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[kswiston]

I'm looking for a strategy (or simulation) title that focuses on building economies. A lot of RTS, TBS and Sim games will have an economic component to them, but I find that warfare or city building is usually the central focus. I am not looking for something like Civ 4/5 or Sim City 4.

So, what are the best economic strategy/sim games out there? What would be a good title to start with if the best games are extremely complex? Also, it would help to know why you are recommending each title.

 

[moggio]

The Anno series?

 

[Hasemo]

Transport Tycoon Deluxe.
Game of my childhood, you're building a transport empire - roads, bus stops, railroads etc. etc.
One I linked is a free version based on the Deluxe version of the game.

 

[Tizoc]

There is a game for the NDS that was released only in Japan...about stock trading or some such:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kabu_Trader_Shun
Alas it was too advanced for our underdeveloped non-Japanese minds to take in.

Will check out TT Deluxe though, thanks for the link~

 

[Munin]

Port Royale II/Patrician III. Two very similar games, very economics heavy. You do very little building. It's focused on trading, and there's a lot of detail.

 

[Ledsen]

Victoria 2 maybe.

 

[Ogris]

Transport Tycoon Deluxe.
Game of my childhood, you're building a transport empire - roads, bus stops, railroads etc. etc.
One I linked is a free version based on the Deluxe version of the game.

The only game you'll ever need.

 

[Tempy]

Probably not what you're looking for

 

[TheExodu5]

EVE Online if you really get into it.

 

[kswiston]

Thanks for the suggestions. I think I will start with Patrician 3.

 

[Alex Connolly]

Victoria 2 maybe.

I wouldn't kick off with Vicky 2 if he mentioned a good entry level game.

Will echo Munin and say Port Royale or Patrician. Also check out something like Industry Giant.

 

[Oreoleo]

Tropico? Might be a bit too heavy on city building for what you are looking for though.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

So much fun trying to build routes from New York to Chicago to get the 2 million dollar bonus on the map I always played. You either won the game or got screwed when the market took a nose dive.

 

[Beren]

Lots of buildings/research/economics/travel routes, different factions, on land and underwater, not too heavy on battles, still one of my favorite strategy games

@TheExodu5 ahhh sorry i am very sleepy lol , ya Anno is not that heavy on economics sorry

 

[Aselith]

For pure economic sim, I'd say the Patrician series is tops. Also, Civilization Colonization focuses much more on economy than vanilla Civ so that actually might fit the bill for you also.

 

[TheExodu5]

He said he didn't want city builders. Anno really isn't an economy focused game.

 

[Toma]

Settlers 2? Still a great economy management game and rather easy to get into. Alternatively, get the remake, which looks like this:

Its still a "city builder" game basically, but most of the game revolves around getting the the resource production line properly up and working. Other than that, the various Tycoon games probably.

Another suggestion would be the already mentioned Patrician games, which is mostly trading:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fceTaWXfQ-8

 

[Tempy]

Is Patrician IV worth it? I noticed it has a lower score than Patrician III.

 

[Toma]

Is Patrician IV worth it? I noticed it has a lower score than Patrician III.

Yeah, I think it got a bit too much flag for being released during a time where barely anyone likes to play this style of game.

 

[Accoun]

Capitallism 2? (still, after so many years)

 

[Toma]

Capitallism 2? (still, after so many years)

That suggestion probably wins the thread. Listen to this guy and try Capitalism 2. It also has a demo, try that if you arent prepared to drop $9,99(currently on sale instead of $20) on a random suggestion:

 

[Accoun]

prepared to drop 25$

Woah, it goes for that much?! I remember getting it on cover DVD of special issue of one local gaming mag a few years ago...

 

[MrNyarlathotep]

I'll also recommend the Patrician series.

 

[Boss Doggie]

So many!

Anno series, Sid Meier's Railroads, Consumerism, etc.

 

[Toma]

Woah, it goes for that much?! I remember getting it on cover DVD of special issue of one local gaming mag a few years ago...

Mistyped, normal price is usually $20, and its currently on a New Years sale for $10.
The game has no competition and hasnt been bested yet, I can see why its still rather expensive.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

Y'all people are joking. It's about get real serious right here.

I'll explain more later. Gotta take a shower.

 

[Toma]

Y'all people are joking. It's about get real serious right here.

I'll explain more later. Gotta take a shower.

If you havent tried Capitalism 2 or Capitalism Lab yet, you should really try them. Nothing is besting these games on pure economy and market play. The paradox games are all still great games though.

