Constructor is a simulation game developed by System 3 and published by Acclaim in 1997 for MS-DOS. It was later ported to Mac OS, Playstation and Windows.
This franchise has been resurrected recently with its 2017 buggy HD version release and later with Constructor Plus which is kind of a sequel, but feels more like an expanded remake of the original.
Although these late releases are available for PC and many consoles, the original Constructor still stands out as one of the best simulation games from the 90s.
Back in 1997 when it was originally released (a little bit late for a DOS game) it became a great option for people who enjoyed SimCity but wanted something else.
In Constructor you’re not the mayor, but a real state developer and you’re supposed to manage resources related to the construction world like (Wood, Cement, Brick, Steel, Gadgets etc) as well as the well-being of you’re tenants, assigning teams of construction workers, dealing with complaints, sabotage from rival real state offices and much more.
This excerpt from the manual sums up pretty much what this game is all about:
“Planning your estate, stealing, building a better tomorrow, beating up on people, outlandish stereotyping, rent gouging— it’s alI here! Enjoy fending off psychos trying to chainsaw your fences, ghosts haunting your tenants and gangs of thugs throwing maniac raves.”
Constructor has its flaws, but is actually a very good entertaining, funny and challenging game. It’s a perfect choice for those who like micromanaging, strategy, action and a little bit of humor.
Btw, it’s worth mentioning that Constructor got a sequel back in the 90s called Mob Rules / Constructor II: Street Wars. I didn’t play it too much because back in the day I only had its demo version, but it seemed a lot more challenging than the original.
Anyways, I think this is a great choice for a later episode.
Best regards,
Diego
PS: you can find the original manual here:
https://archive.org/details/manual_Constructor/page/n1/mode/2up
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