The main problem would be the power draw dilemma and it unfortunately buffing small poles (which suck because they need wood and thus can’t be automated gracefully).

It could be solved by just removing the power draw of lights, of course. Handwave it by saying it’s powered by whatever powers belts.

It absolutely would be illogical. So is the ability to carry 50 nuclear reactors in your backpack, each of which was crafted faster than a car engine. Green chips are made out of exclusively copper and iron (both conductors).

Fuck logic. Tell me if you think it’s a good gameplay idea.

Okay, hot take: people care about gas prices because it’s how most people are exposed to politics. No matter how wilfully ignorant you are, you can’t not notice gas prices spiking. Most of the rest of politics is opaque unless you’re tuned in.

So why does that matter? Because it means everyone (with a car) knows there’s another war in the middle east. So anyone who thought Iraq was bullshit and voted for Trump because he promised “no more wars” is painfully aware that he lied now.

The sequel was both such an upgrade and such a downgrade

How is the sequel a downgrade? (I don’t know basically anything except playing one of the games for half an hour-ish)

Now I want to see Obama making this speech.

Gunpowder in wholly agrarian societies is normal. In fact, the majority of gunpowder’s existence has been in agrarian societies! Gunpowder has been in Europe since the ~1400s, but the industrial revolution didn’t start until the ~1800s! (You could maybe drop that date back to the 1700s due to waterwheel factories, but then I could drop gunpowder back to the 1100s in China)

When the conquistadors invaded Aztecs/Incas in the 1500s, they were shooting guns handmade by blacksmiths with wrought iron from charcoal-powered forges.

But cities would be much quieter

No they wouldn’t. Most ICE cars make a “whoosh” sound, because most of their noise comes from air resistance - which EVs also have. And tires, of course.

Cities wouldn’t stink as much, though.

Isn’t that why jaywalking is a crime in the US?

No. Jaywalking is a crime because auto industry propaganda literally invented the term “jaywalking” (“jay” basically means “Hick* or " country bumpkin”) and pushed it in part of a big media campaign in the, IIRC, 1920s, and then lobbied to make illegal.

Before then, everyone blamed the cars for murdering people by tearing down the streets (which belonged to people, not cars, before cars existed - playing sports on the actual street was normal) and not stopping in time.

Whatever rationale has been invented in modern times, the reality is that jaywalking was invented as a victim-blaming campaign by the car industry. Pure and simple.

If you’re built for a Roman war, join the Mafia - they have tons of construction companies. Plus, what’s more Roman than organised crime?