Being the man-child that I am, I jumped at the chance to play an early preview build of LEGO Skylines, the latest in the Skylines series from Iceflake Studios. Those brightly coloured building blocks of my youth combined with a strategic citybuilder that I’ve previously put countless hours into? Well, it’d be rude not to.
As you might expect, you’ll don the mantle of a Master Builder, choosing from a few preset outfits (yeah, I went with the man/penguin hybrid) hired to rebuild the town in this 40 minute tutorial. You’re guided by the hand from objective to objective, be it simply add some new homes or set up utilities to ensure your population of minifigs don’t die of dehydration whilst stinking to high heaven.
For anyone with even a passing knowledge of previous games in the series, you’ll feel right at home drawing out roads and planning new plots for housing, commerce or industry. With each completed objective, experience points are gained, earning the right to level up and unlock more building types and even more tasks to complete. It’s a compelling loop as you’d expect, Guyd Brickley (yes, that’s his name) helping to plan your every move through this extended tutorial.
Tasks start off easy, with more complex concepts such as population happiness or utility requirements being introduced toward the latter part of the preview build. Some seemingly less focussed objectives (find the three missing chickens) actually have more purpose than initially thought, actively encouraging you to zoom in to street level and take in the glory of the world that you yourself have assembled. Seeing characters go about their day to day is always a joy and a great way to spend away from the rigours of construction and tax management.
The satisfying clicking of blocks as new buildings are built never gets old, firing off the nostalgia centre of your brain, reminiscent of the LEGO games of old. The world looks solid and almost tactile in its representation of your favourite childhood pastime, with 2×2 and 6×2 bricks looking just as tasty as they did when you were four.
With the ability to customise the look of each residence and business you add to your stud-filled world, there’s a creative bent that balances out the functional assignments that you’ll be taking on. Add six BBQs to a house and christen the owner Smokey Duncan if you want or surround a row of brownstones with ponds to create a makeshift moat. It’s really up to you and your creativity to craft the perfect world that you’ve always wanted but could never afford in real life.
Control is slick and intuitive in LEGO Skylines, with everything easily accessible solely using a mouse although the option for keyboard shortcuts is available for those looking for more efficient building techniques. As such, I think that the jump to a controller should be no issue at all and will offer a relaxed way to play on the big screen if you so desire.
After constructing my way through this introduction, there was also the option of jumping into a save file from later in the game, showcasing the late game and the level of complexity that will be on offer. Waste management, educational structures, emergency services and more are all present and correct, all relying on the basics of a good road network to ensure optimum efficiency. It’s a joy to see just how complex LEGO Skylines can get, a far cry from the hamlet that you’ve previously built. As ever, the only limit seems to be your imagination and the lack of hours in a day.
With an expected launch date of 2027 on XBOX Series X|S, PS5, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC, it’s safe to say that the excitement is certainly building for this one. I’m eager to get my weird claw-like mitts on the final game and you should be too.
LEGO Skylines is coming to PC and Consoles in 2027.
