Tropico 3 Review

By Will Porter Published 13 November, 2009

Havana good time.

Version tested: PC

I am shimmying as I write this. Why? Because listen to this! Hooray! The Tropico 3 soundtrack makes life better. You can eat to it, shower to it, go to Tescos to it, play games to it - and I'd estimate that doing so improves your daily lot by at least 25 per cent. Find the airport level in Modern Warfare 2 disturbing? No longer a problem! Just ramp up the Tropico beat, and mow down those innocents with a smile on your face and a bounce in your step! Activision didn't need an in-game warning, they just needed a Latin beat toggle!

Beyond watching a cigar factory being built while tapping your feet and twitching your mouse hand to the music though, Tropico 3 is a superbly designed city-builder - placing you as the Castro-esque revolutionary leader hell-bent on either creating an idyllic society of socialist freedom with a lovely beach, or a corrupt and sinister autocracy - also with a lovely beach.

It's a revamp of the first Tropico game - where Sim City and Colonization collide, mixed in with a warm and humorous approach to the ways in which you can turn yourself into an utter cigar-chomping bastard - from nobbled elections all the way to Swiss bank accounts and your personal secret police.

Along with a collection of sandbox islands to build upon, the game's initial release contains 15 different islands that open up to you - each with their own resource issues, topographical extremes, local demands and campaign targets (like staying in power for a certain number of years on a cursed island, exporting a certain amount of oil, embezzling a certain amount of money - all that cool stuff). The plates you have to spin as benevolent dictator, meanwhile, are many and varied.

'Tropico 3' Screenshot 1

You can either design your own benevolent ruler with their own individual perks and traits, or pick from a range of pre-set presidentes.

For a start, there's the familiar resource management stuff - keeping your cigar/canned pineapple/posh furniture industry in motion from farm, to factory, to export from the dockyards. Then there's matters like education, health and crime to consider - each with associated buildings that need constructing, and various option chains that open up ever more expensive and improved services.

Then there's the balance between your manufacturing industries and the filthy rich American tourists that need money bleeding out of them. What's more, you can't forget the variety of people that you'll have to attract as immigrants to keep your economic engine turning - and the fact they'll need nice/grotty accommodation, and that the greedy swine will want more and more money out of your coffers for filthy plebeian desires such as food, entertainment and accommodation. The scum.

It's a fascinating and well-paced balancing act. At first you rely on investment from the US or USSR (or an unlikely-to-last mix of the two), but as the years roll past from a 1950s start-off you'll hopefully get the right mix of production-line exports and wallet-bearing tourists and begin to move out of the red (or further into it, I guess) with the potential of swimming in your own personal Scrooge McDuck-styled piles of cash.

'Tropico 3' Screenshot 2

As my first act in power, I always have a good old wave. Works for the Queen!

Even if you've got a nicely developing slush-fund though, chances are there'll be clouds on the horizon. There are many and varied factions within your island paradise - religious types, nationalists, capitalists, Guardian-reading liberals, good old traditional communist nutballs [surely the same thing - Ed], and they all want their personal needs met. If you fall out of favour with them then at best they will not vote for you when elections roll around, but at worst they'll turn rebel.

Of course, after a failed election you can encourage the miscounting of votes, and continue to up your military presence to chase the rebels back into the hills like the dogs they are, but it becomes an increasingly difficult tightrope to walk.

Then on top of this again there's the arch rivals of the USA and USSR to placate and/or get into bed with to keep that investmest cash coming in, and to avoid the threat of circling battleships and possible invasion. It turns out that being a revolutionary leader isn't all motorcycle diaries, blowjobs and exploding cigars.

What could have been vaguely terrifying though is rendered less so by the developer concealing reams of statistics so casual players can skim over them. Play styles, meanwhile, are initially dripfed through the opening campaigns, while a welcome four-gear speed system (well, three gears and a neutral) means that time can be frozen if things get hectic. You'll rarely need anything apart from pause or fast-forward, but speaking as someone who craves being given time to breathe in games of this ilk (and who suffered slightly with the pace and slight lack of hand-hold moments in developer Haemimont's recent Roman city-builder Grand Ages: Rome), Tropico certainly sits on the right side of the brain-tease versus frenetic frustration divide.

