People love sim games for many reasons. Games like Civilization, Age of Empires, or Sims generate a great devotion that often borders on madness. Regarding building sims, games like Dyson Sphere Program, Surviving Mars, or RollerCoaster Tycoon have broken the barrier of the possible and gone beyond.

This is also the case of Cities Skylines, a master in the city-building and planning genre, since it integrates all the essential elements of a game of this kind. Today, we’ll be discussing some Games Like Cities Skyline – seven indispensable pieces of the genre that let you spend literally hours and hours building things.

• Release Date: March 10, 2015

• Developer: Colossal Order

• Publisher: Paradox Interactive

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, OS X, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Google Stadia

• Metascore: 85

Cities Skylines, as its name indicates, is a city-building game, but also much more than that. I like to say that Cities Skylines is a civilization planning where you, as a city builder, create the best conditions for the citizens and guests of your settlement.

Cities Skylines depicts the quintessence of classic city simulation, architecture, and building games since it contains all the basics of the genre, such as urban planning, public services, road placements, taxes, and transportation, to create an interconnected city that really works.

Cities Skylines pays special attention to details in such a way that provides a complete building experience where you really feel the city depends on you. Besides, customization options are multiple, so you can vary your settlement as you wish and always create a different city. Besides, it’s so enjoyable, provides hours and hours of fun, and contains so much content that it is virtually impossible to stop playing it!

Cities Skylines is the final building experience while maintaining a real city whilst expanding on some typical topics of the city building experience.

Key Features:

• Construct your city from the ground and become the mayor of your city.

• Traffic, police, district, and day and night simulation.

• The possibility of constructing your neighborhoods and the entire city.

Cities: Skylines Global Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Seven games, seven different experiences, and seven unique tycoon and city-building simulators to play right now thanks to RoyalCDKeys.

• Release Date: January 26, 2018

• Developer: Gaming Minds Studios

• Publisher: Kalypso Media

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch

• Metascore: 79

Contrary to Cities Skylines, Railway Empire is majorly based on the construction of a railroad and how you manage it to achieve a good service performance. But that is not all! You must also grow cities that abound on the map by providing the train services needed for population and industries to develop.

Railway Empire is a city-building game set in the United States from 1830 to 1930. As such, you’ll be capable of planning, administering, and developing several locomotives between points of interest to bring prosperity and wealth to the people.

Cities Skylines stands out over other transportation sims and construction games since the creation and development of more efficient structures through the years work efficiently. You feel it smooth, and cities seem to grow organically, which is great for a game of this nature. Besides, it includes many game details that blow your mind away, like the steam or the activity in the cities.

Structures’ trees to create new trains, locomotives, and tools are also an excellent addition to the gameplay, which many other games do not have. Just bring the future and new technology to the West of the United States and use all the natural resources available to connect people and industries.

Key Features:

• Hire workers, plan your railroad, and become one of the best city builders in the USA.

• Create a wide-ranging rail network and build great settlements to attract investments, tourists, new citizens, and more.

• Multiple trains and locomotives for better traffic management.

Railway Empire Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

• Release Date: April 2, 2020

• Developer: Gentlymad Studios

• Publisher: Assemble Entertainment

• Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5

• Metascore: 72

Endzone: A World Apart is a bit different from other games mentioned in this list since it is set in a post-apocalyptic world with just a few settlements remaining. In this scenario, you play as a settlement manager, administering all the resources and building that the former inhabitants have established.

Endzone is pretty similar to civilization games, where you need to intervene in the surroundings to get resources. For instance, you need to gather timber and scrap and, of course, sow vegetables to get food. Thanks to these elements, you can build walls, a new settlement, and relevant constructions to improve the lives of survivors.

Biomes in Endzone feel really alive, with great and colorful environments that really put you in the mood to enjoy the activities you will develop. Besides, Endzone gives a complete sensation of life, despite the devastated settings, with several people participating in reconstruction and making things happen. The game base is spectacular, and the new game-play elements added over the years turn it into one of the best post-apocalyptic building games on the market.

