Frostpunk 2
Play it on: PC (including Game Pass)
Current goal: Keep political turmoil at bay
I loved the first Frostpunk. It was an approachable city management sim that layered compelling and provocative story beats overtop an otherwise not too difficult-to-decipher resource balancing game. Frostpunk 2 is much more complex, and taking me a lot longer to wrap my head around as a result. It’s a meatier and in some ways much more familiar settlement building experience, but it also has a fascinating and much more nuanced political sim operating in concert with it that adds a whole new set of opportunities and restrictions to navigate. I’m not sure if I’ll ultimately end up liking it as much as the first game, but so far it’s offered plenty for me to chew on and I still love the feeling of cozying up to its apocalyptic machinery amid an endless winter. —Ethan Gach
