Draft:Dystopika
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|  |
| Dystopika | |
|---|---|
| Developer | Voids Within |
| Publisher | Voids Within |
| Engine | Unity |
| Platforms | Steam, GOG |
| Release | June 21, 2024 |
| Genres | urban sandbox, cozy game |
Dystopika is a city-building, sandbox, cozy game developed by Voids Within and released on Steam on June 21, 2024. The game allows you to create cyberpunk style cities with no goals or resource limits.[1]
The game was developed by Matt Marshall, who had always been interested in city-building simulators, but was frustrated by the limitations of economic indicators and budget. Before development, he traveled to Asian cities and was inspired by Asian megacities.[2]
Critics praised the game for its relaxing atmosphere and cyberpunk aesthetic. While some praised Dystopika for its lack of goals and freedom, others criticized it for a lack of direction, calling it a flawed.
Gameplay
[edit]
Dystopika is a city-building, simulator, and sandbox game with no goals, resources, or economy mechanics. The player's focus is to build a cyberpunk-style city with the ability to change the environment for taking pictures.[3] The player has a list of buildings that they can place to build their city with different districts for accommodation. The player can rotate, change the size and height of the buildings, and also their appearance while existing buildings can be demolished. The game uses procedural generation, which places smaller structures near buildings or bridges between buildings. Building decorations can also be installed, typically in the form of holographic figures, neon signs, company logos, advertising airships, and so on. The game also features a built-in progression system: the more buildings the player places and decorates, the more objects become available. A brush allows players to "paint" neon lights and advertisements. Players can also import their own images as decorations.[4][5][6]
In June 2025, a major update called Meditations was released which gave the game more content and tools for players.[7] Future updates to the game brought in modding for player created content.[8]
It is also available on the Steam Deck.[9]
Development and release
[edit]Dystopika was developed by a a single developer over a period of 6 months.[10] The head designer and programmer is Matt Marshall, a Canadian indie developer.[11] A few years before the start of development, he got tired of his measured life and quit his job and for several years to travel through Asian countries such as Japan, Thailand and Vietnam and was delighted by the megacities he saw, such as those in Hanoi, Osaka and Bangkok. These cities gave a unique futuristic aesthetic. Returning home, He conceived the idea of creating a visually appealing sandbox for creating panoramas. Marshall himself mentioned that he had long enjoyed playing games like SimCity, but with cheat codes so you don't have to worry about your limited budget, your economy, or your citizens' well-being.[11] The success of small urban sandboxes inspired him to develop it. He is a fan of the genre cyberpunk in general and had previously attempted to develop several games in the genre. The city's visual style was also inspired by films such as Blade Runner, Ghost in the Shell, Altered Carbon, and Cyberpunk 2077.[12]
The very first object was a holographic whale, whose model Marshall created during the development of another game, The Veil, 10 years ago for the Windows Phone 8. He considered the ability for players to upload their own images to their cities as humorous, mentioning players uploading "photos of your pet cat."[11] He described his game as a city-building sandbox and a dark iteration of a cozy game.
The demo was released in March 2024 during Steam's NextFest.[10]. At the same time, a trailer for the game was released on the IGNwebsite and YouTube channel.[13] The release was delayed from March 2024 to June. Marshall decided not to engage with his then publisher and, with his experience as a sales manager, to promote the game independently.[10] Despite extremely positive reviews on Steam, the game wasn't expected to sell well, with peak viewership below 150. This was presumably because the game's dark aesthetic clashes with the cozy genre Dystopika positions itself as.[14] Marshall promised to add more game content, taking into account the wishes of the community on Discord.[11]
Critical reception
[edit]| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 79/100[15] |
Critics praised the game's relaxing tone, use of the cyberpunk aesthetic, photo mode, and its core concept.[16] The ambient soundtrack contributes greatly to the relaxing atmosphere. Though some criticism shows some concerns for its longevity due to limited content, an unintuitive UI, and lack of depth with some aspects that may land as a positive for some but a negative for others.[17][5][6] This sentiment seems to echo most reviews on Steam with an overwhelmingly positive review rating.[18]
Critics have noted the game's near-total lack of goals, with some praising it. For example, Gamegrin called Dystopika a representative of a criminally underrated genre, and the game fills that niche perfectly. While the game lacks context, critic GameGrin says it doesn't need it, simply allowing the player to build their own cyberpunk paradise as a god.[19] A New Game Network critic called Dystopika a compromise for fans of games like Cities: Skylines, Anno, or Surviving Mars who enjoy the city-building process but dislike the challenges.