Moreover, its survival elements in excellent world-building provide an extra layer of flavor to the gameplay, which separates it from similar games. Endzone is a total challenge you should try to prove your building and survival skills.

Key Features:

• Endzone: A World Apart perfectly merges city building with survival to provide a unique experience.

• Dynamic environments and multiple threats will make your survival difficult.

• Specific winning conditions and a distinct storyline you should experience.

Endzone: A World Apart Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

• Release Date: November 11, 2021

• Developer: FreeMind S.A.

• Publishers: PlayWay S.A. | FreeMind S.A.

• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4

• Metascore: N/A

House Builder is more focused on the particularities of building a house than constructing or planning an entire city. This way, the game introduces mechanics about building walls, designing electric, water, and gas installations, and creating the best conditions for experiencing a great quality of life.

House Builder gives you the opportunity to build the home of your dreams, either for yourself or a client. Houses can go from a simple mud hut to a magnificent Renaissance Maison; it’s up to you; you’re the mastermind behind blueprints and ideas. But it won’t be easy; the House Builder presents multiple challenges!

For example, you need to decide what the best infrastructure is: simple or complex? What are the best materials to unleash your creativity and shape your thoughts? You will boast several technologies to help you to decide and build the best solution for your construction. 

Over the gameplay, you will learn new technologies and techniques to build the house that lies in your mind. You will also learn new types of buildings and how to work with novel materials.

House Builder is the perfect title for gamers wanting to be in the skin of an architect or engineer and build houses for an idealistic metropolis. If you want a more personal and challenging experience, House Builder is the next step you should take.

Key Features:

• The building houses sim for excellence. Take your blueprint, control your resources, and take your business to another level.

• Unlock and learn new technologies to build realistic houses.

• Help to build a great community with beautiful architecture and progress.

House Builder Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

• Release Date: March 29, 2019

• Developer: Limbic Entertainment

• Publisher: Kalypso Media

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS, SteamOS, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S

• Metascore: 78

The Tropico series must be included on this list, and Tropico 6, the latest installment of the franchise, is particularly noteworthy. The reason for this is that the game has well-established franchise tropes by delivering likely the best chapter of the saga.

Tropico 6, set on a paradisiacal Caribbean island, offers a more lighthearted take on the city-building genre while maintaining a sophisticated gameplay experience. Still, it’s a more government simulation game than a city-building, although undoubtedly, it contains all the features of all the great games of the city-building genre.

As “The President” of a rising nation in the middle of the ocean, you control each of the services that make your people live peacefully in the city. As such, it’s your job to build the best public services, such as transportation, health care, police, and more. In this regard, your decisions directly affect citizens, who can become happy or angry according to the politics you adopt. And do not forget to maintain an educated population since the future of your dictatorship depends on the qualifications of your people.

Beyond the fact that Tropico 6 is a funny game that provides hours of fun, it still lacks structures and countless buildings, which turns it into a game that can be a bit repetitive. However, you still have the chance to build cities and defend your country from external threats. Overall, it’s a modern game with a fresh ambiance and graphics to spend some quality Saturday.

Key Features:

• Build the Caribbean country of your dreams in one island or an archipelago.

• Transform an old settlement into a rising city and country with all the services your people need.

• Money, strategy, planning, resources, and all together to pull off the best from your country.

Tropico 6 Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

• Release Date: December 11, 2019

• Developer: Urban Games

• Publisher: Good Shepherd Entertainment | Nacon

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5

• Metascore: 76

Transport Fever 2 goes a step beyond most city building and planning games since it integrates business simulation and a huge city with multiple districts, functions, services, etc. Transport Fever 2 entails the evolution of transportation over the past seventeen decades, from 1850 to our day. In this sense, you should develop machinery, trains, airplanes, cars, trolley cars, and more!

