{"slug": "metropolis-1998", "name": "Metropolis 1998", "category": "media", "category_name": "Media and creative", "description": "", "recommenders": 3, "commenters": 3, "warners": 0, "score": 2.794, "rising": 0.35, "first": "2026-05-27", "latest": "2026-10-03", "why": "It's quite playable already, and it's a very small 100Mb download.", "why_is_quote": true, "has_verdict": false, "sentiment": {"recommend": 3, "neutral": 0, "compare": 0, "warn": 0}, "spark": [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1], "listed": true, "loved": [], "caveat": "", "short_quote": "It's quite playable already, and it's a very small 100Mb download.", "kind": "game", "icon": false, "domain": "steampowered.com", "github_repo": null, "official_url": "", "pricing": "", "aliases": ["Metropolis 1998"], "verdict": null, "praise": [{"label": "", "summary": "", "quotes": [{"id": 799134080, "item_id": 49945880, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49945880", "by": "grobibi", "date": "2026-10-03", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Metropolis 1998 seems to understand this. Very excited for it.", "excerpt": "Metropolis 1998 seems to understand this. Very excited for it. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/", "context": "", "use_case": "City builder game", "switched_from": "", "story": "City building games have a Soul Problem pt.2"}, {"id": 772955568, "item_id": 48309723, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48309723", "by": "HeckFeck", "date": "2026-05-28", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "It's quite playable already, and it's a very small 100Mb download.", "excerpt": "Looks pretty cool. Reminds me also of Metropolis 1998, which is also going for the isometric style - with a lot more detail, i.e. you can design individual homes and see the lives of \"sims\" too, something like if SimCity and The Sims were merged. https://yesboxstudios.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZHI2bCCpl0 It has a demo on Steam now: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/ It's quite pla", "context": "", "use_case": "City-building game", "switched_from": "", "story": "SimCity 3k in 4k"}, {"id": 772805200, "item_id": 48300325, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48300325", "by": "auto", "date": "2026-05-27", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I've been following the development of this indie spiritual successor", "excerpt": "Not sure to what extent you're looking for a reboot to be representative of the original, but I've been following the development of this indie spiritual successor for some time: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "SimCity 3k in 4k"}]}], "caveats": [], "who": [], "tags": [], "use_cases": ["city builder game", "city-building game"], "compared": [], "makers": [{"id": 756860752, "item_id": 47303797, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47303797", "by": "YesBox", "date": "2026-03-08", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Im really happy with how the game is turning out!", "excerpt": "I changed gears and moved into the video games industry at the end of 2021. I started developing a city builder called Metropolis 1998 [1], but wanted to take the genre in new directions, building on top of what modern games have to offer: - Watch what's happening inside buildings and design your own (optional) - Change demand to a per-business level - Bring the pixel art 3D render aesthetic back from the dead (e.g R", "context": "", "use_case": "City builder video game", "switched_from": "", "story": "Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (March 2026)"}, {"id": 755537328, "item_id": 47221083, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47221083", "by": "YesBox", "date": "2026-03-02", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I've been working on Metropolis 1998[1] for +4 years now.", "excerpt": "I've been working on Metropolis 1998[1] for +4 years now. Custom C++ engine built with a modified version of SFML 2.5 and SQLite. Creating my own engine was both a personal and strategic decision for me. I was really worried about running into performance issues with generalist engines, and I did not want the friction of working with someone else's mental model. Pretty sure that friction would have caused so much bur", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "Making Video Games in 2025 (without an engine)"}, {"id": 738242417, "item_id": 46140151, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46140151", "by": "YesBox", "date": "2025-12-03", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "So 4 years ago I started working on a City Builder in that style w/ a custom engine", "excerpt": "I was also inspired by RCT and played it a ton growing up. So 4 years ago I started working on a City Builder in that style w/ a custom engine[1] [1] https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/", "context": "indie developer building a city builder", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "Interview with RollerCoaster Tycoon's Creator, Chris Sawyer (2024)"}], "threads": [{"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48297645", "title": "SimCity 3k in 4k", "mentions": 2}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49945323", "title": "City building games have a Soul Problem pt.2", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47303111", "title": "Ask HN: What Are You Working On? (March 2026)", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47176576", "title": "Making Video Games in 2025 (without an engine)", "mentions": 1}, {"url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46130335", "title": "Interview with RollerCoaster Tycoon's Creator, Chris Sawyer (2024)", "mentions": 1}], "sentiment_by_month": {"2025-11": {}, "2025-12": {}, "2026-01": {}, "2026-02": {}, "2026-03": {}, "2026-04": {}, "2026-05": {"recommend": 2}, "2026-06": {}, "2026-07": {}, "2026-08": {}, "2026-09": {}, "2026-10": {"recommend": 1}}, "versions": [], "version_unnamed": 0, "family_ref": null, "runs_on": null, "lines": [], "quotes": [{"id": 799134080, "item_id": 49945880, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49945880", "by": "grobibi", "date": "2026-10-03", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "Metropolis 1998 seems to understand this. Very excited for it.", "excerpt": "Metropolis 1998 seems to understand this. Very excited for it. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/", "context": "", "use_case": "City builder game", "switched_from": "", "story": "City building games have a Soul Problem pt.2"}, {"id": 772955568, "item_id": 48309723, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48309723", "by": "HeckFeck", "date": "2026-05-28", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "It's quite playable already, and it's a very small 100Mb download.", "excerpt": "Looks pretty cool. Reminds me also of Metropolis 1998, which is also going for the isometric style - with a lot more detail, i.e. you can design individual homes and see the lives of \"sims\" too, something like if SimCity and The Sims were merged. https://yesboxstudios.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZHI2bCCpl0 It has a demo on Steam now: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/ It's quite pla", "context": "", "use_case": "City-building game", "switched_from": "", "story": "SimCity 3k in 4k"}, {"id": 772805200, "item_id": 48300325, "url": "https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48300325", "by": "auto", "date": "2026-05-27", "version": null, "stance": "recommend", "quote": "I've been following the development of this indie spiritual successor", "excerpt": "Not sure to what extent you're looking for a reboot to be representative of the original, but I've been following the development of this indie spiritual successor for some time: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2287430/Metropolis_1998/", "context": "", "use_case": "", "switched_from": "", "story": "SimCity 3k in 4k"}]}