City building at a one-off price: Why Pocket City 2 swims against the tide

There are two stories to be told about Pocket City 2, both of which are linked in a way: There is one about a significantly further developed city simulation for iPhone and iPad, which can even be used on the Mac via the App Store. In the new part, players can now run through their own city in 3D mode, among other things. Of course, this has all happened before in one way or another in the history of computer games – other titles say hello. But in this case it was partly large game studios with several developers, which leads to story number two, namely that Pocket City 2 is also the story of an indie developer who, moreover, as an individual, went against the flow of in-app purchases and subscriptions in the App Store floats and continues to offer a game at a fixed price – without any extras needed to move forward.

The first part was published in 2018

After the first part in 2018, which received a lot of attention, developer Bobby Li followed up with Pocket City 2 in early April 2023. The level of detail of the simulation is now much higher: You also have to manage your own city’s waste and sewage, there are seasons and a day-night cycle with different challenges. Players can now freely move around their city in 3D, driving around in vehicles and solving quests. Friends of numbers and statistics will also get their money’s worth. And if you like, you can also celebrate street festivals or let a volcano erupt.

There is one person behind Codebrew Games in Toronto, Canada: Bobby Li. We spoke to him about the new part and his decision to sell the game for a one-off price of just under 6 euros.

Pocket City 2 reminds me of the best days of city building simulations. What was your motivation to develop a game that already exists in many variations?

Bobby Li: I wanted to make a city building game for mobile that goes beyond the scope of a standard mobile game. I loved playing city building games but couldn’t find exactly what I wanted on mobile so I decided to make my own. Also, unlike many other games, I wanted to make it without microtransactions.

What makes Pocket City 2 different from all other city building simulations?

Pocket City adds additional features such as B. the ability to move freely, accept quests, customize your avatar and interact with the world in mini-games. Many players have enjoyed the free-roaming aspect, saying it makes them feel connected to their city in a new way.

When I read that you developed the game on your own, I couldn’t believe it. How can you do something like this alone? And how many hours of work went into part 2?

I worked full-time on Pocket City 2 for about three years. I used to work as a software engineer and I also do graphic design. I also did some animation for fun when I was a teenager. Ultimately, I was able to put my skills to good use in game development, which is what I’ve always wanted to do. I developed the game with Unity and there are great products on the Unity Asset Store to help you with that. Still, I had to learn new tools like Blender to create my own models and edit purchased assets for the game. It also took me a while to understand Unity itself. The first year consisted mainly of learning!

If you have developed such an elaborate simulation, do you still play Pocket City 2 yourself, for fun, for example?

I play it mostly just for testing purposes. I think if you spend like 10 hours a day developing something, you want to look at something else afterwards. But my family and friends played it and gave me great feedback, so I knew it was fun!

What sets Pocket City 2 apart from many other games on the App Store is that there are no in-app purchases. Instead, the game is available for a one-time price. What was the reason for the waiver of permanent subscription income?

From a business point of view, the one-off price attracts gamers looking for a game with no microtransactions, and they’re my target audience. Since I am one person, the sales from this price model are completely sufficient for me. That wouldn’t be enough revenue for a large company, but as an individual I’m quite happy with it.

What are buyers’ reactions to this model? Did the introduction of the new part go well?

I received many messages from players who enjoyed the game and said that the game exceeded their expectations with so many new features. Pocket City 2 is bigger in every way compared to Pocket City 1. Sales aren’t quite as high as Pocket City 1, but I believe they will increase over time. Pocket City 1 had bigger hype before launch but Pocket City 2 is the better game!

What has technically changed under the hood of Pocket City between parts 1 and 2?

Pocket City 1 was developed using web technologies, basically it was a fancy website under the hood. Pocket City 2 was developed in the Unity engine, which enables all the new features.

Are there any other plans for Pocket City?

I plan on adding controller support, additional languages ​​(including German) and porting the game to other platforms. Also, I want to add new content based on players’ suggestions!

(mki)