This said, it's certainly far better at telling you what buildings your increasingly stroppy people are demanding (or having its ever-broadcasting radio station DJ dip his elbow into public opinion to see just how incandescent with rage they are) than actually explaining just what's gone wrong with the structures already built. As ever, it's a learning process - albeit a fun and engaging one, with a few decent gags smuggled into both DJ patter and UI info alike.

Another problem is that neither campaign success nor the shock of invasion and electoral defeat are ever particularly dramatic - and the imminence of failure could sometimes be flagged up a mite more clearly. Quite often you'll be in full flow and jiggling to the music, only for a "Sorry!" screen to appear alongside your own personal internal feeling of utter emptiness.

'Tropico 3' Screenshot 3

It starts off ugly and heavily scaffolded, it ends up a remarkable holiday resort. Or that's the plan.

An area in which Tropico 3 certainly does win big though are the rich seams of scripted politics that run through each island's campaign, alongside more random terrorist threats and natural crises like earthquakes. As you play you'll get story nuggets fed through about foreign investors who a little later down the line will turn out to be undercover CIA operatives, strange attacks from voodoo killers or an insolent drunken tourist you can choose to have executed who's revealed to have more important connections than you'd imagined.

With each event you make a decision, and then the story spins out in whatever direction you've sent it in - invariably having you either reap the profits of your clever politician ways, or seriously piss off a world superpower. These are then peppered with smaller events to deal with caused by your populace's more extreme reactions to your (mis)rule - a bomb in a factory, for example, tourists taken hostage, or a good old-fashioned military coup. It's a great way of adding flavour and tone to what could have strayed towards samey scenarios.

'Tropico 3' Screenshot 4

Need some insta-cash and some love from the USA? Why not let them blow up a bloody big bomb right near your soon-to-be radioactive populace?

It's arguable that extreme fans of the city-build artform might feel limited by technology trees that don't extend all that far. They also might find the concept of having their own cigar-chomping avatar (of which there are many famed revolutionary types with different traits to choose from, or design yourself) wandering around the place to chivvy along construction work a little silly.

Maybe also, whereas I quite like my statistics hidden away so I can peek at them every now and then but generally avoid stomach-dropping sensations of economic fear, there's no doubt that hardcore strategists would rather have their graphs a little more loud and proud. Overall, however, you can't help but feel that the sheer charm, visual allure and fascinating setting more than straddles the genre-enthusiast divide.

And, of course, there's the music. Which, as we've already is discussed, is awesome. The fight to have this music piped through every PA, loudspeaker and radio station in Britain begins now. Viva la revolution.

8 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Will.

About Will Porter

Will ‘Velvet Owl’ Porter is a roaming freelance writer who occasionally appears at EG’s back door asking for scraps. You can find out how cold/hungry he is by following @Batsphinx on Twitter.

Read more articles from Will by visiting the Will Porter archive page.

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Comments (53) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Sunyavadin #1 2 years ago

    So getting this.

    *Boogies on down to the game store*
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 08:24

  • Cadence #2 2 years ago

    Amazing music! I was feeling a bit depressed on the way into work, but now my foot is tapping away and I've got a smile on my face!

  • kendoji #3 2 years ago

    Games like this really make me wish I had a gaming PC.

  • UncleLou #4 2 years ago

    Nice. One to get for the long winter nights once I've finished DA.

    edit:

    There's a 360 version, kendoji. Not sure about the PS3.
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 08:52

  • ron_aldo #5 2 years ago

    Anyone know if the 360 version is any good or has it been dumbed down like these games usually are for consoles?

  • ERG1008 #6 2 years ago

    This is right up my street but I'll need a new graphics card to play it.
    Thanks for the review.

  • Widge #7 2 years ago

    No PS3 version I don't think... although hands on with C&C Red Alert has put my off attempting anything RTS like with a joypad.

  • Kazzahdrane #8 2 years ago

    The supermarket chain is called TESCO - singular.

    Sorry, just a pet peeve that I hear people saying almost every day.

  • space_ace #9 2 years ago

    congratulations to the bulgarian devs - the game really looks great

  • GenuineEntropy #10 2 years ago

    Wait. This scored the same as Dragon Age: Origins?
    That must be one hell of a Latin beat...

    [edit]
    Minus 4? What the hey? o.O
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 11:07

  • r_simsini #11 2 years ago

    Will be getting this on Xbox 360 if I can find some reviews of it. There don't seem to be any on the net yet.

