Everything is just one big joke on the island of Tropico. Your research
team is incompetent, your diplomat is a snob, and your radio DJ is
absolutely shameless. But that's OK, because both Tropico 5 and its
digital inhabitants don't take anything too seriously. This management
sim wraps its irreverent wit around some easily approachable mechanics
that smartly grow in complexity as you move through the ages and become
more familiar with your new role as El Presidente.
I'm getting ahead of myself, since you're not actually El
Presidente in the beginning. Instead, Tropico 5 starts you off as a
lowly governor in the Victorian era under the service of the Crown. From
these humble beginnings, you must guide your people through World War
II, the Cold War, and beyond. Each age brings with it a new set of
challenges because your tiny island nation is sandwiched between the
world's rotating superpowers. But as your trusted advisors say, it is
your will alone that is holding Tropico together, and that means doing
anything and everything necessary to stay in office, whether it's
rigging the next election or putting down civilian riots. After all,
you're doing this for the good of the people, and your Swiss bank
account.
Throughout the ages, your advisors take
excellent care of making sure Tropico 5 is easy to pick up and enjoy,
whether you're familiar with this series' long history or not. You start
in the Victorian era, where Lord Oaksworth, emissary to the Crown,
guides you through building your first resource-gathering structures.
These assignments are always couched in some harebrained scheme the king
has cooked up back home, such as requesting that you build a logging
camp so the king can complete his underwater palace.
These
missions to build certain structures or complete certain tasks continue
throughout the game, and as you grow and define the style of your
nation, they can be accepted or ignored as needed. In the beginning,
you're just trying to stay in the black and keep your people happy, but
as you advance through the eras, you may wish to shape your island into a
high-end tourist trap or become the world's leading producer of cigars
and rum. The types of missions selected for you are different each time
you play and together they try to shape your island towards a certain
style, but the game is also flexible enough for you to strike your own
path as well.
However, each mission carries with it some sort of political
consequence. Usually it's a trade-off between appeasing one faction on
the island and angering another, such as siding with the Crown over the
revolutionaries, or later the Axis supporters over the Allied
supporters. You don't have to please all of the people all of the time;
you just have to stay in power. Forever. Virtually every choice you
make--from the buildings you build to the people you trade with--has
some sort of impact on your standing with the island's various factions.
Molding popular opinion to your advantage is an enjoyable and
ever-changing challenge that grows in complexity as you move through the
ages and more factions are introduced.
But while this
game's simple mission design is there to reel you in, it's Tropico 5's
sense of humor that baits the hook. From the wording of your island's
constitution to the musings of your radio DJ, this game's irreverent
streak touches every aspect of the island. And in its own way, this
devil-may-care attitude is fitting for Tropico 5 since the game isn't
concerned with breaking down every little bit of minutia for you. It
gives you just enough information to make an informed decision without
leaving you lost in a maze of submenus.
Consider your budget. In Tropico 5, you're not earning money at a
constant rate; rather, it comes in large lump sums when your trade ships
arrive at port. And when you have that huge influx of cash burning a
hole in your pocket, it's hard not to blow it all right away on new
structures and other island improvements. Your citizens will love you
for it, but you'll also be putting yourself back in crippling debt. Now,
were I an egocentric island dictator in this goofy parody of real life,
then I, too, would likely spend beyond my means when the time was ripe
and then sweat it out during the off-season. Tropico 5 is full of little
design touches--like how your money is doled out--that help reinforce
its fiction that you are, frankly, a buffoon.
There is a lot to enjoy on the sandy beaches of Tropico 5. Whether
you're playing alone or with up to three others online, the game strikes
a good balance between style and substance that is easy to digest for
all types of strategy fans. The constant power struggle between the
game's various factions--both internal and abroad--creates an
ever-changing challenge for you to manage as El Presidente, whether
through force or appeasement. And while the rest of the world tears
itself apart with World War-this and Cold War-that, the simple-minded
Tropicans are there to kick their feet up and take it easy for all us
sinners.
System Requirements:
Source: gamespot.com
Rating: 8
