''Bit City'' is an
incremental game
Incremental games, also known as clicker games, clicking games (on PCs) or tap games (in mobile games), are video games whose gameplay consists of the player performing simple actions such as clicking on the screen repeatedly. This "grinding" ear ...
and city-builder game developed by
NimbleBit
NimbleBit, LLC is an American developer and publisher of iOS and Android (operating system), Android mobile apps. It was co-founded by brothers David and Ian Marsh. , released on March 13, 2017 for
iOS
iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
and
Android
Android may refer to:
Science and technology
* Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human
* Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system
** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...
. The game tasks players with building a city one plot of land at a time, with zoning and pixelated buildings that vaguely resemble previous games from the developer, such as
Tiny Tower
''Tiny Tower'' is a business simulation video game developed by NimbleBit, released on June 23, 2011 and November 16, 2011 for iOS and Android (operating system), Android devices respectively. The game tasks players with managing a tower filled ...
or
Disco Zoo
''Disco Zoo'' is a zoo simulation video game developed by Milkbag Games and published by NimbleBit for iOS and Android. It was published into the App Store on 21 February 2014 for iOS.
Gameplay
Using pixelated graphics seen in other NimbleBi ...
.
Bit City also includes some features similar to
Egg, Inc such as an upgrade shop
and the ability to prestige.
The game's initial reception has been overwhelmingly positive, with the game reaching the #1 spot for free games on App Store. , the ratings for Bit City are 4.5 stars on the App Store and 4.3 on the Google Play Store.
Gameplay
The player is tasked with building a city with the goal of having the city reach a certain population. The city has a predetermined number of plots which can be small or large plots. When a player decides to buy a plot they are prompted to pick one of the three "zones", Residential, Business, or Service. Once a plot is built on, it will add 1000 residents per 1x1 square to the city and will provide a certain number of coins to the player per
second
The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ...
.
Cars can also be bought and will sometimes have a coin bonus on them which, when clicked, gives the player coins or will have bux bonus (which when tapped gives the player bux). Later in the game,
boats and planes can be bought and will also sometimes give a coin bonus.
Each city also has a government building which allows the player to upgrade certain aspects of their city. Upgrades can apply only to the player's current city or can be permanent (applies even when the player prestiges or moves on to the next city).
The player can also prestige which sends them back to the first city with a certain number of Keys (each gives a 1% permanent earnings boost). However, the player keeps all of their bux and all of the game (permanent) upgrades the player has made.
Reception
GameZebo gave ''Bit City'' a 4.5/5 star rating, noting the "upbeat, jazzy soundtrack", the "huge selection of building types", calling it a "solid, highly addictive game that is as close to as perfect a blend of clicker and city builder as you’re likely to find anywhere".
148Apps gave an overall rating of 3/5 stars, praising the user interface and sound track, but stating "in 2017, it feels really uninspired", and "it doesn't really offer anything new to the genre".
Pocket Gamer
''Pocket Gamer'' is a video game website that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. The site launched in 2005 and is published and owned by UK company Steel Media Ltd. The site covers all major portable and mobile gaming formats, incl ...
gave 6 out of 10 saying the game was "an empty clicker disguised as
SimCity".
References
{{Portal bar, Video games
2017 video games
Android (operating system) games
City-building games
Incremental games
IOS games
NimbleBit games
Single-player video games
Video games developed in the United States