Tropico 4: Modern Times

 PC
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 68 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 49 out of 68
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 68
  3. Negative: 10 out of 68
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  1. ricesautes
    May 25, 2012
    9
    This is what Tropico 4 should have been to begin with. The base game is too close to Tropico 3, but this introduces significant new options and gameplay. The campaign also introduces a Timeline feature where the modernization upgrades happen year by year instead of just unlocking everything from the get-go. The campaign scenarios are pretty contrived, but has some spot-on parodies thatThis is what Tropico 4 should have been to begin with. The base game is too close to Tropico 3, but this introduces significant new options and gameplay. The campaign also introduces a Timeline feature where the modernization upgrades happen year by year instead of just unlocking everything from the get-go. The campaign scenarios are pretty contrived, but has some spot-on parodies that raise a chuckle.… Expand
  2. Ragegoat
    Jul 11, 2014
    1
    Modern Times is a DLC for Tropico 4, that lets everything get more modern. New buildings and a longer time line in particular.

    The buildings are visually very pretty, but show up way too early. It nags me if a 1960es neighborhood in a carribian dictatorship looks like a 2015 skyline from a financial centre in East Asia. Maybe I'm just strange, but I'd like my 60es slum to at least    Modern Times is a DLC for Tropico 4, that lets everything get more modern. New buildings and a longer time line in particular.

    The buildings are visually very pretty, but show up way too early. It nags me if a 1960es neighborhood in a carribian dictatorship looks like a 2015 skyline from a financial centre in East Asia. Maybe I'm just strange, but I'd like my 60es slum to at least remind me of City of God. In stead, from 1966 and forward, all apartment buildings will me bade mostly out of glass and have a helicopter landing pad on top of them. Not the third-world country in the cold war feel that Tropico is otherwise managing to cultivate very well.

    Other changes to the buildings are game play breaking and have obviously not been thought through. Just to mention a few thing: The farms have made it impossible to play on the hardest difficulty levels because of the terrain on these maps (and I'm talking about hardest difficulty for randomized maps - the predefined maps carrying the label "hard" are actually fairly easy). You NEED a certain area of level land with good crops to place a modern farm. The old farms you could place near a hillside, and the peasants would do their best to put up a few fields here and there to get some crops out of the meager land. So can you not just build some old-timey farms you ask? No! Once the new farms have been invented, there is NO building regular farms. This turns the start of the game into a rush to build as many farms as possible before the useless farms are invented. After this, there is no re-building farms that get destroyed, basically ruining your chance to produce farming goods.

    Furthermore, there is now "superior" housing buildings. Better in all ways. Who wants to play a stategy game where you have to be an idiot to use five out of six options? Without "Modern Times" you have a hard choice between the different home types offering different advantages - which is what strategy games shoudl do: face players with hard choices.

    I guess the increased time line is an advantage, but you'll enjoy the extra time city building only one type of housing building (that is, if you're not an idiot) and as many huge, circular farms you can fit in (which is probably not very many if you're going for a challenge).

    In short, Tropico 4 (which is quite amazing on its own) is simply better without Modern Times. The game design mistakes are so very basic that no game company should make them. Avoid it like you would a t-rex with acne. I wouldn't recommend that anyone buy this DLC. Don't get it if it's really cheap. Don't get it if it's free. If you have it, don't enable it - in stead put it in a coffin with garlic-covered lead spikes on the inside, and dump it on 30m of holy-water.    … Expand
  3. JimCorbett
    Apr 24, 2013
    7
    This is a quality expansion pack. It adds a bunch of new (and much better) buildings to the game and a 12 mission campaign as well. My only grief is that the buildings require a "timeline" to use, so the buildings will only unlock and become available to build once you reach the required year in your game. This timeline also comes with some negative effects, such as an effect that lastsThis is a quality expansion pack. It adds a bunch of new (and much better) buildings to the game and a 12 mission campaign as well. My only grief is that the buildings require a "timeline" to use, so the buildings will only unlock and become available to build once you reach the required year in your game. This timeline also comes with some negative effects, such as an effect that lasts for a couple years where you can't hire any foreign specialists, among others. Overall though, you should pick this up if you liked the core game.… Expand
  4. Tubey
    May 15, 2015
    8
    This is DLC done right. I know it's fairly stupid reviewing such an old bit of content, but Tropico 4: Modern Times stands up in 2015 as one of the best city builders around, with just the right element of humour and fantastic voice acting.

    The DLC is pretty much a must buy as it expands massive parts of the game and addresses any and every weakness the base game had. One criticism    This is DLC done right. I know it's fairly stupid reviewing such an old bit of content, but Tropico 4: Modern Times stands up in 2015 as one of the best city builders around, with just the right element of humour and fantastic voice acting.

    The DLC is pretty much a must buy as it expands massive parts of the game and addresses any and every weakness the base game had. One criticism would be that borehole mines and bio-farms are overpowered as a revenue generator and the game is simply too easy to beat (available through DLC which is usually bundled with the game in 2015; I lost one time due to my own careless stupidity throughout my entire playthrough of the base game and the expansion).

