Common Sense Media Review
By Christy Matte
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Free county sim teaches civics via wacky citizen requests.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
What's It About?
COUNTIES WORK asks players to take on the role of leader to a small county. As such, you'll control the budget and decide how funds are spent. Will you institute an eye exam program? Or maybe you'll supply basketball nets and balls to every household? If you're feeling very bold, you may paint all of the buildings yellow. Your citizens will arrive with requests for health, safety, finance, fun, and more. You decide whether to fund their requests and if so, then you lead them to the correct building to put things into motion. Your ratings go up when you say yes, and down when you say no. But you'll need to be careful, because if you're too generous, you'll run out of cash and have to raise taxes. If you can keep everyone happy and the budget balanced for your 4-year term, you're bound to be re-elected.
Is It Any Good?
Counties Work holds the promise of a fun sim game. You may be thinking of SimCity or related games. Unfortunately, it's not that deep. But in the 20-25 minutes it takes to play this free game, you'll learn about how a county government works. You'll field request after request in a time management-style situation that gets more hectic as things move on. Some of the requests are amusing, but sometimes it doesn't feel like you're doing much. Matching the request with the correct building is sometimes a hit-or-miss scenario, but you can always pick a different building if you guess incorrectly. By sorting through the citizens' requests, you will gradually discover what services each of the county offices provide.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how simulation games can teach. What is your favorite simulation game and why?
Families can also talk about budgets. If you have a family budget, talk about it with your kids.
Talk about the role of the different government offices. Which types of services (police services, health & wellness programs, parks & recreation programs, etc.) does your family use?
Website Details
- Subjects : Math : arithmetic , Social Studies : citizenship , government
- Skills : Thinking & Reasoning : applying information , decision-making , thinking critically , Responsibility & Ethics : fiscal responsibility , making wise decisions
- Genre : Educational
- Pricing structure : Free
- Last updated : November 11, 2020
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