Gamezebo saw a lot of cool games at last month's Game Developer's Conference, but one of the highlights was getting to sit down with HipSoft as they walked us through a preview of Build-a-lot 2, subtitled Town of the Year. Although only four of the eight towns were playable, we could sense that the game was already on its way to being as challenging, accessible and fun as the original - if not moreso.

The key to Build-a-lot's charm is that it takes a subject many might find boring or intimidating (namely, real estate), and makes it fun and eay to understand while still maintaining a respectable level of sophistication.

In Build-a-lot: Town of the Year, you continue your role as a contractor working to create thriving towns by building houses and commercial buildings, driving up property value and curb appeal, and managing workers and resources to maintain a steady cash flow - while occasionally having to bend to the whims of various eccentric mayors.

Like any good sequel, Town of the Year isn't just more of the same - nor has HipSoft simply thrown in a couple of new features on top of the existing gameplay model. In fact, several of the things you'll remember from the original Build-a-lot are absent from the second game. Taxes and building permits are both gone; not, as HipSoft was quick to point out, because there was anything wrong with these features, but because the designers wanted to create a different enough experience in Town of the Year that people would still find reason to go back and play Build-a-lot.

Waterfront lots have been replaced by a featured called Curb Appeal. Curb appeal affects the value of houses, the amount of rental income you can get from them, and the overall attractiveness of the neighborhood. For example, ugly industrial buildings can lower the curb appeal of neighboring houses, so players must be careful about where they build them. You can build parks - a new type of structure - to raise the curb appeal of the surrounding area, but parks are only effective if you keep them clean.

Shops replace banks and introduce the ability to make money through profit-sharing. The amount depends on how many houses are in the area. Shops will occasionally need new employees to stay open; when this happens, a Help Wanted sign will appear in the window and you'll have to decide whether it's worthwhile to sacrifice one of your workers (which don't come cheap) to work in the shop so that you can continue collecting income from the store.

All of the buildings and houses in Build-a-lot: Town of the Year are brand new, except for the trusty Workshop where you hire workers to carry out building projects and repairs. In later levels you'll be able to buy efficiency training for your workers so they work faster and use fewer resources. Unlike the first game, where a few of the buildings like the cinema and rink where just for show, every structure in Town of the Year adds some kind of new service to the gameplay, such as a Business Center to prevent Help Wanted signs from popping up, and a Garden Center that automatically maintain all parks.

Another feature that's sure to be a hit is the ability to personalize the houses you own by changing the landscaping in the front yard, or re-painting them a color of your choice.

When buying properties - a key to expanding your real estate empire - you can select two new options, "offer less" and "low ball," to try to get a better deal. This is market-driven, however, and will have a better chance of being successful if there are other properties for sale at the same time.

After you've played through all of the towns in the game, you'll be asked to pick which town you liked best. The lucky town that gets your vote will be crowned "Town of the Year," and you'll unlock bonus levels to play based on the town you've chosen.

HipSoft told us they haven't firmed up a launch date but that Build-a-lot: Town of the Year should be making its debut around mid-April, so fans will have to sit tight until then. And if you're just hearing about Build-a-lot for the first time, it wouldn't hurt to check out the original to see what all the fuss is about.