TheoTown

About

"TheoTown - City Simulator" is a single-player simulation game with stellar gameplay, good graphics, and spectacular music. Build, manage, and expand your own city while enjoying the humor and lively interactions, but be prepared for some grinding, annoying ads, and bugs. Despite its flaws, the game delivers a highly emotional and engaging experience for city-building enthusiasts.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 9,998 reviews

graphics318 positive mentions

monetization305 negative mentions

The game offers a nostalgic experience reminiscent of classic SimCity games.
It allows for extensive creativity and customization with plugins and sandbox mode.
The gameplay is engaging and does not force players to spend money to progress.

The game can become laggy with larger cities and many plugins.
Some features, like sandbox mode, are locked behind a paywall, which frustrates players.
There are issues with the AI for traffic management, leading to unrealistic congestion.

graphics
896 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
54%
10%
The graphics of the game are predominantly described as pixelated and low-resolution, reminiscent of older titles like SimCity and RollerCoaster Tycoon. While some players appreciate the nostalgic charm and simplicity of the art style, many express a desire for improved graphics, suggesting that enhancements could significantly elevate the overall experience. Despite the graphical limitations, the gameplay remains engaging for many users, who often prioritize mechanics over visual fidelity.
- “The graphics are artful and nostalgic, and the miniature animations are truly charming.”
- “I love the pixel art style of the game; it makes it really endearing.”
- “The graphics may not be as modern as other games, but it comes with many transport options and plugins.”
- “The graphics are very low resolution, so you have to be okay with extreme pixelation to enjoy it.”
- “The graphics are too pixelated, which kind of ruins the look of the game.”
- “The graphics are terrible, controls difficult, and the menu is cluttered.”
monetization
419 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
12%
73%
The monetization strategy of the game is generally viewed positively, with many players appreciating the minimal and non-intrusive nature of ads, which are primarily optional and tied to rewards. While some users express frustration over the presence of microtransactions and the need to watch ads for premium currency, most agree that the game allows for significant progress without spending money. Overall, players prefer this model over more aggressive monetization tactics seen in other mobile games, though there are calls for a paid version to eliminate ads entirely.
- “I've been playing Theotown for about a year now and I can't get enough of it. It is such an amazing game and there are little to no ads whatsoever.”
- “The microtransactions aren't bad, and it is even possible to not watch any ads or pay anything since you get tons of gems through city and bus leveling alone.”
- “Best free city builder in the Google Play Store where microtransactions don't seem to get in the way of having fun for the most part.”
- “I absolutely abhor the monetization system utilized in this game and would greatly prefer to simply purchase it outright.”
- “This game was great but I loved it for its sandbox mode which they removed in favor of tons of ads and incentive to buy gems. It's become just another free-to-play game instead of a good city-building game.”
- “Use to be fantastic but then the devs got greedy and now there are too many ads and microtransactions.”
gameplay
279 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
47%
4%
The gameplay of this city-building game is widely praised for its nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic titles like SimCity, offering a blend of straightforward yet complex mechanics that engage players deeply. While the graphics may not be cutting-edge, the intuitive controls, expansive building options, and the ability to play without intrusive ads enhance the overall experience. However, some users noted issues with road mechanics and the presence of ads, which can disrupt gameplay at times.
- “Overall really awesome gameplay that makes me nostalgic for SimCity 2000.”
- “Excellent city building gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is smooth, interesting, and is surprisingly challenging for a city builder.”
- “The ads are out of control, something like wasting my time with the same ads over and over and every 10 minutes I lose 3 minutes of gameplay.”
- “Although gameplay is very limited, monotonic, and boring.”
- “The gameplay freezes within the first 2 minutes of playing the game.”
music
191 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
49%
3%
The music in the game is widely praised for its calming and relaxing qualities, enhancing the overall gameplay experience. Many players appreciate the beautiful soundtrack, which evokes nostalgia and fits well with the game's aesthetic, although some have noted issues with repetitiveness and a desire for more upbeat tracks. A few users expressed frustration over the inability to turn off the music or the presence of overlapping tracks, indicating a need for improved music management options.
- “The music is calm, the style is very fitting, it rarely lags, and it is very detailed.”
- “The music is beautiful; the gameplay is challenging, soothing, and calming.”
- “The music is so relaxing, the graphics are awesome, and there's tons of buildings to place/manage.”
- “But when I try the nuke it was so short, I wanted to hear the full music but it ended short.”
- “The game is calm, but sometimes the music sounds repetitive.”
- “The music is a mess.”
stability
45 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
4%
89%
The game's stability is a significant concern among users, with many reporting frequent freezes, glitches, and bugs that disrupt gameplay, particularly during critical moments like sending emergency services or creating new regions. While some players have experienced minimal issues, the overall consensus indicates that the game suffers from stability problems that can detract from the overall experience. Despite these issues, some users still find the game enjoyable and worth playing.
- “No long wait times, free map expansions and addons, there aren't any paywalls, and the game isn't buggy at all.”
- “This game is really good; I like it. It's perfect, no glitches and not that many ads, it's just perfect.”
- “Great experience; feels like it's a game before it's a money-making opportunity and runs great.”
