City Bus Manager Review (PC)

I can’t say that I’ve ever aspired to be a transportation aficionado, much less an operator of a city bus line, for that matter. Having said that, I have frequently dabbled with the desire to govern a network of sorts — at least for the sake of quenching that ever-alluring thirst for power and control, anyway. And, as luck would have it, that very pocket of bite-sized power was, at least to some extent, a cog that had already been alive and kicking for several hours by the time the temptation to capitalize on that desire came to reach its crescendo. If you’ve yet to put two and two together, then just know this: I’m talking about City Bus Manager, the recently launched business and transportation-centric sandbox sim that just found its feet on PC.

When it comes to titles like City Bus Manager, it feels a waste to give it any kind of formal introduction, for it is, in essence, an exact copy of what it attempts to showcase on its tin: a virtual business management sim that centers its entire universe around—you guessed it—buses. Scratch that, it centers its world around the act of managing said buses, as well as constructing reliable networks and routes that bear the ability to bring lucky passengers to their onward destinations and into the great beyond. Well, that might be a bit of a push, but you get the idea. It’s a cliche-riddled business sim through and through, and it has finally shed its skin on Steam. Hooray? I’m not quite sure yet, but we’ll get to that momentarily.

Anyway, if you are on the hunt for a brand-new virtual business venture, and aren’t entirely sure which route to progress towards next, then be sure to read on.

Tickets, Please!

City Bus Manager isn’t exactly a fancy term for an extravagant concept, nor is it a mysterious hybrid that idles in receipt of numerous other layers or ideas. To cut a long story short, it is, when completely stripped down to its core, a “traditional” city-building and management simulation game, one in which you, the fortunate overseer with a little too much cash to call your own, are responsible for creating a transport hub that’s not only structurally sound, but perfectly capable of amassing great wealth from the sidelines, too. In a similar manner as its adversaries, the primary objective of the game is to gradually increase your business’s value and reputation—a goal that requires you to make viable investments, as well as decisions that can be seen as beneficial for your brand and its ability to grow.

Suffice it to say, the actual process of developing a successful operation isn’t as easy as it sounds on paper; on the contrary, it involves a lot of hard work, and not to mention a firm eye for certain aspects of the trade—managing shifts, despots, staff, fuel, and a whole bunch of other managerial responsibilities, for instance. And, sure, while a lot of these things do tend to come naturally after several hours of working, this isn’t to say that it’s a total walk in the park. Matter of fact, the opening portions of the campaign do indeed require a lot of manual input, and it isn’t until much later, particularly once you’ve unlocked several boons for your portfolio, that things gradually become a little less, shall we say, grating. But then, that’s sort of the point: you work to evolve, and unlock the benefits for doing so.

Clocking In

There isn’t a story in City Bus Manager — or at least, there isn’t a natural progression system that sees you romping through various scenarios and shaking hands with various figureheads and what have you. No, what you have, really, is a selection of milestones and goals to work towards, each of which comes with its own specific win criteria and incentives. For the most part, you’re left to switch between the general management of the company—a role that involves you hiring staff, assigning routes, and toying with the finances—and creating sustainable models that allow customers to funnel cash into your back pocket—a task that, if done correctly, can provide you with more flexibility to enhance existing routes and, with any luck, build more parking spaces, depots, and fueling stations.

As with any business management game that employs a fairly basic rags-to-riches approach, the initial portion of City Bus Manager can be a bit of a pain in the neck to decipher. However, as the game does offer an extensive set of tutorials and helping hands to see you through your first handful of shifts, the process, as a whole, isn’t terribly daunting, to say the least. Is it a threatening sandbox sim? Eh, I wouldn’t go as far as to say that it’s borderline impossible to crack, but it is something that requires a bit of practice and TLC. And to be reiterate, there is only the initial round of chores that require some careful planning; the latter segments tend to speak and act on their own accord, weirdly enough.

Jack of All Trades

Don’t get me wrong, there can be a lot to juggle here, and it isn’t exactly uncommon for several things to go wrong all at once in City Bus Manager. As mentioned earlier, there is the case of having to deal with certain managerial issues—an ongoing problem that tends to keep you on your toes even during the “softer” and slightly more forgiving scenarios. What I mean to say here is that, in spite of its simplistic nature, it does indulge in a lot of micromanagement, and it often reminds you that, should you fail to keep all of the cogs turning simultaneously, then the consequences can, and often will result in your termination. Well, it isn’t quite as drastic as that — but you get the idea.

Aside from it featuring a generous selection of real-world locations and routes, City Bus Manager does also make room for a good amount of custom ideas—a workshop, for example, that allows you to create and customize well over 400 models and build your own fleet. And then, rather generously, you have a suite of buildable allotments, parking spaces, and depots, all of which can be tweaked and maintained to suit your needs and interests. So, quite a lot of bang for your buck, all things considered. Still, a treasure trove of content doesn’t necessarily make up for the lack of quality in the story department, of which there is next to nothing to work through outside of a generic A-to-B system. But hey, I’m all for giving the developer a few points just for being able to emulate a lot of real-world scenarios and mechanics, to be honest.

Verdict

City Bus Manager operates in an almost identical fashion as the vast majority of its counterparts — which is great, as it doesn’t require too much of a vivid imagination or an immeasurable amount of experience to make the most out of its content. Saying that, I wouldn’t go as far as to suggest that anyone is capable of picking it up and running with it, so to speak, as it does feature a rather hefty amount of consequential challenges. Still, for what it’s worth, I can’t help but think that, for what it is—a textbook business simulation game that centers its entire concept around the transportation system—it does manage to tick all of the right boxes and deliver a solid emulation of the trade and its day-to-day operations. Well, that’s coming from someone who’s about as clued up on bus routes as, say, a sloth with a printout.

To answer the initial question of whether or not City Bus Manager is actually worth playing — yes, it most certainly is. Having said that, if you’re the sort of gamer who grows a little weary of dealing with the same shenanigans on a clockwork basis, then you might struggle to stick around long enough to enjoy a hearty portion of what the game has to offer in its later stages. For the record, this is a bit of a slow burner, and so, if you’re all for the idea of quickly romping through the fast lane and directly towards the apex of entrepreneurial success, then heed our warning: you probably won’t find any level of satisfaction in the art of managing bus routes.