SimCity 2000
Encyclopedia
SimCity 2000 is a simulation/city building
video game and the second installment in the SimCity series
. SimCity 2000 was first released by Maxis
in 1994 for computers running Apple Macintosh Operating System. It was later released on the Amiga
, DOS
& Microsoft Windows
, followed by a release for OS/2
.
In 1995, SimCity 2000 won "Best Military or Strategy Computer Game" Origins Award
.
The unexpected and enduring success of the original SimCity
, combined with the relative lack of success with other "Sim" titles, finally motivated the development
of a sequel
. SimCity 2000 was a major extension
of the concept; the view was now dimetric instead of overhead, land could have different elevation
s, and underground layers were introduced for water pipe
s and subway
s.
New types of facilities include prison
s, school
s, libraries
, museum
s, marina
s, zoo
s, hospital
s and arcologies
. Players can build highway
s, road
s, bus depot
s, railway track
s, subways, train depot
s and zone land for seaports and airports. There are a total of nine varieties of power plants in SimCity 2000, including coal
, natural gas
, nuclear
, wind turbine
s, hydroelectric dams
(which can only be placed on waterfall
tiles) and the futuristic fusion power
and satellite microwave
plant. Most types of power plants have a limited life span and must be rebuilt periodically.
Players can build highways to neighboring cities to increase trade and the population. These neighboring cities are named after British Science-Fiction sitcom characters notably from Red Dwarf
.
The budget and finance controls are also much more elaborate—tax rates can be set individually for residential, commercial and industrial zones. Enacting city ordinances and connecting to neighboring cities became possible. The budget controls are very important in running the city effectively.
Another new addition in SimCity 2000 is the query tool. Using the query tool on tiles reveals information such as structure name and type, altitude, and land value. Certain tiles also display additional information; power plants, for example, display the percentage of power being consumed when queried, and querying roads displays the amount of traffic on that tile. Querying a library and selecting "Ruminate" displays an essay written by Neil Gaiman
.
Graphics were added for buildings under construction in the residential, commercial, and industrial zones, as well as darkened buildings depicting abandoned buildings as a result of urban decay
.
News comes in the form of several pre-written newspaper
articles with variable names that could either be called up immediately or could be subscribed to on a yearly basis. The newspaper option provided many humorous stories as well as relevant ones, such as new technology
, warnings about aging power plants, recent disaster
s and opinion poll
s (highlighting city problems). SimCity 2000 is the only game in the entire series to have this feature (besides the discontinued children's version, SimTown
), though newer versions have a news ticker
. The newspapers had random titles (Times, Post, Herald, etc.), and prices based on the simulated year. Certain newspapers have a special monthly humor advice column
by "Miss Sim". Some headlines have no purpose whatsoever in the game, such as "Bald Radio Found" or "Frog Convention".
Though there is no "true" victory sequence in SimCity 2000, the "exodus" is a close parallel. An "exodus" occurs during the year 2051 or later, when 350 or more Launch Arcologies are constructed; the following January each one "takes off" into space so that their inhabitants can form new civilizations on distant worlds (although the visual representation of the scene consists of the Arcologies exploding in a manner similar to bulldozed buildings, one by one). This reduces the city's population to those who are not living in the Launch Arcologies, but it also opens wide areas for redevelopment and returns their construction cost to the city treasury. This is related to the event in SimEarth
where all cities are moved into rocket-propelled dome
s that then leave to "found new worlds" (leaving no sapient life behind).
The game also included several playable scenarios, in which the player must deal with a disaster (in most, but not all scenarios) and rebuild the city to meet a set of victory conditions. These were based in versions of real-life cities, and some were based on real events such as the 1991 Oakland firestorm
, the 1989 Hurricane Hugo
in Charleston, South Carolina
, or dealing with the 1970s economic recession in Flint, Michigan
—but also included more fanciful ones such as a "monster" destroying Hollywood in 2001. More scenarios added with the SCURK included a nuclear meltdown in Manhattan
in 2007.
SimCity 2000 was the first Sim game to feature the semi-nonsensical phrase "Reticulating Splines", which means to make a network of spline
s. Will Wright has stated in an interview that the game does not actually reticulate splines when generating terrain, and he just inserted the phrase because it "sounded cool". The phrase has since been featured in SimCopter
, SimCity 4
, The Sims
, The Sims 2
, Spore
, The Sims 3
, and The Sims Social
. It is also used in the web-based game Glitch
.
. This pack included:
Alongside the Great Disasters Scenarios package came the introduction of a separate toolset called the SimCity Urban Renewal Kit (SCURK for short). It enabled players to modify the images used in-game to represent various buildings in much the same manner as general image manipulation software. The player was able to create basic bitmap files of a standard size with a standard 256 color palette. The use of limited palette cycling, which permitted animation, was also possible. A number of pre-altered graphics packages were distributed, including some which replaced the reward buildings with images of various well known international buildings, such as the Eiffel Tower
, but most buildings were made by fan-artists and shared on the Internet. Several SCURK designs influenced the designs of SimCity 3000
s original buildings.
