Best 5 City Building Board Games to Play in 2024
Hey, fellow board game enthusiasts! If you’re anything like us, there’s something about the challenge and creativity of city building games that keeps you coming back for more. We’ve scoured our game nights, fun fiascos, and brain-busters to bring you our top picks for the best city building board games. Our focus? We looked for games that mix strategy, fun, and that sweet sense of accomplishment when your cityscape masterpiece is complete. Whether you’re a casual player or a hardcore strategist, we’ve got something for everyone. So, let’s dive into the world of city building without further ado!
On this list:
5 Machi Koro
Kicking off our city building journey is Machi Koro. Imagine rolling dice, earning cash, and then deciding whether to invest in a cafe or maybe a wheat field. We’ve spent countless nights laughing over our burgeoning yet often hilariously inefficient towns. What makes Machi Koro stand out is its simplicity paired with just enough strategy to keep you coming back. It’s the perfect gateway for new players into the world of city building.
4 Suburbia
Suburbia takes the city building theme and adds a layer of strategy that had us hooked. You’re not just building a city; you’re managing a budget, competing for resources, and sometimes sabotaging your friends’ plans. The balance between cooperation and competition in our game nights made this one a group favorite. Plus, watching your small town grow into a bustling metropolis feels incredibly rewarding.
3 Tiny Towns
Tiny Towns is like the clever, quiet kid in class that surprises you. It’s all about placing cubes on your board to construct buildings, following specific patterns. Sounds easy, right? Wrong. We quickly found ourselves in a brain-burning puzzle, trying to maximize our limited space. It’s accessible for new players but offers depth that had us strategizing for hours. Definitely a gem in the city building genre.
2 7 Wonders
Now, 7 Wonders isn’t your traditional city building game; it’s a civilization development game with a strong city building element. What makes it a blast is the card drafting mechanic – passing around cards and hoping you get what you need for your city. Each game is like a quick tour through history. We loved the element of surprise each new hand of cards brought to our city plans.
1 Cities: Skylines – The Board Game
At the top of our list is Cities: Skylines – The Board Game. Why? Because it brilliantly captures the essence of the video game it’s based on. You’re not just building a city; you’re balancing economy, happiness, pollution, and traffic. The cooperative play had us negotiating, strategizing, and sometimes pleading with each other to make our city thrive. It’s the ultimate city building experience, combining depth, strategy, and teamwork. For us, it represents the pinnacle of city building board games.