 

[Boss Doggie]

There needs to be a more "modern" setting - too much on the Victorian and Galleon era here. Even Railroads is stuck in the early 1900's. Capitalism is like that.

 

[Trellisaze]

Mistyped, normal price is usually $20, and its currently on a New Years sale for $10.
The game has no competition and hasnt been bested yet, I can see why its still rather expensive.

Another thumbs up for the Capitalism recommendation. GOG has it as well if you miss the sale from Enlight: http://www.gog.com/gamecard/capitalism_2

 

[Toma]

Another thumbs up for the Capitalism recommendation. GOG has it as well if you miss the sale from Enlight: http://www.gog.com/gamecard/capitalism_2

Just noticed that the dude released a new version with more features in 2012, called Capitalism Lab :-O

Just bought it, totally going to be over it after next week. Price is 20$ and includes Seven Kingdoms II (fun RTS game), a restaurant Tycoon game by him I havent played yet and Joan of Ark (3D adventure, which looks horrible now and I probably wont play).

Feature list for C2 + CL:

Make critical business decisions in all areas including retail, manufacturing, marketing, research, agriculture, mining, real estate development and more.

Choose from over 60 product types to manufacture and market.


Hire and fire upper management positions such as Chief Operating Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, and Chief Technical Officer.


Develop your own technology or acquire it from another company.


Expand your corporation into a true conglomerate; get ink on your fingers and take to the airwaves with your newspaper publishers, TV, and radio stations.


A realistic stock market that allows you to trade stock for quick profits or make long-term investments for ultimate rewards. On a corporate level, you may take the path of merger and acquisition to expand your business empire rapidly.

Additions over C2:
Land Plots
Enhanced Simulation of Apartments and Commercial Buildings
Community and Sports Facilities
City Dynamics
Enhanced Macroeconomic Simulation
Inflation
Product Class Expertise
Technology Disruption
Intangible Asset: Technology
Tech-focused AI Companies
Retail Simulation Enhancement
Warehouse
Build Media Firms
New Products
Enhanced Product Simulation
Improved management of your subsidiary companies
Stock Market Enhancement
Person Report Enhancement

Random screenshot:

 

[Alex Connolly]

Y'all people are joking. It's about get real serious right here.

I'll explain more later. Gotta take a shower.

As stated, if the OP was asking for economic sims, I daresay he'd be at the opposite end of the subset spectrum from Vicky 2 - if not, it'd be a safe bet to assume they had climbed this ladder prior.

Personally speaking, I don't think Victory 2 is a great pick if the OP has gravitated towards Patrician - which is ultimately a far more surgical trader/econ sim than the grand imperial package Vicky 2 offers. Sometimes a bloke just wants to shunt his little ships around the Baltic.

 

[Conciliator]

Capitalism 2 is fuckin intense. I used to have it on CD; I liked it a lot but it was so complicated that I felt I never really grasped it.

 

[Toma]

Capitalism 2 is fuckin intense. I used to have it on CD; I liked it a lot but it was so complicated that I felt I never really grasped it.

Man, its been aaaaages. Cant wait to try out the sequel released last year

 

[Slamtastic]

TF2 trade servers.

Includes gambling and real money trading too!

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

As stated, if the OP was asking for economic sims, I daresay he'd be at the opposite end of the subset spectrum from Vicky 2 - if not, it'd be a safe bet to assume they had climbed this ladder prior.

Personally speaking, I don't think Victory 2 is a great pick if the OP has gravitated towards Patrician - which is ultimately a far more surgical trader/econ sim than the grand imperial package Vicky 2 offers. Sometimes a bloke just wants to shunt his little ships around the Baltic.

Vicky 2 is a lot of things, depending on what nation you play and how you want to play them. But if you want to focus on industry, it's very much FACTORY MANAGEMENT: THE GAME. You'll play power politics with great nations to compete for resources to keep your factories going and thus your economy booming. Tax management and people management is present although abstract. But it's a great game if you're into pie charts. The economy is a huge focus of the game, and it's where most of the depth comes from. I think it's fair to say it qualifies as something OP was asking for, as opposed to something like CiV where its 100% abstracted and a minor part of the game.

 

[Toma]

Vicky 2 is a lot of things, depending on what nation you play and how you want to play them. But if you want to focus on industry, it's very much FACTORY MANAGEMENT: THE GAME. You'll play power politics with great nations to compete for resources to keep your factories going and thus your economy booming. Tax management and people management is present although abstract. But it's a great game if you're into pie charts. The economy is a huge focus of the game, and it's where most of the depth comes from. I think it's fair to say it qualifies as something OP was asking for, as opposed to something like CiV where its 100% abstracted and a minor part of the game.