The SCURK is divided into three areas.
The cities made in SCURK can be saved and used for SimCity 2000.
and DOS
PCs
, partly because the original SimCity 2000 in 1993 could not be run under Microsoft Windows
, even in command prompt mode.
In addition to containing All expansions, it also featured the SimCity Urban Renewal Kit, the Vol. 1 scenario pack, remade music, new cities selected by Maxis from a 1994 competition, bonus scenarios and cities, and movies.
The movies were a first for Maxis; SimCity 2000-SE was the first "Sim" game to feature "real" videos (compared to "animated bitmaps", such as the winning screen in SimAnt
). These videos included the introduction movie and four commentary videos by Will Wright; the latter were accessed via the "WillTV" application that came with the game.
SimCity 2000 Network Edition featured slightly different gameplay in network mode, where mayors may start with more money, but must buy land before building upon it. The Gold edition had the ability to share in-game resources and to compete or cooperate with other cities. If the user is on an appropriate network
(TCP
or IPX
), then SimCity 2000 Gold Edition works in a similar way to SimCity Societies
, giving the ability to Not use Zones while building cities.
This version also features a revamped user interface
. Instead of a static toolbar
, items are accessed via cascading menus from the right of the screen, resulting in more screen real-estate for SimCity itself, without sacrificing functionality.
This version had several changes. The game has enhanced graphics for all buildings.The buildings will change at the year of 1950 and 2050. There are also 3D animations displayed for each building in the building query windows.
The game play remains the same for the most part. Instead of the Braun Llama Dome, there is a Space Terminal which assist the launching of the Arco. The arco can be seen launching from the city along with a special animated video.
There are several new animated videos. The opening sequence displays a scene of the Alien/Monster chasing a Launch Arco in space.
and PS3
on November 20, 2008 and in North America on Aug 28, 2009.
This version use the same graphics as the Saturn version, however the city doesn't evolve.
The only additions are new scenarios from Great Disasters scenario pack, including one that involves a new volcano forming in Portland
(destroying most of the city, and requiring the mayor to rebuild it). The Silicon Valley and Washington DC scenarios are on the disk but isn't used.
The port also allows the player to tour their city from a car's perspective and has a full motion video
intro. The graphics are identical to SimCopter
.
-only release of SimCity 2000 for the Nintendo 64
in 1997, produced and published by Imagineer Co., Ltd.
It featured some additional features, mainly minigames, a dating game, TV to replace the newspaper, horse races and monster breeding, among others, all of them in 3D. A few new "natural" disasters were also included, most of them being giant monster attacks (players were able to use their monster to fight against them). Even when these extras gave the game a lot more to do, many consider it lost the original feeling of the game, since the extras were intended to appeal specifically to the Japanese market.
game system. The ability to view the city at night was added, pedestrian level free-roaming of a city, and individual road vehicles and pedestrians controlled by their own AI wandered the player's city. Cities in the game are also presented in much more advanced 3D graphics, making SimCity 64 the first true 3D SimCity game.
The scrolling screen takes much longer than normal to scroll, which was considered to be one of the reasons for the overall rarity of this particular port of the game. However, the in-game controls, while having big icons that would be later used in the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Game Boy Advance ports of the game, were actually considered to be far easier to use than the original controls for the PC version of the game. As the previous SimCity title, there was no SNES Mouse support for this game. Also, there were far more errors than the original PC version of the game when it came to the newspapers and their articles.
The disasters of riots and volcanoes (as well as possibly a few other disasters) were removed from the game. The game had less songs to choose from than the original PC version but they were also considered to be surprisingly superior to the original version of SimCity 2000 on the PC. Finally, each city allows the player to choose a name for the mayor at the beginning instead of being forced to have the same name unless the game was reinstalled as in the PC version. Also, compared to the PC version, the SNES port omits the cheat codes, limits the city maps to six, has no difficulty setting and only includes five generic scenarios.
Furthermore, there was only one newspaper for the whole city, no matter what size that the city is, and it will be always labeled as (insert the name of a city here) Newspaper. In addition, unlike the PC version of the game, the stock photographs were replaced with more Japanese anime/manga-like pictures in this port of the game. This is the only port of the game to feature such pictures. All team names, city names, and mayor names were limited to only 8 characters, whereas the PC version allows for up to 32 characters for a city name and a mayor name.
There were, however, additional gifts: a bigger city hall at 1,000,000 population, a TV station at 2,000,000 population, and a rocket launching pad at 3,000,000 population. The player can also see an actual launch of a single launch arco when you achieve 5,000,000 population in the last scenario.
City-building game
City-building games are a genre of strategy computer game where players act as the overall planner and leader of a city, looking down on it from above, and being responsible for its growth and management...
video game and the second installment in the SimCity series
SimCity (series)
SimCity is an open-ended city-building computer and console video game series and the brainchild of developer Will Wright. It is published by Maxis . The game was first published in 1989 as SimCity, and it has spawned several different editions sold worldwide...
