SimulationStrategy
Urban Empire
The first 3 hours are a test
Gets good by 3h almost every game dips in hours 2–3
Fully opens up by 4h rated like by long-time players
Reach the ending 18% of players who started
Started playing 72% of owners
Steam reviews 34% positive of 2,464
What the data shows
- In the first 2 hours most reviews are negative (81%); after 5h it's 1 in 2 (62%).
- Fully opens up by hour 4.
- The opening is criticised more than in 99% of games we track.
- 18% of players who start reach the ending.
- The biggest drop-off is between “Industry revolutionized!” (Complete Era I) and “Nationality is born!” (Complete Era II): from 84% to 53% of starters.
- 72% of owners got the first achievement.
When it gets good
Share of positive reviews by how many hours the reviewer had played when writing the review.
before it gets good opening up fully opened up
Based on all 2,480 Steam reviews in every language. Median playtime in a sample of 300 reviews: 12.4h for positive, 7.4h for negative. Almost every game is rated lower in the first 2–3 hours: that window includes refunds and quick first impressions. What matters is how deep the dip is and how fast the game recovers.
Where players quit
Share of players who started the game and reached each story milestone. 100% is the most common achievement (71.8% of owners), so people who bought the game and never launched it don't count.
- Started playing 100%
- Industry revolutionized! Complete Era I. 84% −16
- Nationality is born! Complete Era II. Most players quit here 53% −31
- Values conflict! Complete Era III. 31% −22
- Dualism! Complete Era IV. 18% −13
story milestone ending biggest drop-off
Story milestones were labeled by AI from achievement names and descriptions; mistakes are possible.
All achievements (74)
story milestone ending side
- By plaintive pleas. Issue 10 appeals. 100%
- Decree becomes reality. Pass 5 edicts. 91%
- Industry revolutionized! Complete Era I. 84%
- Up-and-coming district administrator. Create 5 districts. 79%
- How very eventful. 50 events experienced. 77%
- An outpost in the wilderness. Citizen count is 2500 or over. 70%
- Stamps of approval. Endorse businesses 10 times. 62%
- Nationality is born! Complete Era II. 53%
- To coax a statesman. Issue 100 appeals. 49%
- What I enunciate shall pass. Pass 50 edicts. 39%
- I tell you no! Overrule 1 decisions. 33%
- And they did move and multiply. Citizen count is 10000 or over. 32%
- Values conflict! Complete Era III. 31%
- Business-owner whisperer. Endorse businesses 100 times. 29%
- Architect of territory. Create 25 districts. 28%
- All tales must end Lose the game. 27%
- Smash it all to tiny bits. Demolish 1 buildings. 23%
- We bloom in dreams and stature. High personal growth as Sant' Elias. 18%
- Dualism! Complete Era IV. 18%
- I'm a choo-choo train. Max out railroad station. 16%
- A seasoned statesman. 500 events experienced. 15%
- So happy pigs might fly. Maximise average citizen happiness. 14%
- Experimentor extraordinaire. Invent all the inventions in the campaign. 14%
- Trade potential maximiser. Max out port. 13%
- Justice weighs us all. Max out courthouse. 13%
- Lay these lands with door and stile. Create 50 districts. 13%
- Better belated than never. Achieve an end-of-time victory. 13%
- Long live academia. Max out university. 12%
- In pursuit of immortality Max out central hospital. 11%
- Electromagnetic euphoria. Max out electric power plant. 11%
- What one perceives, one may impart. Max out exhibition center. 11%
- Radio-wave revolutionary. Max out radio tower. 11%
- With us, the world is most secure. High security as Von Pflizen. 11%
- From water issueth life. Max out water treatment plant. 10%
- Thomas More would be ecstatic. Max out labour rights. 9.6%
- Where one proceeds, the rest will race. Citizen count is 50000 or over. 8.4%
- John Stuart Mill would wear a grin. Max out women's rights. 8.2%
- A society replete. Max out all institutions. 7.5%
- What I build I will destroy. Demolish 25 buildings. 7.5%
- Thoughts echo in word and deed. Pass 250 edicts. 6.8%
- Peter Pan would laugh. Max out children's rights. 6.5%
- Entrepreneurs deserve boundaries. Max out business law. 6.4%
- Embrace a man who seeks the truth; doubt he who claims to find it. Beat the game with the Sant' Eliases. 6.3%
- O rapturous somersaulter. High fun as Shuyskys 6.0%
- Life without art is a desolate husk. Beat the game with the Shuyskys. 5.0%
- Thomas Paine would celebrate. Max out civil rights. 4.9%
- Blackmail is my favourite vice. Blackmail 5 political parties. 4.7%
- Bigots will be livid. Max out LGBT rights. 4.7%
- A once thriving homeland. Destroy 1 districts. 4.3%
- The earth still breathes. Max out nature law. 4.3%
- All play and no toil makes Bobby spoiled. Do not ban child labour before winning a game. 4.2%
- Most bear-hugged business benefactor. Endorse businesses 1000 times. 3.8%
- Disintegration station. Demolish 100 buildings. 3.5%
- On land, we do proliferate. High physical environment as Kilgannons 3.3%
- Liberté, egalité, fratemité! Beat the game with the Kilgannons. 3.3%
- Noblesse oblige. Beat the game with the Von Pfilzens. 3.2%
- Debate expounder. Issue 1000 appeals. 2.6%
- Your conclusions overruled! Overrule 25 decisions. 2.5%
- Swarelia 51 finished. Complete the 'Swarea 51' scenario. 1.4%
- Terrain laid to waste. Destroy 5 districts. 1.4%
- Buffeted by fate and time. 2500 events experienced. 1.4%
- To twist most devious deeds. Blackmail 25 political parties. 1.3%
- Great War Effort now complete. Complete the 'Great War Effort' scenario. 1.3%
- Felicitations, Mr. President. Achieve a political victory. 1.1%
- Downsizing done. Complete the 'Downsizing' scenario. 0.8%
- Your rulings overturned. Overrule 100 decisions. 0.8%
- To win as every family. Beat the game with all the families. 0.8%
- A striking extremity. Achieve a remarkable city victory. 0.8%
- A victory for science! Achieve a scientific victory. 0.8%
- Early bird special. Beat the game in Era IV. 0.8%
- Your populace ousted. Destroy 20 districts. 0.7%
- Money, money, money. Achieve an economic victory. 0.7%
- Grandmaster of the universe. Beat the game with all families and victory styles. 0.6%
- Where secrets fester, profit I. Blackmail 100 political parties. 0.6%
Steam page Updated: 2026-10-19.