  • Trafford #12 2 years ago

    One for later then.My PC gaming is very busy at the moment.
    The demo's on Steam

  • erp #13 2 years ago

    The music sounds just like being in Nandos!

    Dammit I'm hungry now.

  • TheComedian #14 2 years ago

    If my computer wasn't a pile of w*nk, I'd be all over this.

  • MrChuckles #15 2 years ago

    erp: 'The music sounds just like being in Nandos!'

    That was exactly what i was going to say!

  • erp #16 2 years ago

    :)

  • dacicus #17 2 years ago

    It's pretty close to the first Tropico, though the music could be a tad more diversified. The original Tropico had one hell of a soundtrack, but this has only a couple of song that become quickly annoying after you listen to them a few times.

    At the same time, the gameplay it's almost on the same level with the original, with some extra features added.

    Overall, it's a must have game for anyone with a wish to rule a country and have fun with city building, micro-management and such. Viva El Presidente!:p

  • chrisjm #18 2 years ago

    will this work on a laptop do you think?

  • DaemonSpawn #19 2 years ago

    Anyone already has X360 version? How's it compared to PC?

  • GenuineEntropy #20 2 years ago

    Wow, my comments on -2 already?
    While I may not be a professional games journalist, I am entitled to my opinion:

    Having played through both games, I feel that giving DA:o and Tropico 3 the same score is pretty unrealistic.
    That's my opinion, lets see how far into the minuses politely disagreeing with seemingly inconsistent review standards gets me.

    [@chrisjm]
    I was away from my desktop PC when I picked it up, Tropico 3 ran pretty well on my Macbook Pro (using bootcamp) with few problems (a bit of skittering and frame rate loss here and there).
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 11:04

  • Camorrista #21 2 years ago

    I stilll think this guy needs to be on every game cover ever.

  • charliemouse #22 2 years ago

    You are indeed entitled to your opinion, as is everyone else, and oh no! A whole 4 people off the internet disagree with you!

  • harzo #23 2 years ago

    I am having a party at my place tomorrow night, I think I am just going to play the Tropico 3 soundtrack!! Awesome stuff!

  • UncleLou #24 2 years ago

    Having played through both games, I feel that giving DA:o and Tropico 3 the same score is pretty unrealistic.

    Bit of a silly comparison in the first place, that's the problem, seeing how DA:o and Tropico are games in entirely different genres.

  • Phattso #25 2 years ago

    Having tried the demo last night on my PC (which, in fairness, is running with a backup graphics card after my 8800GTS took its own life a few week back) the visuals weren't all that, so I may have a look at the *hoch* *spit* 360 version instead. ;-)

    Hopefully the controls won't be too gimped.

  • GenuineEntropy #26 2 years ago

    @UncleLou
    Hm, so you're saying you feel that if games come from different genres they cannot be compared to each other in terms of purchase potential, value for money, production values, etc?

    @charliemouse
    A fair point, although poorly made. As a long term reader and newly-started poster I do find the knee-jerk negativity surprising.
    If you're an indication of the quality of individuals posting here though, I will have to readjust my expectations accordingly.

    @MrED209
    I found it playable on the Pro, it did struggle a bit as things progressed and got rather more complicated.
    Edited by 2 at 13/11/09 @ 11:31

  • UncleLou #27 2 years ago

    Hm, so you're saying you feel that if games come from different genres they cannot be compared to each other in terms of purchase potential, value for money, production values, etc?


    No, I am not saying that. Of course they can. I said they can't be compared directly when it comes to the final score. Which is an entirely different thing.

  • Phattso #28 2 years ago

    No, I think we should give GenuineEntropy's system a chance, people! So let's go back to first principles: Baldur's Gate II was the longest, most enjoyable gaming experience in the history of man. Let's give that a 10/10. Everything else, by comparison, can score no more than a 2/10.

    I think there's potential here - all you sheep just can't see it. GenEnt and me - we're gonna take on the world, one bullshit review at a time!

  • GenuineEntropy #29 2 years ago

    :-/

    I haven't suggested scores. Nor am I comparing games from entirely different decades.

    I have compared scores issued by individuals working for the same source, both released this month and directly competing with each other for sales.

