Game Dev Tycoon Review

I have to say that I like simulation games, though I am not usually very good at them. Recently, during the Steam Holiday Sale, I was able to pick up Greenheart Games' Game Dev Tycoon for next to nothing. That was great for me, but possibly less great for the developer so I thought I would do my part by posting a review.

Game Dev Tycoon, as the name implies, has you starting out a new game development company in your garage. You get to choose what platforms to make your games on, what genre and type of game as well as how much money and time you will put into the various aspects of the game. All of this is done with a simple pop-up menu system while you look down into your fledgling game studio.

All of the usual hallmarks of a tycoon simulation are there. You have the tech tree that you can research to unlock new technologies for your game engines (surround sound, cut-scenes, dialogue trees, full-motion video, etc.). You also are responsible for hiring, developing and/or firing your staff as your company grows. You choose what type of booth you want at the annual convention and how you want market your game. You also decide when the games you develop are finished and ready to ship.

To make a game in Game Dev Tycoon, you select the genre, platform and type of game you want. What you can choose depends on what systems you have licenses to, what you have researched and what type of game engines you have developed for your team to code on. As you make games, you will gain research points that can be spent (along with the money you make selling your games) on training your staff or researching the latest and greatest technology. You also are responsible for balancing your staff on projects (once you start doing medium or large projects) to ensure no one is over-allocated or burnt out.

Once a game is finished, you release it and then get to see the reviews come in. The reviews are all a simple phrase and a number from four different game reviewers. The higher the review score the more-likely you will have a breakout hit that can make millions for your company. If you have a string of poor games or need money, you can also take on contract work for some quick cash to keep your studio afloat. You can also work with a publisher on a game, which may give you access to a larger audience but at the expense of them taking the lion share of the revenues and dictating what type of game you have to make.

I really liked how the game systems that you can develop for are modeled on real-life systems. That does have a drawback of making Game Dev Tycoon a little easier if you know your console history and which platforms to avoid. It is also always suspenseful waiting to see what rating your new game will get, hoping for a blockbuster. I still haven't figured out exactly what makes the reviewers like a game most as each game you develop has to have the right genre and style for the platform as well as a lot of design and technology invested by your team to seem to get a lot of customers but that may not result in a highly rated game.

If you like to do some high-level managing of a game studio and call the shots, Game Dev Tycoon is an easy to learn & play and fun way to do that. It is also relatively cheap whether on sale or not (typically $9.99 on Steam). I give Game Dev Tycoon 4 Mick Happies. Now I have to get my studio, Entertainbert, back to making PoE 2.