate the process by assigning professionals.
You unlock new building packs called EGO Tech, which allow you to build different infrastructure, and you buy such packs using EGO, the in-game currency for buying EGO Tech. To build something, you need coins, which you can attain by building shops and businesses, attracting more population, and incentivizing them to settle down in your town.
As you develop your town gradually, your EGO increases, and you will gain coins. You will occasionally participate in challenges to climb the ranks in an in-game leaderboard. Overall, climbing the ranks is a valued goal.
The entire gameplay loop did turn a bit repetitive during my playthrough, which spanned a few hours, but since the game is early access, new elements and avenues to explore will possibly be added to Go-Go Town! soon.
Go-Go Town! Is Easy on the Eyes and the Ears
The overall look and feel of the game can remind you of various other forms of media. In some way, it is similar to Fall Guys, a color palette containing light shades, everything appearing jelly-like. And honestly, it makes the game feel authentic and full of heart. The art style focuses on smooth, rounded edges, making the game look aesthetically pleasing.
The graphics are beautiful, the game is well-optimized. The only complaint is the anti-aliasing is a little off and sometimes leads to jagged edges. Everything else, the shadows, the textures, lighting, and shaders, fits right in and never seems out of place.
The soundtrack is a blend of relaxing music containing lo-fi sounds and instrumental music, making the game a proper couch experience, perfect for when you want to destress. But even after reading all of this, one might wonder if the game is worth their time. And the answer is as straightforward as you can assume.
Is Go-Go Town! Good?
During my playthrough of Go-Go Town! I was chuckling, smiling, and sometimes even laughing at how silly the game was. That brings me to the question: Is the game worth your time? Well, to be straight, it depends on what you are looking for.
If you like incredibly profound games, hardly have time to adjust video games to your tight schedule, and want to make the best of your time. This might not be it. But if you love city-building games, wouldn’t mind playing something silly with friends, or want to play something that won’t stress you out, this might be your jam.
Even more amazing is that the game is in early access, and if games like Baldur’s Gate 3 are anything to go by, this means it will only get better as time goes on!