    I've just started here and already am attracting angry internet men comments like a well established troll.
    It's not even like I've been rude or anything. :(

  • Phattso #30 2 years ago

    Not rude, no. Unless abject stupidity offends people. of course. ;-)

    Tropico 3 gets an 8/10 in the context of its genre. You are very free to decide if Dragon Age is likely to give you personally better value for money, but that in no way means you can compare the scores of two different games aimed at entirely different audiences and then attack the reviews arbitrarily. Unless you think What Car? should be attacked for awarding the SEAT Leon Cupra 4/5 stars when the Ferrari California also got 4/5 stars. See where I'm going with this: same score... different markets.

    That's pretty fundamental, and if you're having trouble grasping that then indeed perhaps a gaming forum isn't for you.

  • GenuineEntropy #31 2 years ago

    Phattso
    Not rude, no. Unless abject stupidity offends people. of course. ;-)

    Tropico 3 gets an 8/10 in the context of its genre. You are very free to decide if Dragon Age is likely to give you personally better value for money, but that in no way means you can compare the scores of two different games aimed at entirely different audiences and then attack the reviews arbitrarily. Unless you think What Car? should be attacked for awarding the SEAT Leon Cupra 4/5 stars when the Ferrari California also got 4/5 stars. See where I'm going with this: same score... different markets.

    That's pretty fundamental, and if you're having trouble grasping that then indeed perhaps a gaming forum isn't for you.


    I'm sorry, I missed the the 'genre specific review' stamp plastered all over the site.
    Oh right, that's because it isn't. Reviews are organized by platform.

    In your 'what car' example, the two reviews mentioned are divided by price-point, a far greater consideration for car purchasers than car 'genre'.

    Applying your analogy to the topic at hand (because in tangential, at best), you are implying individuals do not purchase 'PC Gamer' (for example) in order to determine which games released this month they would like to spend their money on, but rather to see how individual titles perform when taken in the context of their own genre.

    Your words and thoughts leave no room for doubt within the following conclusions:
    - You *are* rude as you needlessly insulted me by calling me stupid and implying that i should "lol get off my internets".
    - You are hypocritical, as your own argument in fundamentally flawed and reveals your own stupidity.
    - You are of that ilk composed on the most unfriendly, cliched and tedious self-righteous angry internet men.
    - The 'ignore this poster' button is brilliant.

    In closing, if you are a one of the individuals who turns to reviews to help inform your purchases (i.e. the majority of normal, sane people who read reviews) it is my opinion that you will derive far greater value for money from DA:o than Tropico 3 (both games which I have played and both which have received the same review score from this site).

    If you are disinterested in either genre that these games represent, then the issue is entirely academic.

    If you believe reviews judge games solely on their merits as taken within the context of the genres they belong to, you're probably a bit mental. Or failing that, just another faceless internet misanthrope, rubbing away at your own sense of self worth with barely cogent arguments and outright insults, hurled haphazardly from behind the safety of your electronic anonymity.

  • Phattso #32 2 years ago

    I like you, GenuineEntropy. Can we be friends? No touching though, I don't do that.
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 12:50

  • glaeken #33 2 years ago

    So impressions on the 360 version would be nice as I really fancy playing this on a big telly. I was actually expecting this to be the 360 version review as I thought the game had been out on the PC for a few weeks where as today is the release date for the 360 version.
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 12:56

  • Phattso #34 2 years ago

    But the scoring system on this site is very clearly laid out: [link url=http://ww w.eurogamer.net/scoring_policy.php
    ]http://ww w.eurogamer.net/scoring_policy....[/link]

    8/10 on EG means "very good" and Tropico 3 is a very good game by all accounts. Dragon Age was also very good. I think all is well with the world. Play the very good games in genres you like - easy peasy. :)

  • Kanjin #35 2 years ago

    Viva la Revolution! : )

  • WJF #36 2 years ago

    Wa-hey! The old Tropicos are excellent (2nd was a bit stifling, but still alright). Shame my PC is too slow for this.

    Have they kept the 'you don't need roads, but they help' building mechanic of the first game? If was a breath of fresh air for someone who despises the unwritten rule, "Every city must be built like a US city", that runs through every city building game no matter what era/country (hello, Anno)

    /grooves

  • UncleLou #37 2 years ago

    I have compared scores issued by individuals working for the same source, both released this month and directly competing with each other for sales.

