More tile placement than city builder, River Towns plays like the stupidly addictive lovechild of Tetris and Dorfromantik. I spent just over 11 hours with the pre-release demo and expect the full game to consume my life (when I have time again).

There are ~40 levels across 4 worlds. You start each level by placing a bridge to restore rivers in a barren valley; then, you draw random Tetris-shaped "city tiles" one by one, and place them adjacent to another tile. After all tiles are placed or discarded, your valley is scored based on your largest city of each color, bridges built, trees revived, gold mined, etc. Sounds simple, is simple, but gets progressively more complicated as the levels progress and new factions and mechanics are added in.

✅ The dopamine rush of finding the perfect tile configuration.

✅ Each level is a new challenge, but rounds play relatively quickly (10-30 minutes depending on how prone you are to choice paralysis) and gameplay is so straightforward that it's easy to pick up and put down.

✅ You can earn up to three "stars" per level based on your high score.

✅ I spent 4 hours competing against myself in the demo's "Tree Fort" level before Frog Studios rolled out the leaderboard, revealing that my high scores were actually rookie numbers.

✅ There's a Challenge Mode now! The current challenge changes how tiles rotate, but you definitely shouldn't try it because I like seeing my name on the leaderboard.

✅ There's also a level editor and workshop support, so you can make and share your own levels. I toyed with it a bit, and it's pretty forking cool.

❎ Okay, even I can admit that the menus look rough and unpolished.

❎ The tutorial pops up every time you open the relevant level, even if you've scored all three stars. It bugged out on the very first level and wouldn't let me clear camera controls until I restarted the game.

❎ Technically, there's music. I muted it ~7 hours ago, turned it back after purchasing, and... it's decidedly forgettable.

I don't know what it is about this game that hooked me so completely, but I am absolutely here for it. The only reason I haven't racked up an impossible 60 hours in the two days since this released is that I purchased the "City Builder" bundle and am still testing the other games. Check back in a few weeks and that "hours played" number will reveal my complete lack of a social life.

I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys tile placement or spatial reasoning games, especially if you're just slightly competitive.

If you want something a little more relaxing but still challenging, check out Dorfromantik. If you were hoping for an actual Tetris-style game or deckbuilding, then head over to Drop Duchy.

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More tile placement than city builder, [b]River Towns[/b] plays like the stupidly addictive lovechild of [i]Tetris[/i] and [i]Dorfromantik[/i]. I spent just over 11 hours with the pre-release demo and expect the full game to consume my life (when I have time again). [h3]Gameplay[/h3] There are ~40 levels across 4 worlds. You start each level by placing a bridge to restore rivers in a barren valley; then, you draw random Tetris-shaped "city tiles" one by one, and place them adjacent to another tile. After all tiles are placed or discarded, your valley is scored based on your largest city of each color, bridges built, trees revived, gold mined, etc. Sounds simple, is simple, but gets progressively more complicated as the levels progress and new factions and mechanics are added in. [h3]What Works For Me[/h3] ✅ The dopamine rush of finding the [i]perfect[/i] tile configuration. ✅ Each level is a new challenge, but rounds play relatively quickly (10-30 minutes depending on how prone you are to choice paralysis) and gameplay is so straightforward that it's easy to pick up and put down. ✅ You can earn up to three "stars" per level based on your high score. ✅ I spent 4 hours competing against myself in the demo's "Tree Fort" level before Frog Studios rolled out the leaderboard, revealing that my high scores were actually rookie numbers. ✅ There's a Challenge Mode now! The current challenge changes how tiles rotate, but you definitely shouldn't try it because I like seeing my name on the leaderboard. ✅ There's also a level editor and workshop support, so you can make and share your own levels. I toyed with it a bit, and it's pretty forking cool. [h3]What Doesn't Work For Me[/h3] ❎ Okay, even I can admit that the menus look rough and unpolished. ❎ The tutorial pops up every time you open the relevant level, even if you've scored all three stars. It bugged out on the very first level and wouldn't let me clear camera controls until I restarted the game. ❎ Technically, there's music. I muted it ~7 hours ago, turned it back after purchasing, and... it's decidedly forgettable. [h3]Final Thoughts + Recommendation[/h3] I don't know what it is about this game that hooked me so completely, but I am absolutely here for it. The only reason I haven't racked up an impossible 60 hours in the two days since this released is that I purchased the "City Builder" bundle and am still testing the other games. Check back in a few weeks and that "hours played" number will reveal my complete lack of a social life. I [b]highly[/b] recommend this to anyone who enjoys tile placement or spatial reasoning games, especially if you're just slightly competitive. If you want something a little more relaxing but still challenging, check out [i][url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/1455840/Dorfromantik/?curator_clanid=45365863]Dorfromantik[/url][/i]. If you were hoping for an actual Tetris-style game or deckbuilding, then head over to [i][url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/2525310/Drop_Duchy/?curator_clanid=45365863]Drop Duchy[/url][/i]. [quote][b]Follow [u][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45365863/]Eekz Today[/url][/u] for more crafting, life sim, management, strategy, and story-rich recommendations.[/b][/quote]