City Bus Manager Reviews

loved every min of this game

being able to make your own bus routes. so fun!

Love this game and the scenerios you can play as this is the game i have been hooked on!

Great game, addictive and fun.

I was looking for a city BUS management, not a micro management of lockers, freezers and vending machines. I become bored at the tutorial. Not for me. 3/10.

City Bus Manager is a detailed and satisfying management simulation that offers players the chance to build, expand, and optimize their very own public bus company. Developed by PeDePe and published by Aerosoft, the game distinguishes itself within the simulation genre by focusing not just on logistics, but on the day-to-day operations of a public transport system. What makes City Bus Manager particularly unique is its use of real-world map data, allowing players to start their company in nearly any city around the globe, drawing from OpenStreetMap to recreate actual roads and neighborhoods. This lends a surprising amount of realism to the experience and creates a strong connection to the environment you’re managing. Starting from scratch, you're given an empty lot and a tight budget. Your job is to transform that plot into a functional and thriving depot, complete with garages, maintenance bays, cleaning stations, staff rooms, offices, and customer service facilities. Every detail, from where buses are parked to how many coffee machines your staff can access, can influence your company's efficiency and morale. As your fleet grows, so too does the complexity of managing operations. You must hire drivers, mechanics, and cleaners, assign work shifts, plan maintenance schedules, and ensure vehicles remain in good condition. Staff satisfaction is a constant consideration, and players must balance workload, salaries, and rest areas to keep the workforce productive. Route planning is at the heart of City Bus Manager's gameplay. Using the real-world map, you manually create routes based on existing roads and public demand. A sophisticated heatmap system shows areas of high passenger interest, such as train stations, schools, hospitals, and commercial zones, guiding your decisions on where to establish service. Every route can be adjusted in terms of bus frequency, hours of operation, and vehicle type, allowing for meticulous control over scheduling. Watching your buses move through the real city you selected—hitting every stop, facing delays, and adapting to evolving demand—gives a strong sense of accomplishment. Passenger satisfaction is a key performance metric. Riders will rate your service based on punctuality, cleanliness, and customer service, all of which feed into your company's reputation. The higher your reputation, the more passengers you attract and the more public funding you receive. Responding to feedback from the virtual public can lead to better route optimization and help guide future investment. This cycle of service, feedback, and improvement is central to the game’s loop, and it’s surprisingly engrossing. You’re not just moving dots across a screen—you’re running a public-facing business with all the logistical and social challenges that come with it. Financial management adds another strategic layer. You must carefully balance income from ticket sales, subsidies, and contracts against the costs of fuel, wages, repairs, and building upgrades. Poor planning can quickly sink your business, while smart investments in staff, infrastructure, or electric buses can lead to long-term gains. Optional objectives and scenarios give the player additional challenges and goals, such as handling a sudden increase in demand or meeting environmental sustainability targets. This adds purpose to the simulation and helps structure your expansion in meaningful ways. Visually, the game opts for a clean, functional aesthetic. Buildings and vehicles are stylized but clear, with an interface that prioritizes usability. It’s not the most graphically impressive simulation game, but the emphasis on readability and real-world map integration makes up for that. The user interface is dense but well-organized, though new players may feel overwhelmed at first. Fortunately, the built-in tutorials and gradual progression make learning the systems approachable. The sound design is fairly minimal, with ambient office noise and traffic sounds contributing to the immersion without being intrusive. One area where the game could improve is variety. While using real-world cities adds novelty, the overall progression system and building options can start to feel repetitive after extended play. Once a player finds a successful formula for route planning and depot management, there’s less incentive to experiment beyond scaling operations. Some users may also wish for more advanced tools or layers, such as traffic simulations or competitive rival companies, which would deepen the late-game challenge and increase replayability. Still, City Bus Manager shines in its ability to turn a seemingly mundane subject into something engaging and rewarding. There’s a genuine sense of pride in seeing a chaotic depot evolve into a well-oiled transport hub, with sleek buses running on time and satisfied passengers singing your praises. For players who enjoy logistics, city planning, and detailed micromanagement, this game delivers a rich and satisfying experience. It's not flashy, but it's thoughtful, well-executed, and full of depth. Whether you're building a humble bus line in your hometown or managing a sprawling transit empire in a global capital, City Bus Manager offers a compelling ride from start to finish. Rating: 8/10

Erst 5 Stunden und ich bin absolut hooked. Wer wie ich am Anfang von der Optik abgeschreckt war und befürchtet hat, im Stile eines mobile "Tycoon" "Manager" Spiels mit dämlichen Minigames beschäftigt zu werden um den täglichen Betrieb im Depot aufrechtzuerhalten, den kann ich beruhigen: Die Depot-Arbeit beschränkt sich tatsächlich im Wesentlichen auf HR, Arbeitsaufträge an das Personal und Finanzielles (Einkauf von Material, R&D, Preisstrategie)... oh, und das Sims-mäßige Aufhübschen der Location - was nicht unbedingt hätte sein müssen, aber zum Glück nicht mehr als ein paar Minuten in Anspruch nimmt. Bei alldem, was auch in Shop-Screenshots einen Hauptteil einnimmt, sollte der Star des Ganzen nicht im Hintergrund stehen: Die Map! Es gibt wenige so realistische Verkehrssimulationen: Schulen erzeugen ihr Fahrgastaufkommen Werktags morgens und mittags, Supermärkte Werktags Nachmittags/Abends, Event-Locations und Parks Wochenends, Bahnhöfe lassen Fahrgäste in Schüben erscheinen, Wohngebiete kontinuierlich. Und während das Ganze recht einfach wäre, hätte man eine handvoll vorgefertige Maps, liftet CBM reale Kartendaten mit realen Locations und existierenden Busverbindungen, die man entweder selbst nachbauen kann, oder seine eigenen ausbauen kann. Gibt es also nur Paris, London und Berlin in dem Spiel? Nein! Per Postcode lässt sich JEDE Ortschaft der Welt, von Tokio, New York, über Berlin, Bielefeld, Cham und Gaukönigshofen bis hin zu 50 Seelen-Orten in der sibirischen Taiga, der mauretanischen Wüste oder dem brasilianischen Regenwald abbilden. Das Alles, garniert mit realistischen Zufallsevents von Reisebus-Aufträgen zum lokalen Naturkundemuseum (in realer Position) über Shuttle-Services zum Fußballstadion der Stadt bis hin zum SEV zwischen zwei benachbarten Bahnhöfen, lässt das ÖPNV-Herz höher schlagen. Einziger Wehmutstropfen: unbefahrbare Straßen und Einbahnstraßen sind meist nicht gekennzeichnet, was das pathfinding in Innenstädten oft recht undurchsichtig macht. Kurz, mein Suchtspiel bis nächstes Jahr Transport Fever 3 rauskommt ist hiermit gefunden - viel Spaß!!

I like the integration of real street maps that are periodically updated. Gives unlimited combinations for routes and geographies. The game can lag when there are a lot of routes. I wish there was a manager option where I can pay a manager to adjust all the salaries and create the depot. I don't want to micromanage, just create profiable routes.

Great little game. Easy to pickup and play when you have a spare minute. Playable on a laptop, but works best on a dedicated machine. Have been playing with Steam streaming without any major issues.

Played this game and now understand why my local bus company went bankrupt. Would recommend to others because it feels realistic.