New ‘Espionage’ Expansion Coming May 28 for Dictatorship Simulator ‘Tropico 5’

PC, Mac, and Linux users who play Tropico 5, the construction and management simulator developed by Haemimont Games, can purchase the game’s Espionage expansion on Thursday, May 28.

Espionage will cost $19.99 and will be purchasable via for the PC version through Steam and publisher Kalypso’s digital store. Xbox One and PlayStation 4 gamers will receive the DLC later in 2015.

Unlike other city-building games, Tropico 5 installs the player as dictator of their own nation. Espionage gives players access to security checkpoints for internal monitoring; a spy academy, from which they can field spies for international theft; and a Ministry of Information, police blimp, and mechanized garrison for even more security. The DLC also includes a new story chapter and four new islands, two of which are Dos Torres and Grito Grande.

Upon its May 2014 release, Tropico 5 was criticized by some who expressed discomfort in playing the role of a ruthless tyrant. Charlie Hall of Polygon stated that “the game so entirely lacks compassion that it made [him] feel like a bully.” The game was banned in Thailand by the country’s Board of Film and Video Censors; the board stated that “some contents in the game are not appropriate for the current situation.”

Follow Rob Shimshock on Twitter @Xylyntial.