There are two cautionary tales in City of the Great Machine, the recent board game by German Tikhomirov. The first and more intentional of these tales is one we’ve read and watched and played many times. Decades ago, the citizens of this steampunk setting decided to automate the humdrum chores and maintenance tasks that were necessary for the operation of their floating city. Thanks to some serious feature creep, the great machine gradually took over more and more of the city’s labor. First it was factory work. Then sanitation. Next, security. Eventually, art. Tomorrow, perhaps, it will automate thinking altogether.

A resistance has formed. These brave men and women, armed only with stovepipe hats, corsets, and the occasional geared implement of war, intend to smash the great machine. Their one problem? Whenever they talk about the dang thing, everybody is too busy tinkering with its latest Midjourney ChatGPT steampunk app to pay attention.

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