Tropico 5 screenshots show deco skyscrapers, beaches and a tornado

Already looking more interesting than SimCity.

I’m holding a fair bit of expectation for Tropico 5. The third game in the series (the point at which Haemimont took over development) managed to juggle the city building, economic and light-hearted Cold War petty dictatorship aspects rather well.

For Tropico 5, the ever-present El Presidente will be leading the island through different historical eras. Hopefully that’ll provide opportunities for different edicts and building types, rather than just a new graphics set. I’m also interested in how the introduction of family members for El Presidente, and the possibility of giving them key jobs, will play out. It’s ripe for jovial backstabbing.

All of that remains to be seen when the game is released in Q2 (April-June) 2014. For now, we have a few more screenshots courtesy of Kalypso, showing some of the various island buildings through the ages and a rather menacing tornado.