Köy Muhtarı: Mühür Kimde?

You're the new muhtar, the elected headman, of Kırkharman village. There's a seal on your desk and hardly any money in the kitty, and Şevket the grocer is already handing out free tea at the coffeehouse. Köy Muhtarı is a Turkish-language 3D city builder and election game set on hand-painted maps; all the in-game text is in Turkish. You start as village headman and can climb all the way to the presidency. No ads, and the career mode plays offline. Pick a building, drag it across the map and drop it where the outline turns green. Not on the road and not in the stream; the rest is up to you. First you'll want a bakery and a coffeehouse; later a stadium, a port, a dam, even a space programme. Buildings earn money and level up. At level 4 they're Famous, at level 5 Legendary, and the name goes into the Book of Renown. The edges of the map are under fog. As the village grows the fog lifts and new neighbourhoods open up; the lock shows how many more buildings it needs. Villagers' requests pile up on the agenda and you deal with them one card at a time. One wants a road, another just brings gossip. Keeping the budget and the local factions on side is your job. Break a promise and the village remembers, usually at the ballot box. Shady deals go on file, and sooner or later the inspector turns up. Small orders wait on the noticeboard outside your office. In the Hatır Defteri, a ledger of who owes whom, your old score with Şevket comes out chapter by chapter, and Hüsmen the shepherd has his own troubles. When the vote gets close, Election Week begins. You go door to door to listen, make promises or have a dig at your rival, then put up posters and take the podium. On election day the seal either stays with you or goes to your rival. Losing doesn't end the game; the locals sulk for a bit and you get ready for the next vote. There are five rungs: Village Headman, Mayor, Member of Parliament, Minister and the Summit. Each has its own map and its own rival. You start in a village with dirt roads and finish in a marble square. The Summit isn't the end. In a New Term you take one keepsake to another village, and your finished term goes up as a plaque in the Hall of Inscriptions. You can swear an oath too, such as Clean Hands or True to My Word. Keep it and the plaque gets a gold frame. Once you've reached Belde, the town tier, you can start a new career in the Aegean Olive Village. Olive terraces, a jetty, an old stone cistern and very dry summers. This map is free. The calendar keeps turning. There are Eid receptions, and a fête in the square at harvest time. Every month has a Season Road, and the free track is all yours. The weekly Headmen's League is played in a separate village, so your career town is untouched. When the week closes, the gold you've won goes into your career treasury. Game Center is optional. The dolmuş, a shared minibus, pulls up at its stop and the flock wanders straight down the middle of the road. When drought or flood hits, everyone looks to the muhtar. If a build is dragging, call an imece, when the whole village pitches in, and tap in rhythm to speed the crew up. The classic 2D village game is still in the main menu. You can play the whole thing without spending a penny. If you're in a hurry there are treasury packs. The Founder Pack is a one-off, permanent purchase: from Belde onwards it gives a Founder Purse in each office and puts a Founder Headman sign up in the square. There are also new looks and extra content such as Anatolian Stories. The Club is a one-off purchase that opens that month's Club track. It isn't a subscription and gives no edge in the league. No loot boxes. The career mode needs no internet; only Game Center rankings and purchases need a connection. Nothing builds up while the game is closed, and your rival stays put too. It's all fiction, with no real people or parties. I make this game on my own and I do read the reviews. If you spot a bug, just tell me.