Articles
5 Franchises Ripe for Making into City Builders
is rarely on Earth and the Wongs
live on Mars. Of course the
reason to rebuild New New York
is easy - Professor Farnsworth
does a Homer Simpson and
nukes the city, so it’s down to
Planet Express to rebuild.
Thomas the
Tank Engine
Yes, you read that correctly Thomas & Friends is ideal for
a city builder. You would have
to place tracks for the trains
to run along, so they can do
quests between Tidmouth
Sheds and the Steamworks.
Thomas’ branch line would
require a 24 hour job, whereas
Percy’s mail route would
only be four hours. The story
behind the restructuring
would be a little more difficult
Issue 64 • February 2015
- perhaps Sir Topham ‘The
Fat Controller’ Hatt needs to
modernise the island of Sodor.
It’s either move everything
about, or scrap Henry and
his ‘special Welsh coal’.
Monkey Island
Rather than being a city, this
would need to be a Tri-Island
area builder. But when you
consider how little there is on
each island, having a peninsula
isn’t really too over the top.
Using some voodoo magic,
LeChuck manages to destroy
the Tri-Island area - but the
Voodoo Lady does something
to avoid total catastrophe thus
allowing Guybrush Threepwood
to rebuild. You’ve got Governor
Marley’s mansion, Monkey
Island, Big Whoop - there’s
plenty to build and events can
be catered for pretty easily.
Super Mario
Yes, it’s not as small as New
York, but rebuilding the
Mushroom Kingdom would be
pretty cathartic. All of those
frustrated gamers who just
wish Princess Peach would stay
locked in the one castle - they
could do it. One of Bowser’s
jobs would inevitably be “fall
in some lava” - you don’t have
to let him out of it. You can bet
the whole reason the game
exists is because Bowser casts
some star magic and it’s up to
Mario to put the kingdom back
together. And with Nintendo
looking to make some apps, this
one is probably more likely to
be made than any of the others.
7 • GameOn Magazine