Sure I agree that its a fun game, sort of fits the description and deserves a mention here, but seriously. Did you play Capitalism 2? Because its this thread - the game economy simulator.

 

[ThoseDeafMutes]

Sure I agree that its a fun game, sort of fits the description and deserves a mention here, but seriously. Did you play Capitalism 2? Because its this thread - the game economical simulator.

Nope, but I don't understand why he can't try both?

 

[Toma]

Nope, but I don't understand why he can't try both?

You were the one saying "Y'all people are joking." after we posted our suggestions, including the post by someone about Capitalism 2, which made you look like dismissing the other suggestions and I wanted to know on which foundation you are dismissing the other games. Internet miscommunication I guess

Of course people should try all of the games for one or the other reason if they like the look of it.

 

[Teknopathetic]

If it reliably worked on modern PCs, I'd say The Corporate Machine.

 

[Toma]

If it reliably worked on modern PCs, I'd say The Corporate Machine.

That looks nice too, you tried and it doesnt work properly?

 

[Woo-Fu]

X3, why settle for an economy at the bottom of a gravity well when you can have one that spans a universe?

 

[Corto]

Football Manager franchise. Start on a secondary league and go all the way up to the championship in a few seasons.

 

[Toma]

Football Manager franchise. Start on a secondary league and go all the way up to the championship in a few seasons.

Oh lol, how can I forgot FM while I just played that yesterday. Fits the description as well. Great games.

 

[Randdalf]

I've spent hours playing Capitalism II, though I figured out how to easily break the game:

Spoiler

make a simple discount megastore to build-up cash reserves, and slowly buy all the newspaper, television and radio buildings from the government; then use the never-ending flow of cash to buy stocks in every company until you control a massive conglomerate which owns everything, but all the management is left to the AI

. It's quite difficult to get a large, unique successful business in that game.

Man, its been aaaaages. Cant wait to try out the sequel released last year

There's a sequel?

 

[The Albatross]

Port Royale II/Patrician III. Two very similar games, very economics heavy. You do very little building. It's focused on trading, and there's a lot of detail.

This. Port royale is what you want.

 

[Toma]

I've spent hours playing Capitalism II, though I figured out how to easily break the game:

Spoiler

make a simple discount megastore to build-up cash reserves, and slowly buy all the newspaper, television and radio buildings from the government; then use the never-ending flow of cash to buy stocks in every company until you control a massive conglomerate which owns everything, but all the management is left to the AI

. It's quite difficult to get a large, unique successful business in that game.



There's a sequel?

Apparently they added quite a few new stuff to Capitalism Lab. They call it a standalone addon, but after 11 years, I might as well call it a sequel if it has more features

 

[Teknopathetic]

"That looks nice too, you tried and it doesnt work properly?"

Yeah, I don't believe it works too well on modern PCs, IIRC it didn't run at all on my windows 7 machine. I'd love a sequel, 3 Political Machine games, not a single Corporate Machine sequel. What up with that, Brad Wardell.

 

[Alex Connolly]

Vicky 2 is a lot of things, depending on what nation you play and how you want to play them. But if you want to focus on industry, it's very much FACTORY MANAGEMENT: THE GAME. You'll play power politics with great nations to compete for resources to keep your factories going and thus your economy booming. Tax management and people management is present although abstract. But it's a great game if you're into pie charts. The economy is a huge focus of the game, and it's where most of the depth comes from. I think it's fair to say it qualifies as something OP was asking for, as opposed to something like CiV where its 100% abstracted and a minor part of the game.

Fair call. And I don't want to appear like Vicky 2 isn't an option, because it's certainly everything you articulated.

 

[ChoklitReign]

Any single player games like Catan? I got hooked to Catan during the holidays precisely because it's a strategy game for dummies. Line OP I don't care for city building or warfare.

 

[kswiston]

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

I already had Patrician III from sale or bundle or whatnot, so I am going to start there.

Capitalism 2 also sounds interesting. I wishlisted it on GOG so that I remember to check it out again in the near future. I sort of wish I asked this question last week, since it was probably on sale for $5.

I actually have Victoria I from some other sale or bundle. How different is Victoria II from the first game? Is the first game even worth playing now that the sequel is out?