At first sight, Transport Fever 2 looks like any other city-building game, but the truth is TF2 is a complete experience that involves many elements that will make you feel you’re the demiurge of your settlement.

When playing TF2, you’ll focus on the functionality of all the transportation lines of your city. It includes the capacity, bus stops, stations, and warehouses. But things are not so simple. The map, which is randomly generated according to the setting you established at the beginning of the game, presents several threats and challenges that will make your life difficult.

The feeling of watching your city grow is very satisfying since you start with a small settlement, which, thanks to your efforts, you turn into a huge and functional city. Connect your industrial district to the fields and promote trade between different participants of your city. Bring wealth and prosperity to your people with Transport Fever 2. 

Key Features:

• Conquer the world through technology and transportation and build the future.

• Write your transportation history and complete the objectives of three different historic campaigns.

• Optimize structure, develop your economy, and improve the lives of the citizens.  

Transport Fever 2 CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

• Release Date: November 5, 2019

• Developer: Frontier Developments

• Publisher: Frontier Developments

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows

• Metascore: 81

Planet Zoo, from the creators of Planet Coaster, is probably the most distinctive game on this list since it’s about building a zoo. Many people mentioned this game as a Tycoon simulation, which is a nearby description of what is happening during the gameplay. But as its name indicates, it mainly focuses on creating the best conditions to take care of the animals that live in the installations. There are over 100 animal species, which really will make the administration and management difficult.

Like many other games of the genre, resource management is crucial to keep the animals in good condition and happy. The needs system is really impressive since each animal specimen requires a different ambiance and has a unique behavior. That, coupled with the park management, means you will have multiple edges to worry about, which gives several layers of difficulty to gameplay.

Even though Planet Zoo sounds like a very intricate game, it is still relaxing and engaging and a particular piece of entertainment that will make you love your theme park. Its multiple mechanics and depth challenges give you the opportunity to create comfortable spaces for the animals and create the best zoo for visitors and where to work.

Fans of city building and lovers of animals will adore this title since it kills two birds with one stone: you protect animals while managing the best zoo park on Earth.

Key Features:

• Build and administer the zoo of your dreams with the most exotic species on Earth.

• Every animal in the zoo is a feeling individual and boasts a unique personality and look.

• Conduct research, create new exhibits, and bring new animals to expand your park.         

Planet Zoo CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

• Release Date: April 13, 2018

• Developer: Flazm

• Publisher: Flazm

• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS

• Metascore: N/A

Train Valley 2 is another transportation simulation and city-building game, but with a very special look and aesthetic. This is because it has a particular cartoonish style, which makes it stand out from other games of the same genre.

One of the aspects that I really love about Train Valley 2 is that you can select between different ages to face different challenges according to the era you choose. In Train Valley 2, you also need resources and materials to build the structure you need to transport people and materials. This way, TV2 gets closer to resource management games like Age of Empires. But the resources available also will depend on the age and the map you’re playing.

Another strong point that differentiates TV2 from other games of the genre is it’s divided into chapters. Each chapter demands a certain objective, like delivering a certain amount of resources for stations to work and workers to operate the systems.

Train Valley 2 is an exquisite experience from any perspective, a hybrid builder and a toy train puzzle game where possibilities are endless. I can summarize Train Valley 2 in one sentence: you will create a railroad company from the days of the Industrial Revolution and take it into the future.

Key Features:

• A perfect mix between tycoon, building, and puzzle game.

• Unique and funny visuals with distinctive animations, colors, and models.

• Multiple chapters, objectives, and an interesting level editor.

Train Valley 2 Global Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

Tycoon and city-building games leave a special taste in your mouth after playing them. It happens with all the games mentioned in this article, which, by the way, are available at RoyalCDKeys at the cheapest price on the market.  

But not going further, city-building games are worth checking out. So, I recommend you try them as soon as possible and start to build your next settlement from scratch.