Land Builder is a relaxing tile-laying strategy game where we follow simple rules to place colorful tiles on a hexagonal grid until we accomplish our goal or run out of tiles.

Each level provides us with a stack of randomly generated hexagonal tiles split into terrain types such as grass, forest, cityscape, water, and so on. As we lay these tiles next to each other, we are awarded points for each side that borders a tile of the same terrain type. Once we collect enough points, we win the level and may proceed to the next one.

We also occasionally encounter special production tiles, which, when placed, start accumulating value each time we add tiles around them. When this value reaches a certain limit, we get additional tiles to refill our stack.

In addition, there are ad-locked unique landmark tiles that double the points gained from neighboring tiles, and special collectors that grant us coins if placed correctly.

In-between levels, we spend coins on permanent upgrades, like increasing our starting tile count or gold income, and useful skills that allow us to remove unwanted tiles, store tiles for later, get hints, and so on.

While featuring pleasant 3D graphics, the game starts visibly lagging as the playing field grows in size, which may frustrate players using mid-tier devices.

Land Builder monetizes by showing banners, forced ads, and incentivized ads. The latter allows us to unlock landmark tiles, increase our coin rewards, and pick additional bonuses. Unfortunately, there is no way to disable the ads.

While I enjoyed the core gameplay loop, the game’s balance is strongly impacted by its monetization. Refusing to accept the "unnecessary" bonuses quickly leads to our demise, almost forcing us to watch ads. If you don't mind this monetization, however, the game is rather enjoyable as a non-stressful, yet challenging time-killer.