    But are they competing? I am not sure there are many people who can't decide whether to get Tropico or DA. Following your logic, those persons should buy Call of Duty, anyhow, because that got a 9.

    All a review says is that a game that gets an 8 is a (very) good game. Reviewing is no exact science. How do you want to make a coherent system with hundreds or thousands of different games that is so perfectly balanced that you can compare any two directly? Can a games site give Civilization 4 a 9 when they've given the same score to Tetris?

    It just doesn't work that way. Tropico is a good game, and so is Dragon Age.
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 14:00

  • JEPC123 #38 2 years ago

    Shouldn't that be 'Viva la Revolución'? :p Pronounced in a Fast Show Channel 9 News accent, of course. Boutros, boutros galli.

  • Metalfish #39 2 years ago

    It took me exactly the length of that song at the beginning to read the review. Spooky.

  • mikewl #40 2 years ago

    Just done the tutorial on the 360 version, pleasantly surprised at how smooth it runs and plays, probably as good as you could hope for with a control pad, camera is controlled with the right stick, cursor is always in the center of the screen, menus are opened with the right trigger, then sub menus use the d-pad to select things.

    Im pleased with this overall.
    Edited by 1 at 13/11/09 @ 16:04

  • Phattso #41 2 years ago

    Cheers for the 360 info, mikewl.

    If you could keep the comments coming as you play it more (or even find the forum thread, I guess there must be one) I'm sure I'm not the only one who'd appreciate it. Once I've cleared my current slate of games I think Tropico 3 might be next on the list.

  • glaeken #42 2 years ago

    Yeah nice one mikewl its good to hear it plays Ok. I will definitly be picking this up I think once I have finished DA though when that will be I don't know.

  • harzo #43 2 years ago

    I saw this for £25 in GAME today... why so cheap? If its any good I will def pick it up!

  • mikewl #44 2 years ago

    Yup £25 in Game, I was going to get it on PC but it was actually £5 cheaper on 360, I want the achievements so went for 360 with the mindset that if it plays poor I would just buy it on Steam this evening, however im finding it just fine on 360.

  • GenuineEntropy #45 2 years ago

    @Phattso
    If you reconsider your ill conceived no touching policy I may consider your request.

    @UncleLou
    Argh. I grudgingly and resentfully concede that you make a fair and valid point.

    "In my opinion, if you had to choose between the two, I would recommend DA:o as being the better value for money. Although it must be said that Tropico 3 is a lot of fun in its own right."

    If I had phrased things so, then perhaps I'd be making new friends here, Phattso would have decided to hate me and all would be right and proper with the universe...

    My only major criticism of Tropico 3 would be the lack of visual impact certain (seemingly important) decisions and events seem to have.

  • Phattso #46 2 years ago

    £25 for the 360 version? Jesus - they had a lot of confidence in that one selling, didn't they? :)

    Might have to nip out over the weekend and pick it up, that's cheaper than online!

  • mikewl #47 2 years ago

    Some updated impressions of the 360 version.

    I have just finished the first campaign stage, at this point the control scheme has become very easy to use, they have really done a good job making this play well on a console, really enjoying it at the moment, im not regretting going for the 360 version at all.

  • glaeken #48 2 years ago

    Well I don't think the 360 version of this was ever going to sell well let alone releasing it in the same week as MW2. It's a shame really but its just not the type of game I think most console owners would look at.

  • cairbre1977 #49 2 years ago

    Still its nice to hear it works well on the 360 so console gamers can play this type of game. That said I will be getting it on pc. I got dragon age on pc but it wont install waiting for ea customer support to sort it out.

  • YourMessageHere #50 2 years ago

    I detest that music. Sounds a fun game though.

  • Phattso #51 2 years ago

    Sounds like a winner - thanks for that, RossBrown.

  • Harmonica #52 2 years ago

    Thanks for the 360 info, although I really want to know if anyone has played both, and whether there's anything missing from the 360 version.

    My PC would never be able to handle the graphics on this.

    For £25 I might take a punt, but I've been burned in the past by cut-down management games on consoles.

  • Bustaboy #53 2 years ago

    I must say I really like this game.
    It is quite challenging and really realistic.
    you actually need to keep all factions happy you can kill/arrest people who disagree.
    It is really like your Fidel of Cuba.
    If you are a fan of city building games with a well balanced economy system, I could really recommend this game!