Review by: Dave VanDyk

Among my personal list of career goals, I can't really say that becoming a Communist-Pirate dictator (secretly installed into power by the CIA) running an island in the middle of the Caribbean is at the top of my list. Yet somehow, Tropico 3 has me squandering hours - if not days - of my life wholeheartedly embracing this idea.

Maybe it's the executions I can order at the slightest perceived sign of dissent, visually enacted in all of the game's 3D glory. Maybe it's the perverse pleasure I get of corralling all of my low-income, low-education citizens into a quiet shanty-town on some forgotten corner of my island, leaving the more worthy citizens to live in their high-class Condos in peace. Maybe it's just the amusement I get from randomly enacting a book-burning edict while standing safely behind a wall of loyal soldiers. Whatever it is, there's no doubt that Tropico 3 is one of the most addictive "Sim"-styled games I've played to date, which is no small claim given the number of clones and knock-offs that have popped up over the years

The game's primary strength comes from its beauty and level of detail. Unlike the previous titles in the series, this one now sports a full 3D graphics engine which the developer has augmented with free-roaming camera system. When combined, these two elements grant you an impressive (if not breathtaking) view of the society you've built up, with depth of field effects, "god rays", high detail texturing, and an impressive looking water system all lending themselves to the game's attempts to draw you in. I often found myself wasting too much time just sitting back and watching my citizens walk about their day-to-day lives moving cargo about, kicking back at the restaurants or local Cabaret, piling into church for the latest sermons, or - on occasion - actually getting some work done.

Of course in doing this it's far too easy to overlook the little crowds of rioters who will usually be picketing at the doorstep of your presidential estate, which brings me on to the game's other point of interest: the challenge. Some may see this as either a blessing or a curse, but there's no doubt that the game offers enough challenge that any gamer new to the series will be thrown for a loop their first time through. Much like its predecessors, Tropico 3 is all about balancing the needs of your people against your own personal drive for profit and progress, with key decisions made early in the game having a tremendous impact on how things will turn out in the long-term for your little piece of pseudo-paradise.

You'll generally start out each of the game's varied levels (assuming you don't roll with the Sandbox mode) with some dollars, some houses, a farm or two, and a dozen or so people, and are given a set objective to try and complete. Some of the early missions are meant simply to introduce you to the game and will challenge you with exporting X number of goods or getting into the good books of a certain number of religious supporters, while others will begin stacking the odds against you and can involve situations with outrageous export tariffs which challenge you to survive without going bankrupt. All of them have their own share of time-triggered plot developments (such as an overseas company offering you a bribe, and then later going bankrupt) which give you a choice of actions that can sometimes have immediate benefits, but unexpected consequences down the road.