Microlandia

Microlandia is a city builder in which you plan a city and manage its economy through a detailed socioeconomic simulation modeled on real-world research and statistics. You build places for people to live and work, set policies and respond to the consequences of your decisions as mayor.

Plan your city

Lay roads and create a bus network, then build housing, businesses and public works. Each type of building has its own functions, benefits and tradeoffs.

Simulate every resident

Residents, households and companies are simulated individually, without fake crowds or statistical approximations. Each person works for a real company, pays rent to a landlord, and may get sick and need a hospital with real staffing and capacity. If someone remains broke and unemployed long enough, they may consider a career in the criminal underworld. These outcomes are side effects of your choices as mayor.

Set policy and taxes

Set income, sales and corporate tax rates, and charge for business licenses, bus fares, parking and other services. Taxes and fees that are too high can make the cost of living unbearable; rates that are too low may leave the city without enough revenue. Your decisions shape the economy, while your approval rating determines whether you remain mayor: citizens vote, and you lose if they elect someone else.

Respond to events

A newspaper reports what happens in your city, including crime at real addresses and exact figures. Each story comes from events in the simulation, and the newspaper holds you responsible for bad news. Every five years, a random incident tests your plans, such as a heatwave, recession or drought.

Research-based simulation

The simulation draws on research and data from sources including the World Bank, the OECD and the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Its challenges reflect issues that exist in real life. Microlandia also publishes the simulation's parameters and their sources.