Cartel Tycoon

I gambled and took a chance buying this game not knowing much about. The game is built on the Unreal Engine. There's story mode, sandbox, survival (not implemented) and multiplayer (not implemented). The story mode is actually pretty good right now. You're tasked with building up a cartel empire, you have to produce drugs and hire lieutenants, etc. The way you buy and build properties reminds me a bit of Tropico. I'm not too far into it yet, and I know this is a bare review but for an early access game this is for sure one of the better ones I've gambled on. I've not yet touched sandbox mode but am looking forward to it. Also survival which I'm assuming will be you VS other cartels. There's that in the story mode as well. The whole point of the game is establishing an economic network: build businesses, make money, expand your territorial control for more business opportunities. Obviously you're money makers are plantations where you grow your drug crops and interconnect them with distribution areas (airfields, seaports, etc.) for dirty money that you'll need to launder through legitimate businesses that you can also establish for legal money. You'll also be able to hire lieutenants to assist your captain or captains, all with their own stats. Increase their experience to be able to access more of their abilities. There's wanted stars you can gain which will launch investigations and you'll have to shut down your business until the investigation is over..... the boys in blue will be coming for you. So far so good. Much higher quality than many EA games I've purchased. It also runs nicely, and I've not had any crashes as of yet.

Either the bad reviews are outdated or theyre just wrong, this game is unreal. The micromanagement is extremely effective and well thought out, play time is great as it can be very challenging and the ideas the devs have used are very fresh. My only gripe is there could be more variety to attacking cities/buildings as only leutenants can attack, i'd like to see each leutenant have their own team of criminals, which could make their power level and utility a bit more dynamic, but maybe thats something for a sequel. Upgradable laundering business would be great too :) Oh and the people complaining about morals, its a game.. dont like it, dont play it. Censorship is ruining the world of entertainment.

Graphics wise and concept wise, this is a well done game. The problem lies in a huge flaw in the gameplay loop that breaks the entire game. In combat, the winner is determined by whoever has the highest sum of power by the end. You can only add/remove soldiers. There is no stamina/fatigue/hp system so bringing all your characters is the best way to secure a win. This encourages an "all in" style. If your enemies have a higher value than you, there is no way to fight back. Not all your characters gain power upon leveling up. There is no reliable way to spend your money to increase your power. If you've had a bad set of characters, you're done. You cannot weaken your enemy because the only way to lower their power is to "win" a battle/skirmish (but each battle is an all in so you cannot chip). If you try to rat your way, the ai will send their whole army to fight back because it takes too long for you to capture a city. The enemy can also invade your zone and there are no reliable way to increase your defensive values. You can stand in your city to protect your "castle" but you cannot support your towns as they get destroyed. Don't even get me started on the research tech. I've cleared the entire map with nearly infinite money and I still haven't touched T3 tech because of the absurd time it takes to complete 1 research (16 ingame days at most). Once again, your income cannot influence your research tech other than the requirement ( except for a unique expensive building that only reduces by 10%). I would recommend this if the numbers are tweaked to a realistic number when the game is patched out or a mod that does so. Other than that major flaw, the lack of shortcuts (you cannot build using your keyboard keys, it has to be by mouse), the campaign being a grind, Cartel Tycoon does everything else well for a mobster tycoon.

All of the pieces for what could be a phenomenal game are here, at least for me. It's challenging and micromanage-y, just so you know. I am into that sort of game, and I enjoy the intricacies of running an empire. That being said, the end game becomes a jumbled mess very quickly, as your empire grows to heights that require near constant clicking and monitoring. Very rarely does one get to feel as though they have " made it", because there is simply not a moment to relax. I would appreciate some streamlining or features that presently hinder me from even wanting to attempt to finish the game. At what I believe to be very near the end, it just becomes too much of a chore. I hope the devs are reading.