Flooded is turning the city-building genre on its head, and critics are taking notice. The game recently earned an 8 out of 10 from Destructoid, with praise focused on its clever “reverse city builder” idea—an approach that keeps the familiar satisfaction of planning and expansion while adding a fresh sense of pressure and strategy. The review also highlighted how well the experience is paced, making it easy to stay engaged as you push through each scenario.
One of Flooded’s biggest strengths is how much it gives players to do without overstaying its welcome. There are 12 levels to work through, plus multiple ways to play depending on your mood. If you want something fast, there’s a quickplay option. If you’re looking for a longer challenge, the endless mode is built for experimenting, optimizing, and seeing how long your planning can hold up. Adding to that replayability are procedurally generated maps, which means each run can feel different enough to justify “one more try.”
That said, Flooded isn’t perfect. The same review pointed to a few frustrating random elements that can occasionally make outcomes feel less in your control than you’d like. It also noted that the story doesn’t dig as deep as it could, leaving the narrative side feeling a bit underdeveloped compared to the strength of the game’s core concept.
Player response has been strong overall. On Steam, Flooded is currently sitting at an 84% positive rating from roughly 120 user reviews, suggesting most players agree the game’s unique spin and replay value outweigh its weaker points.
If you’ve been curious, now may be the best time to jump in. Flooded, developed by Artificial Disasters and released in April 2023 in partnership with Surefire.Games and Better.Publishing, is seeing its first-ever 80% discount on Steam. The city builder normally sells for about $13, but it’s currently down to $2.59 through February 11, according to SteamDB.
It’s also a good pick for handheld gaming. Flooded is listed as “Playable” on Steam Deck, making it an easy game to take on the go if you’re looking for a strategy title that feels different from the usual city-building formula.