- “Overall great game, it's just when I'm trying to send an ambulance/policemen/fire brigade to an emergency, it just glitches and doesn't let me do it. I lost a lot of happiness and people because of it.”
- “Loading into any city, the game stutters and freezes every 2-3 seconds.”
- “Constantly freezes and sends me back to the home screen.”
story
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
79%
11%
The game's story aspect is largely absent, with many players expressing a desire for more narrative elements and missions to enhance engagement. While some appreciate the freedom of sandbox mode without mandatory quests, others find the lack of a structured storyline and meaningful endgame content disappointing. Overall, players are calling for a more interactive and immersive experience that includes character-driven narratives and quests to enrich the city-building gameplay.
- “Give a small storyline to a few citizens like the PC version.”
- “The story is better than the Godfather trilogy.”
- “Played since I was a kid but missed the personal view and quest aspects from the PS2 version.”
- “Great game, but a few complaints. First off, let's get this one out of the way: the endgame kinda sucks. The space missions are very underwhelming with very little to do once you get to the moon. Down on Earth, it isn't much better; I constantly have to micromanage to expand my city the slightest bit to keep my people happy. It's not a fun grind, and this game just makes it underwhelming.”
- “Could be better; it's not very fun after a while. It gets monotonous. We should have more missions and be more interactive. I don't know, give me something exciting.”
- “This is an actual city building sim – no story mode to click and click and click through.”
optimization
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
35%
12%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its smooth performance on various devices, while others report significant lag and crashing issues, especially as cities grow larger. Many users express a desire for improved performance options and better optimization for low-end devices, indicating that while the game is enjoyable, it requires further enhancements to fully meet player expectations. Overall, the game's performance is seen as a key area for improvement to enhance the user experience.
- “It was pretty easy to figure out, looks nice enough and runs smoothly on my budget phone!”
- “It's like Cities: Skylines but optimized for mobile and just as good.”
- “Wow, great game and it can run smoothly on my outdated phone.”
- “I can't give this app a better rating until it is optimized and less heavy on the processor; it is cooking my phone and I can run PS2 emulator games smoothly with less smoke and flames.”
- “Changing my review to 2 stars and uninstalling because of lack of optimization.”
- “The game is cool and relaxing, but it's so poorly optimized.”
humor
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
94%
18%
The humor in the game is widely appreciated, with players highlighting its charming graphics, funny Easter eggs, and amusing in-game comments. Many users enjoy the lighthearted nature of the gameplay, noting that it encourages creativity and offers humorous moments, such as jokes in the tutorial. However, some long-time players feel that the humor has diminished over time, expressing a desire for the return of earlier, funnier updates.
- “Game gave me a crisis because blueflower thought it would be funny to add 3 pre-generated cities on 'flat earth' 10/10 would go through crisis again.”
- “Really funny joke in the tutorial: 'rich people pay more taxes', hahahahaha!”
- “That's a very funny game and I like that there is a sandbox mode, it's good.”
- “I was playing it since February 2018, and now it's not funny like it used to be. Edit: I want the old updates, not the new ones.”
- “The humor feels forced and repetitive, lacking the charm it once had.”
- “I expected a lot of laughs, but the jokes fell flat and didn't resonate with me.”
grinding
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
93%
Reviews highlight a mixed experience with grinding in the game. While some players find the initial setup and resource management tedious, they appreciate the creative freedom and the absence of pay-to-win mechanics. Others note that certain aspects, like constructing roads and acquiring special zones, can be time-consuming, but overall, many feel the grind is manageable and rewarding.
- “The grinding in this game is surprisingly enjoyable, making it feel more like a rewarding journey than a chore.”
- “I love how the grinding mechanics are balanced; it feels satisfying to progress without feeling overwhelmed.”
- “The grind is well-paced, allowing me to enjoy the game while still making meaningful progress.”
- “It's very tedious to lower one by one (or maximum 8 I think) squares or raise.”
- “Construction of roads and powerlines appears to be tedious.”
- “Really awesome and amazing super cool, but the only thing I don't like is you have to spend so long grinding to get cool stuff and gems are so expensive.”
emotional
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players consistently describe the game as a heartfelt and wholesome experience, with a beautiful soundtrack that evokes strong emotions, often leading to tears of joy. The art style and nostalgic elements contribute to a genuine connection, making it one of the most emotionally impactful games available. Overall, the emotional resonance of the music and gameplay leaves a lasting impression on players.
- “The soundtrack is amazing & it almost made me cry with its beauty.”
- “The most heartfelt and genuine game I've ever seen on the app store.”
- “This is an amazing game I love it, it's almost made me cry.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's sandbox nature significantly enhances its replayability, ensuring that each playthrough offers a unique experience. While some players find it enjoyable and replayable, others feel it may lack depth in features, potentially limiting long-term engagement.
- “The sandbox nature of the game gives it great replayability, as no experience is the same as the last.”
- “A fun little game; however, it has somewhat limited replayability, although I may not have found all the features yet.”
- “It's also replayable, so there's no need to worry if you mess up.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is consistently praised for its peaceful and calming qualities, creating an easy yet detailed environment that enhances the overall experience.
- “It's a great game with a nice, peaceful atmosphere.”
- “Easy yet detailed with a calming atmosphere.”