Cities in Motion 2

The cities themselves may feel a bit more bland than in the first game but the actual motion of them is top notch. Cities in Motion 2 boasts a deep and satisfying simulation of the woes of managing public transit. Not without its problems but nevertheless one of the top players in its genre.

Cities in Motion 2 brings some interesting new elements into the gameplay structure of its predecessor. The game had some bugs, but Colossal Order worked hard to get most of them fixed soon after the launch.

I didn't expect the game to grip me in the way it did, and I certainly couldn't have predicted how excited I would become at the prospect of getting people to their jobs in time. Cities in Motion 2 takes a mundane and, frankly, boring subject matter, and makes it genuinely compelling. It has made my dreary real-life bus journeys a tiny bit more interesting.

In the long term though, I think Cities in Motion 2 will turn out to be a far better game than the original one was. Once the team get rid of the rest of the bug fixes, and fix that problem with short-term gameplay to pull people through, then this should become one decent transport simulator.

Cities in Motion 2's more realistic approach may leave it looking a little drabber than its predecessor, but its focus on dynamic cities, timetables, and ticket prices in a contemporary city in real time make it a significant improvement over its predecessor.

Cities in Motion 2 is a step forward. We have bigger, more complex cities, there are great new timetable and ticket selling systems, and we get an opportunity to build roads and modify the city's infrastructure. Sequel is better in terms of running a public transport company and even though there are some things that didn't work out and you encounter some technical issues, you can clearly see that the developers have done their best. Good job.

The learning curve is steep and if you’re easily frustrated you might consider going back to the predecessor. But if you’re willing to invest time and a lot of trial&error in this mass transit simulator, behind all the glitches and the useless tutorial you’ll find a motivating diamond in the rough that shows a lot of potential and keeps you awake longer than you’d like to admit.

Fiddly at times, and cursed with a lousy tutorial, the intricacy and scale of Cities in Motion 2 eventually shines through. [July 2013, p.74]

Cities in Motion 2 offers needed immersion along with a well worked out economic model, and city processes interconnection, which will captivate you so much you are going to ignore the game's visible flaws.

Cities in Motion 2 is deep and full of possibilities, and really addictive once you get going. But the user interface can be a struggle to work with at times.

The lack of AI, disappointing campaign and overall bland graphics lead to a rather listless gameplay experience. Technically, Cities in Motion 2 is a capable game but there is little joy to be had in a game where all you are doing is setting up new lines and occasionally checking if they still run efficiently. This was somewhat true for the original as well but that game had far more character and pulled it off gracefully. This, unfortunately, does not.

Cities in Motion 2 is a true paradise for those who love to plan everything into the smallest details. Other than that it offers too little variation to stay interesting for long, with boring graphics, drab environments and slow gameplay. Cities in Motion 2 is better than its predecessor, but no classic in the sim-genre.

The laying of tram tracks and overhead lines is so complicated that I'd rather build five bus lines as a single tram line, even if it's humbug economically.