Game Dev Tycoon Reviews

[b]Game Dev Tycoon sat on my wishlist for a [i]very[/i] long time, and I feel a little sad now having played it that I didn’t play it sooner. Its influence on a number of simulation/tycoon games since its release is quite apparent! And the ‘Flash game’ aesthetics are, depressingly enough, nostalgic now in 2025.[/b] Developing games throughout the eras is interesting, as opposed to just an unbound timeline. It’s a fun little historical review tracking consoles and tech as it developed over time. I’ve never really thought about it much, so this game gave me a new, however limited, view into game design and game design history in the real world. Not many games can say that, so I think that’s a unique impression this game left on me. Despite this, the history is a bit contrived. Sequels being something you ‘research’ and unlock seems odd, as well as some aspects of your game engine never becoming auto-includes also doesn’t play well, even though they conceptually make sense. Overall, the gameplay is extremely research points bottle-necked, and it feels a little weird to be in the middle of the “mbox 360” era and not even have “online games” (for example) [b]easily[/b] unlocked. You’d have to decommit from focusing on other aspects which would just then make those [i]other[/i] missing things feel strange. I think it thematically makes sense that some topics and audiences are better for certain consoles, and it’s cute that they are somewhat reflected by how they were in real life, but the game also somewhat incentivizes multiple playthroughs, so it would be interesting if there were another game-mode with shuffled combinations, or different console histories. They already do this somewhat by randomizing the “topics” you can develop for and their unlock order. On the positive side, you can carry over knowledge from a previous run, and not only in your head, on what works well for each console, combination, audience, etc. In this way, the game is like a “roguelite”, but since this aspect of the game is a massive portion of your success, it makes future runs a bit less satisfying, even though you’re nearly guaranteed to be more successful. And that truly doesn’t feel good. Game satisfaction should be inextricably tied to success. The game does a good job with time-limited trends “strange combinations” being the best, “new topics” being the least sensical. But the combinations are not as vast as the topics, because for some reason “topic” is a huge pool, and “genre” is extremely limited. And even though we know the games industry exploded over the ages, you never see the number of critic reviews increase, there is really no “divisive” game (neither between critics nor between critics [u]and[/u] audience) as far as I can tell through two full plays. Altogether, this means Game Dev Tycoon encourages multiple playthroughs, but lacks on variety between playthroughs, and so the game is less like a dessert of one scoop each chocolate and vanilla, and more like scoops of chocolate and orange. Regardless, there’s stuff to like here. The loop is easy to understand, and it’s kind of addictive in a weird sort of way. I found the game hard to put down. My ~15 hours are more like 2 separate sessions of 5 hours each, as opposed to 7 sessions of 2 hours. So, despite all of the small shortcomings, it’s clearly doing something right in my brain. I think in 2025 you can get better Tycoon/simulation games on Steam, but this does go on sale for a pretty awesome price, and in addition to the game being fun enough in its own right, it’s given me a deeper appreciation for some tycoon and simulation games I’ve played that have come out in the time since, and that’s an experience worth having for someone that likes games and their history in our global culture. [b]6.5/10[/b]

You run a company that makes video games. There's a formula to get good reviews and make lots of money based on the audience type, game genre, platform, and specs. it starts off as a start-up company and then you can build it into a AAA big company where you get to hire employees and upgrade their skills. There's not much replayability after you beat the game.

Just finished a run after 8ish hours. A fun trip back to memory lane and how game development shaped throughout the years with it's references. I wish they added an updated version with dlc or a new game but the workshop fixes that a wee bit. 9/10 - all games *shakes fist*

Loved the game since it came out, but only now I bought it. I had this on wishlist for 12 years and now that I am finally playing it, I'd say that it was worth the wait.

its fun. nice NOT to worry about something or someone try to kill you somehow. just figure out the winnin combos and go for it

Found this game recently, having a great time playing it! Easy to understand how to play

A really fun and engaging tycoon game. It encourages you to try different genres together and feels like you're in the game development/console race golden age.

Gamers love games so how about playing a game on making games? This little gem offers great fun and infinite replayability. I can't recommend it enough!

Their focus on the Gameplay served this game very well. 9/10 -All Games

[h3] My First Steam Game [/h3] Game Dev Tycoon was the first game I got on Steam, and all these years later, I still love this little game. It’s simple, addictive, and with mods, it gets crazy fun. A game I always find myself coming back to!