Theos: Cities of Myth is a brand-new city builder from developers Triskell Games, published by Dotemu.
It’s a new city-building and management game built around worshipping the gods and building, or warring, in their name. Whether it’s Athena, Ares, or other gods, Theos: Cities of Myth not only challenges you to keep your city and people alive and healthy, but also to make sure the God you’re worshipping is happy. It’s a tough but engaging experience that has you dealing with establishing trade routes with another country in one moment, to spreading philosophy to your people the next.
The preview bit I got to play included a couple of tutorials and one main mission. The tutorials do a good job of walking you through early paces: building roads and houses, establishing means of production through farms and fields, keeping your people happy by making sure they’re fed and safe, and so on. Even in these tutorials, you can start to see glimpses of the potential Theos offers.
The main mission is centred on Athena as you set out to build Athens. The map is a good size, and looking it over, you already have decisions to make from the jump. Where do you build roads, how to connect houses, where to lay down farms – the great city of Athens’ humble beginnings. Athena herself watches over you, offering different boons and blessings. Grand temples allow the placement of decorative olive trees that give nearby houses olive oil, podiums that spread philosophy also act as guard posts, and more, all centred around philosophy and olive oil.
As your city grows, you need to address new threats. Fires can break out, houses and buildings can crumble, thievery begins – more people, more possible conflicts. You need to be smart about where you build firehouses and maintenance posts, and you can even set flags to direct workers to cover certain areas. Houses and structures level up through proper management and by making sure the city is cared for and nourished, not just through food but through the arts. It may start small, but it quickly grows in size and complexity, managing multiple different competing systems to keep everyone alive and safe.
So far, Theos: Cities of Myth has a lot of potential. Multiple competing systems keep the player locked in and juggling tasks, from not just the God’s desires, but those of the people, too. How combat and different Gods will round out the experience remains to be seen, but so far, Theos: Cities of Myth has the potential to join the pantheon of the greats.
