A tidy little puzzle of a game – SUBURBIA City Building Board Game Review

I was all ready to write my three-star review, then I tried the campaign. My first exposure was Castles of Mad King Ludwig (a very similar game by the same designers). I struggled with that one until I downloaded the manual for the physical game - the Ludwig tutorial is a bit choppy and it's hard to find the concrete rules. Playing alone, I went straight to the single player campaign, and it didn't click. Before giving up, I tried multiplayer against the AI, and finally started having a good time. I still enjoy Castles, now that I've figured it out. I brought that understanding into Suburbia, which shares a lot of rules. The tutorial and manual here are much better laid out and much clearer. I had only one point that needed clarity - does a tile score only when you place it, or do the tile bonuses continue to trigger every time you play more tiles next to them (or elsewhere in the city?). Some Googling resolved that one (it's the latter, they continue to trigger), and so once I clearly understood the rules, I could play. The main problem here is the AI, and, indirectly, the size of the goal bonuses. I lost my first game, after winning the board. I got no goal bonuses and the computer trounced me in the final scoring. In the second game, I lost by 1, still figuring out the rules. In my third game I pretty much doubled the computer's score, and continue to do so. It's not that I'm amazing, I think the AI is just too weak. And the fact that you can play a pretty mediocre game, but complete all the goals, and your score just explodes - it is a mundane task to build fewer lakes than the computer. I was ready to chalk up a three-star review due to insufficient AI. Then I tried the campaign, which had fallen so flat in Castles of Mad King Ludwig. But this time it is great! The campaign forces you to actually play the game and push yourself to eke the last bit of efficiency and bonus out of the city you're building - this is what the game is all about. Now the game forces you to think, evolve, and play. It saved the game. Feedback for developers? Make it abundantly clear how and when the tile bonuses trigger, even go so far as to animate where your points are coming from after each play. This is an important but unclear part of the mechanics. And introduce some harder AI opponents that stretch your players - shouldn't be too hard in a game that is pure math (or maybe it is hard to find that medium between too easy and pure calculator?) Feedback for shoppers - get this game and play the single-player campaign, if you want a math-based puzzle of a game that will both interest and challenge you.
Review by Bleu Whale on SUBURBIA City Building Board Game.