🏗️ A 400m Cube?

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Hello Fellow Engineers!

Buckle up your tool belts and double-check those blueprints, because this week’s newsletter is packed tighter than freshly poured concrete!

From flipping coins and causing a lemonade apocalypse, to a bridge that’s more “artistic expression” than actual structure, I’ve got you covered. Plus, meet the giant cube “skyscraper” that's redefining what it means to think “inside” the box.

Let’s dive into it 👇

👷‍♂️ Truss Me, I’m an Engineer…

Mukaab: The New Giant Cube in the Desert

Behold, Riyadh's new engineering marvel that's set to spice up the Saudi skyline with its next 400-metre-high cube shaped skyscraper, named the Mukaab… meaning “cube” in Arabic.

Is it a bird?! Is it a plane?! Nope. It's a giant cube plopped right in the middle of Saudi Arabia. But this isn't just your average cube; it's a two-million-square-metre, twelve edged behemoth packed with shops, cultural attractions, and tourist spots.

Imagine a Rubik's Cube on steroids, and you're almost there. This cube will house a 19-square-kilometre downtown area, complete with 100,000 residential units - enough to house a small nation. There’ll also be 9,000 hotel rooms (for all your cube-curious visitors), nearly a MILLION square metres of shops, and 1.4 million square metres of office space (for all the new cube-dwellers' business needs).

The project is due for completion in 2030, although, I already beat them to it in both Timberborn and Cities Skylines 🤷‍♂️.

⚡ Cool Links

👷‍♂️ They combined tower defense with factory builders!
Tower Factory combines two of my favourite game genres, tower defense and factory automation games!

🤔 What are the best defense based city builders?
This Reddit thread jumps into the best defense-based city-building games. Games like "Going Medieval," "Age of Darkness," and "Cataclismo" get shoutouts, though they're still in Early Access. One user mentions “Xodus Borealis," noting it’s pretty cool—especially since your settlers are foxes. Who doesn't love foxes?

🏡 A lovely Scandinavian-themed city in Cities: Skylines 2
Another Reddit post, this time featuring a Scandinavian-themed city in Cities: Skylines 2 by YouTuber Infrastructurist. This cozy Nordic town boasts stunning landscapes, efficient infrastructure, and realistic urban planning that makes you wonder if they moonlight as a Civil Engineer in real life!

🐶 The Lovechild Of Tamagotchi And Productivity Tools
Weyrdlets is a new indie game featuring adorable lil’ critters that double as your personal productivity pals. In desktop mode, these pets chill on your PC, hosting treasure hunts and tossing in handy tools like a Pomodoro timer. Whether you're a busy journalist or just trying to adult, Weyrdlets makes managing tasks way more fun!

🐕‍🦺 Paddy’s Corner

Chillout Time With Matt and Paddy

I managed to catch some rare chillout time this week with Paddy (for almost 17 seconds)…

👾 Game of the Week

How I became a BILLIONAIRE in just three years...

What’s better than one money-making clicker game? ALL OF THEM!

In this coin-flipping, gear-spinning, paperclip-making, lemon squeezing mega edit, I dive into some of the best clicker and idle games i’ve played!

Idling Gears is an engineer's dream—place gears, click away, and watch the money roll in! I also tackle Universal Paperclips, where you play as an AI aiming to dominate the paperclip market through automated production and savvy marketing. You can actually check out Universal Paperclips here!

Whether you're into clicking gears or paperclips, this mega edit has something for every engineering enthusiast. Happy clicking!

It’s time for a Bridge Review!

I guess the architect was trying to go green in every sense of the word, but I think this bridge might need a bit of a redesign…

This bridge gets points for creativity, but loses major marks as it might be a bit inconvenient for daily commuters.

It’s a solid 2.6/10.

🏗 r/realcivilengineer Spotlight

Who needs privacy?

The ultimate test of your social boundaries—courtesy of our arkitek u/The_happy_coder!

🤔 Thoughts from an Engineer

See you next week!

Peace, Love and Furious Clicking,

Matt