Warsaw is a special city. It is said that it "survived its own death", and there is truth to this. Poland's capital was largely destroyed in the Second World War, and its reconstruction was an exceptional urban development process. Warsaw is a mix of elegant buildings from Saxon times, architecture from between the World Wars, socialist blocks, and modern buildings. Strolling through the streets of Warsaw's Wola district, one can see this diversity at a glance. Modern glass office buildings next to pre-war automotive garages, and concrete block buildings touch elegant older houses, which show the signs of time's decay. Some call it a spatial mess, while others see the residents' determination in it. Both views are correct because that's how Warsaw is. Might not the most beautiful, but strong and determined. Nothing shows the city's character more than its diverse buildings.

In Warsaw: City of Ruins, players will jointly build Warsaw over six epochs, from when Warsaw first became the capital at the end of the 16th century through modern times. Each player makes their own district of the city. At the end of each epoch, districts give income and victory points to their owners. After six rounds, whoever has the most points wins the game.

In more detail, every epoch consists of a construction phase and an income phase, with wars at the end of the third and fourth epochs. During the construction phase of an epoch, players will shuffle the city tiles with the current epoch's number, then deal several tiles to each player. Each player picks one of the tiles, then places it face down onto the table. All players simultaneously show their selected tiles, and each player picks one of two possible actions:

• Discard their tile to the box and get three coins from the bank.
• Pay the tile's cost in coins and construct the tile in their district.

Instead of putting a tile on an empty space, a player may decide to build on top of an existing tile. Simply put the new tile directly onto an existing tile, covering it completely. As a result, the new tile's price is lowered by the price of the older tile that it covers. A player's district can never be bigger than a 3×4 or 4×3 rectangle of tiles. Each city tile is split into four quarters, and each quarter has its own type of building, so a tile can have 1-4 different kinds of buildings. Public milestones and buildings are always separate individual areas, even if they are adjacent to each other. They also take up an entire tile.

During the income phase, milestones are placed, and players will receive coins and victory points.