Minimalist city builder Islanders New Shores strips the genre right back

City-building games are known for being incredibly intricate. You've got to juggle the people, their homes, jobs, infrastructure, culture, and economics all at once. It's frankly overwhelming, but that's the point. Once your metropolis starts humming like a well-oiled machine, though, there's no better feeling of pride. But what if the format was stripped back and made more modest? That's the pitch of Islanders: New Shores, which follows up a beloved entry in the genre. It's out now on Steam, and well worth investigating if you want a lighter experience.

The original Islanders is easily one of the best city building games on PC. Doing away with the stresses of constant resource management, it instead adopts a more minimalist approach. You've still got to place buildings in the ideal spots, of course, but you're helping these vibrant landmasses thrive with a simpler set of mechanics than you might be used to. This has proven to be a winning formula, though, as Islanders has an impressive 94% Steam score from more than 15,000 user reviews.

Now, we come to the recently launched follow-up Islanders: New Shores. While it keeps the same, relaxing core as its predecessor, New Shores has a lot more to offer. For starters, you can pick between high-score and sandbox modes, depending on if you want to get competitive or focus on your creativity. You've also got 44 unique buildings, seven island properties, and 50 dynamic island generators that'll keep each and every level feeling fresh.

Then there's the boons system, which is ideal for getting an edge while constructing your cityscapes. These single-use power-ups offer a range of bonuses as you play, introducing another layer of strategy to proceedings.

Now that Islanders: New Shores is here, the game is far from over. Developer The Station has a roadmap throughout 2025, packed with plenty more to do. There are multiple seasonal updates, a new biome, an extra boon, and a slate of monthly challenges, too. Check out the image below to see what's currently in development and planned for the future.

Islanders: New Shores is available on Steam now. You can grab it for 10% off until Thursday July 24 as well, so expect to pay $8.99 / £7.19 until then. Just head here.

If you want more we've also got all the best strategy games and relaxing games you can play right now.

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