'Two Point Hospital' is a solid management sim and a worthy successor to 'Theme Hospital' [Video Game Review]

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Wong Tsui-kai |
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The spiritual successor to cult classic hospital sim Theme Hospital puts you in the shoes of a hospital administrator responsible for building an effective medical establishment, and combines solid gameplay with wacky humour.

With many of the staff from original developer Bullfrog joining the team, Two Point Hospital is a worthy successor with its own flair.

The goal of the game is to build your hospital and cure patients quickly enough before they become too ill and die. As well as being speedy, you also have to take care of your patients’ needs, like keeping them fed, hydrated, and entertained.

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And other things in your hospital need TLC, too. Your staff, consisting of doctors, nurses, janitors and assistants, also need to kept happy to perform at peak efficiency.

A new system in Two Point Hospital gives your staff skills, such as the ability to increase patient happiness, or to move more quickly. Staff may also be trained in specialisations so they can operate more complex equipment, which leaves room for the cunning player to better optimise their hospital.

The game divides itself into themed stages where each level has its own gimmick or unique problem to solve. There may be a flood of a particular type of illness in one stage (forcing players to rebuild the hospital equipment for it) or an environmental hazard (like earthquakes) that can damage your machinery.

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This type of level designing lends itself well to a fun experience, but might be too linear for the more hardcore simulation and management game connoisseur.

Besides the well-designed game mechanics and interface, the writing is also a bright spot. With punny illnesses like “Light-Headedness”, where the patient has a light bulb for a head that needs to be unscrewed, or “Pandemic” where someone has a literal pan stuck on their head, moving to the next level and seeing something new will always draw a chuckle, if not outright laughs.

Overall, Two Point Hospital is good value for its HK$200 price tag during the Steam New Year sale, happening right now. Pick it up if you enjoy your sims with a side effect of silliness.

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