Recent reviews by Prolands

TL;DR - Breath of fresh air in citybuilding / tycoon / economy games. Innovative and complex systems make for engaging gameplay. A lot of fun to be had despite being very early access. Looks promising.

Update Feb 2021 - It keeps getting better and better. New types of vehicles, resources and systems further add to the gameplay. Especially nice is heating, which makes winters into a mini survival game.

Update Apr 2023 - Again keeps getting better. Stellar rating fully deserved. More and more systems implemented into the game, devs release regular community updates. Modding scene very active and useful.

Positives:

Realistic Construction - You have an option of either purchasing your buildings (which will become instantly available for use) or constructing them yourself, which is really fun. It requires a lot of planning as each building will require different materials and construction equipment to attend. This allows for very organic growth to your towns as first you'd set up rudimentary construction industry (gravel, cement, bricks, wood, etc) and expand from there. You will have to prioritize your construction queue, bearing in mind that your labour is limited. Each building will need at least basic path/road connection otherwise your construction vehicles wont be able to reach it. Construction also takes part in stages which is visually represented as the building grows - it's great to look at the progress and transformation that takes place in your town. One of the best features this game has to offer imho.

Realistic Scale - The map included is pretty big (hoping it'll get even bigger of course) which allows you to realise the full potential of railways and set up multiple towns. There is no randomly generated map (at least not yet) but the one included is really well made. Vehicles are also realistically scaled and look much smaller than trains (as they should). The same goes for inudustrial buildings but more on that later.

Realistic Capacities - Not only are vehicles accurate representations of the ones used in 60s-80s (without trademarks, but i'm sure modding will take care of that) but they also have realistic capacities. Same goes for buildings. Big ticket industry such as refineries and steel mills will need a small town to fully crew!

Beautiful Art - Game has a very consistent art style, reflecting soviet architecture and design. None of the buildings look odd, or out of place. All buildigs and vehicles are very detailed and it's a pleasure to take a pause and just look at the things going about their business. Some of the screenshots included in the game dont do it justice (very curvy and uneven roads) - with a bit of care you can really detail the environment and make it look very realistic. Check community screenshots section for a better feel - some of the stuff in there is amazing. I'm a detailer and this game definitely hits that itch - you make functional things that are also pretty. Modding community is awesome and keeps churning out high quality content too.

Organic Industry - Planning out your industry hubs in the most efficient manner is one thing to look forward to. It's a departure from typical tycoon/builder games where you have to ferry resources between buildings by trucks/trains. You have a choice of conveyor belts, pipelines and forklift routes that allow you to connect your buildings. Out of all the tycoon/builder games out there this is actually the first one to portray the scale and complexity of industrial complexes. Take a refinery for example. First you will need to conquer a vast oilfield with multiple pumps and connectors, then deliver it to your refinery hub which can be as large as a small town. No more of the silly small 4x4 square building posing as a refinery!

Not to say it's without any flaws:

At the moment the citizen transportation is rather simplistic - deliver them from A to B with no interchange as you would any other resource. There is a fair amount of micromanaging (but then again you are a centrally planned economy), the UI could be a bit better and a lot of things need to be learnt by trial and error (although there is a comprehensive FAQ ingame). Sounds are of great quality but could be improved in the variety department.

I am hopeful that these points will be addressed as the development progresses. As good as this game is, there's still a lot of unrealised potential. As the devs are open to feedback I will be posting my suggestions on official Discord.

Overall very engaging gameplay, "just one more minute!" type. Highly recommend if you like Cities Skylines, Factorio, Transport Fever, Transport Tycoon, Tropico and similar games, but bear in mind that this is delightfully more complex - with complexity that is a fun challenge rather than an unnecessary chore.

Great successor to Dangerous Waters. New patches add much needed functionality and icrease the depth of the simulation. Hoping the devs will continue!

If you want teamwork and communication, play this game. It's a very rewarding experience. Game is currently early in the development cycle but it is in very capable hands and even at this stage it offers tons of fun. I am very eager to see it grow!

FYI, dont source your information about this game from Steam forums - visit the official joinsquad ones for an informed discussion.