Another group of critics cited the lack of goals, an economy, or challenges as the game's main flaw. This makes Dystopika feel empty or limited. A Finger Guns critic noted that Dystopika is more of an interactive piece of art than a game in the classic sense. It was noted that the game can become boring after a few hours and is not suitable for lovers of missions and complex tasks.[20] Critic digitalchumps noted that the game's problem lies not in the lack of in-game content, but in the fact that the player unlocks all the content in just a few hours.[17]
Some reviewers praised the visual effects and the attention to detail, such as vehicle movement. Critic tryhardguides particularly praised the fog trick, which seemed to hide roads that don't exist in the game.[21] A critic from newgamenetwork, on the other hand, was unhappy with the inability to see the streets. Others left lukewarm reviews, complaining about the limited visuals and overly static environments, as well as the inability to create the illusion of a bustling metropolis, as in Cities: Skylines.
Reviews of the building editor were mixed. Some critics admitted to simply enjoying the process of city building itself. They also appreciated the unlocking of items as they progressed. According to critic from WellPlayed, they described the game as akin to playing a lo-fi playlist as it is simple but meditative.[22] A critic from newgamenetwork criticized the game for the fact that access to unlocked items is lost when you save again.[5]
Some critics found the construction and terrain editor too limited. For example, a representative of GodisaGeek would like to work with more diverse landscapes and see how the city adapts to the terrain.[6] Similarly, critic GameGrin noted that the game's urban landscapes are too monotonous, expressing a desire to create more complex structures along with greater environmental variations.[19] A critic of digitalchumps specifically complained about the interface's confusing icons.[17]
References
[edit]- ^ "Dystopika". IGN. Dec 1, 2025. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Donlan, Christian (Jun 7, 2024). "Dystopika is a toy for making cyberpunk cities and it's rad". Eurogamer. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Purdy, Kevin (Nov 2, 2024). "Dystopika is a beautiful cyberpunk city builder without the ugly details". Ars Technica. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Brendan, Caldwell (June 26, 2024). "In Dystopika you are the chill landscaper of a vast cyberpunk city, and it is exactly my cup of noodles". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ a b c SpectralShock (Jun 30, 2024). "Dystopika Review". New Game Network. Archived from the original on Oct 8, 2024. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ a b c Fraser, Mick (Jun 25, 2024). "Dystopika review". GodIsAGeek. Archived from the original on Oct 8, 2024. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Brown, Fraser (July 8, 2025). "This brilliant dark and moody cyberpunk city builder is my kind of cosy game—and for less than $7 you might as well see if it's yours too". PC Gamer. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Marshall, Matt (Oct 9, 2025). "v1.6 Now Available with Expanded Mod Support". Steam. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Kupetsky, Noah (Oct 14, 2025). "Dystopika Gets Patch With Improved On-Screen Keyboard Support For Steam Deck". Steam Deck HQ. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ a b c marshmatter (2024-08-20). "A positive post-mortem on Dystopika, my solo-dev cyberpunk city builder". r/gamedev. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ a b c d "Dystopika Dystopika Developer Interview movie | gamepressure.com". Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ Bartelson, Eric (2024-08-28). "Matt Marshall went solo to escape corporate culture and scored a hit with Dystopika". PreMortem Games. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ "Dystopika - Community Trailer - IGN". 2024-03-22. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ "The best new city builder of 2024 has a 98% rating on Steam but no-one's playing it". PCGamesN. 2024-06-25. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ "Dystopika critic reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2024-10-08.
- ^ Orr, Jessica (July 2025). "Dystopika, Cities Skylines' cyberpunk cousin, just dropped a huge new update". PCGamesN. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ a b c Silberman, Will (July 19, 2024). "Dystopika (PC) Review". Digital Chumps. Archived from the original on Oct 8, 2024. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ "Dystopika". Steam. Dec 1, 2025. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ a b Sanderson, Jacob (Jul 15, 2024). "Dystopika Review". GrameGrin. Archived from the original on Oct 8, 2024. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Thompson, Mike (June 21, 2024). "Dystopika Review (PC) – Build Runner 2049". FingerGuns. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Hodges, Erik (June 24, 2024). "Dystopika Review — A Night City of Your Own". Try Hard Guides. Archived from the original on Oct 8, 2024. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
- ^ Ryan, Adam (July 9, 2024). "Dystopika Review". WellPlayed. Retrieved Dec 1, 2025.
Links
[edit]Category:Single-player games Category:Indie games Category:Art games Category:Cozy games Category:Sandbox games Category:City-building games Category:2024 video games Category:Windows games
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