Township

Township combines two popular mobile schemes into one working whole — the farming loop of harvesting and processing crops with building and expanding a city. The player taps to harvest fields, drags a finger to build houses, factories, and later mines or a zoo, and switches between the game's various layers (farm, production, trade, train transport to other regions) with a single gesture. The controls are designed purely for touchscreens — no menu is more complicated than dragging an icon with a finger — which made Township accessible from the start even to people who, on a smartphone, had previously played little more than solitaire.

Playrix released the game in 2013, at a time when the genre of Facebook farming simulations was already fading and publishers were looking for ways to bring the same gameplay to a pocket device. Unlike pure farming games, Township added a second layer — genuine city building with residents, public buildings, and the gradual unlocking of new areas — earning it its own place alongside competing titles. The game is free-to-play with an energy system and a premium currency for speeding up construction, but the main loop can be played without paying, just more slowly.

Its long lifespan is one of the main reasons Township is still talked about — Playrix has expanded the game for years with new content, seasonal events, and game mechanics, so today's version is substantially richer than the one from 2013. The combination of a relaxed pace, clear graphics, and the gradual unlocking of new layers of gameplay also made it a title favored by players outside the traditional audience for mobile simulators, and Playrix later built its other titles in the same style on this success.

Why play it: Township suits players who want an easygoing building loop for a few minutes a day and don't mind that faster progress is tied to purchases or waiting.