Hopefully you got one of these games as a gift today. If not, don’t worry. There are a lot of other occasions to celebrate—maybe try the day after Christmas?
Writing for Bloomberg CityLab, Allison Nicole Smith shares a list of the top video games for “wannabe urban planners,” but we suspect that you don’t have to be a wannabe to see the appeal of these games. The games are described in more detail at the source article.
- Final Fantasy IX
- Catizens
- The Wandering Village
- Disney Dreamlight Village
- Two Point Campus
- Floodland
- Magna Graecia
- Sim Nimby
- City Bus Manager
Smith’s description of Final Fantasy IX is shockingly applicable to one of the biggest challenges facing contemporary planners:
Like many other online role-playing games, Final Fantasy XIV has suffered a housing shortage since a rebooted version of the original game came out in 2014. That’s because limited availability of in-game housing units meant only the richest and most well-connected players were able to secure property. That changed this past April, when the game’s developers released a long-awaited patch aimed at fixing the housing crisis. The fix was simple: Build more housing and restrict how many properties homeowners could posses. In this way, the real world is perhaps running behind virtual ones when it comes to affordable housing.
The parallels between the real world housing market and the supply of fantasy worlds are really starting to pile up—a debate about capacity at Disneyland raised similar comparisons earlier this year.
FULL STORY: These Are the Best Video Games for Wannabe Urban Planners
How a City Planner Plays SimCity
A gaming video on the popular City Beautiful YouTube channel shows of the Sim City skills of a professional city planner.
Planners be Nimble, Planners be Quick
Planning should be methodical and responsive to community needs, but not to the point of inefficiency. Too much planning can be just as harmful as too little.
Bringing Planning Back to the People
Has the profession given in to corporate interests, and is there another way forward?
Florida Considers Legalizing ADUs
Current state law allows — but doesn’t require — cities to permit accessory dwelling units in single-family residential neighborhoods.
Manufactured Crisis: Losing the Nation’s Largest Source of Unsubsidized Affordable Housing
Manufactured housing communities have long been an affordable housing option for millions of people living in the U.S., but that affordability is disappearing rapidly. How did we get here?
Americans May Be Stuck — But Why?
Americans are moving a lot less than they once did, and that is a problem. While Yoni Applebaum, in his highly-publicized article Stuck, gets the reasons badly wrong, it's still important to ask: why are we moving so much less than before?
EV Chargers Now Outnumber Gas Pumps by Nearly 50% in California
Fast chargers still lag behind amidst rapid growth.
Affordable Housing Renovations Halt Mid-Air Amidst DOGE Clawbacks
HUD may rescind over a billion dollars earmarked for green building upgrades.
Has Anyone at USDOT Read Donald Shoup?
USDOT employees, who are required to go back to the office, will receive free parking at the agency’s D.C. offices — flying in the face of a growing research body that calls for pricing parking at its real value.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Moreno Valley
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
City of Cambridge, Maryland
Newport County Development Council: Connect Greater Newport