    The game shines with the sandbox maps though. Here, the difficulty isn't an issue as your goal is to create your own tropical paradise, and it excels in this regard.

    If you are considering Tropico 5, don't bother - that title takes multiple steps backwards in the franchise. Tropico 4 is dirt cheap now with the expansions and is comfortably the better game.    … Expand
  5. gyrate
    Apr 7, 2012
    10
    If you love Tropico 4 you will love this. It is even more stuff which is just what we all wanted. I don't subscribe to the need for a new game engine for this release. I'm a believer in if it aint broke don't fix it. This game is amazing and the more you dig into it the more you'll realize someone put a lot of thought into everything. On the outside it looks rather cartoonish but itIf you love Tropico 4 you will love this. It is even more stuff which is just what we all wanted. I don't subscribe to the need for a new game engine for this release. I'm a believer in if it aint broke don't fix it. This game is amazing and the more you dig into it the more you'll realize someone put a lot of thought into everything. On the outside it looks rather cartoonish but it surpasses all other city builders. For that reason this gets a 10. The best city builder ever, Tropico.… Expand
  6. DuncanIdahoTPF
    May 19, 2012
    10
    This game and especially this DLC / expansion really made the game. Now here is a game company actually trying to entertain people with a quality product instead of mega corporations ripping people off with mediocre at best games that carry on some huge franchise. This expansion adds a whole other dimension to the game: technological progression over time with upgrading several keyThis game and especially this DLC / expansion really made the game. Now here is a game company actually trying to entertain people with a quality product instead of mega corporations ripping people off with mediocre at best games that carry on some huge franchise. This expansion adds a whole other dimension to the game: technological progression over time with upgrading several key buildings. I liked everything about this expansion. My only caveat is some of the new structures are a bit gimmicky, but almost all of them are useful.

    Also, the storyline, if you realize there is a message to gain from it, is quite enlightening. I know most people probably assume the hints at fluoride in the water supply and other things like that are tongue-in-cheek jokes, but believe me, its no joke.    … Expand
  7. SumoScott
    Mar 9, 2013
    10
    Tropico 4: Modern Times gives the core game a much needed content injection, and turns Tropico 4 into a better game. Some additions have a larger impact on Tropican economic planning than others, but Modern Times is well worth checking out for any fan of Tropico.
  8. X0R
    Jun 11, 2012
    7
    was fun for a couple days, but did not take long before I uninstalled it. Lot of neat qualities with this game, cool soundtrack and nifty graphics. Wanted to stick with it longer but became a little bored.
  9. Lugash
    Mar 15, 2013
    10
    Literally the only complaint I've ever read about Tropico 4 was that it didn't introduce enough new gameplay elements to the series. The Modern Times expansion completely solves this. Nearly enough levels to call it an entire game on it's own, plus a wealth of new buildings and mechanics. If you enjoy Tropico 4 at all, this is an absolute must-buy.
  10. Bradyboy12
    Aug 11, 2013
    8
    a great edition for Tropico adds tons of new buildings whole new campaign and adds more to an already very deep game, from skyscrapers, to bio farms, tons to add to the game.
  11. gracjanski
    Aug 23, 2018
    3
    This DLC is really bad and I am so dissapointed. Tropico 4 was so great,the campaign so funny and the atmosphere perfect. I was looking forward to see many new buildings and to the metro station to solve the traffic problem. But you get new buildings, that are so overpowered that makes the old building useless, it makes the game so easy, you dont need to think anymore. And even more youThis DLC is really bad and I am so dissapointed. Tropico 4 was so great,the campaign so funny and the atmosphere perfect. I was looking forward to see many new buildings and to the metro station to solve the traffic problem. But you get new buildings, that are so overpowered that makes the old building useless, it makes the game so easy, you dont need to think anymore. And even more you get them so quickly, it doesnt fit to the timeline: You get modern buildings already in the 60s ->lol. And there is no turning back to build old buildings -.- Why didnt I get the new buildings in the late time like 2000? Why cant I decide between old and new buildings?
    You can modernize your palace, that looks very unsharp in the far and I cant see any mod to change that, because all the links to the calipso forum are dead, there are no topics about Tropico 4 in the forum...This is so ridiculous.

    The timeline is a good idea, it changes the game slightly, based on historical events.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

67
#67 Best PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. Absolute Games
    May 24, 2012
    68
    Modern Times is a good excuse to return to the familiar world of Tropico, but, frankly, the game has almost outstayed its welcome.
    Read full review
  2. PC Gamer UK
    May 11, 2012
    78
    The new scenarios are enlivened by the fantastic timeline system. [June 2012, p.97]
  3. Game Over Online
    May 8, 2012
    82
    Overall, I enjoyed the time I spent with Tropico 4: Modern Times. The add-on is lighthearted and breezy, and with all of the new buildings and edicts, you now have even more ways to build and run your perfect Caribbean island. Plus, since the campaign takes about 35 hours to complete (with sandbox mode adding more time to this), and since the add-on only costs $20, Modern Times is even a good deal, and so it's an easy game for me to recommend.
    Read full review
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