. SimCity 2000 was first released by Maxis
Maxis
Maxis is an American company founded as an independent video game developer in 1987. It is currently a subsidiary of Electronic Arts . Maxis is the creator of one of the best-selling computer games of all time, The Sims and its first sequel, The Sims 2...
in 1994 for computers running Apple Macintosh Operating System. It was later released on the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
& Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, followed by a release for OS/2
OS/2
OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
.
In 1995, SimCity 2000 won "Best Military or Strategy Computer Game" Origins Award
Origins Award
The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so the 1979 awards were given at the 1980 Origins.The Origins Award is commonly...
.
Overview
SimCity
SimCity is a critically acclaimed city-building simulation video game, first released in 1989, and designed by Will Wright. SimCity was Maxis' first product, which has since been ported into various personal computers and game consoles, and spawned several sequels including SimCity 2000 in 1994,...
, combined with the relative lack of success with other "Sim" titles, finally motivated the development
Game development
Game development is the software development process by which a video game is developed. Development is undertaken by a game developer, which may range from a single person to a large business. Mainstream games are normally funded by a publisher and take several years to develop. Indie games can...
of a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
. SimCity 2000 was a major extension
Extension (computing)
Software extension, is a file containing programming that serves to extend the capabilities of or data available to a more basic program. It is a kind of list of commands which are directly included in the program. This term often coincides with the plug-in...
of the concept; the view was now dimetric instead of overhead, land could have different elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
s, and underground layers were introduced for water pipe
Water pipe
Water pipes are pipes or tubes, frequently made of polyvinyl chloride , ductile iron, steel, cast iron, polypropylene, polyethylene, or copper, that carry pressurized and treated fresh water to buildings , as well as inside the building.-History:For many centuries, lead was the favoured material...
s and subway
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
s.
New types of facilities include prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
s, school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
s, libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s, marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
s, zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
s, hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
s and arcologies
Arcology
Arcology, a portmanteau of the words "architecture" and "ecology", is a set of architectural design principles aimed toward the design of enormous habitats of extremely high human population density. These largely hypothetical structures would contain a variety of residential, commercial, and...
. Players can build highway
Highway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
s, road
Road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...
s, bus depot
Bus station
A bus station is a structure where city or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. It is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can stop...
s, railway track
Rail tracks
The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...
s, subways, train depot
Train station
A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...
s and zone land for seaports and airports. There are a total of nine varieties of power plants in SimCity 2000, including coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
, nuclear
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
, wind turbine
Wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy. If the mechanical energy is used to produce electricity, the device may be called a wind generator or wind charger. If the mechanical energy is used to drive machinery, such as for grinding grain or...
s, hydroelectric dams
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
(which can only be placed on waterfall
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
tiles) and the futuristic fusion power
Fusion power
Fusion power is the power generated by nuclear fusion processes. In fusion reactions two light atomic nuclei fuse together to form a heavier nucleus . In doing so they release a comparatively large amount of energy arising from the binding energy due to the strong nuclear force which is manifested...
and satellite microwave
Space solar power
Space-based solar power is the concept of collecting solar power in space for use on Earth. It has been in research since the early 1970s....
plant. Most types of power plants have a limited life span and must be rebuilt periodically.
Players can build highways to neighboring cities to increase trade and the population. These neighboring cities are named after British Science-Fiction sitcom characters notably from Red Dwarf
Red Dwarf
Red Dwarf is a British comedy franchise which primarily comprises eight series of a television science fiction sitcom that aired on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999 and Dave from 2009–present. It gained cult following. It was created by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, who also wrote the first six series...
.
The budget and finance controls are also much more elaborate—tax rates can be set individually for residential, commercial and industrial zones. Enacting city ordinances and connecting to neighboring cities became possible. The budget controls are very important in running the city effectively.
Another new addition in SimCity 2000 is the query tool. Using the query tool on tiles reveals information such as structure name and type, altitude, and land value. Certain tiles also display additional information; power plants, for example, display the percentage of power being consumed when queried, and querying roads displays the amount of traffic on that tile. Querying a library and selecting "Ruminate" displays an essay written by Neil Gaiman
Neil Gaiman
Neil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
.
Graphics were added for buildings under construction in the residential, commercial, and industrial zones, as well as darkened buildings depicting abandoned buildings as a result of urban decay
Urban decay
Urban decay is the process whereby a previously functioning city, or part of a city, falls into disrepair and decrepitude...
.
News comes in the form of several pre-written newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
articles with variable names that could either be called up immediately or could be subscribed to on a yearly basis. The newspaper option provided many humorous stories as well as relevant ones, such as new technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
, warnings about aging power plants, recent disaster
Disaster
A disaster is a natural or man-made hazard that has come to fruition, resulting in an event of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life, or drastic change to the environment...
s and opinion poll
Opinion poll
An opinion poll, sometimes simply referred to as a poll is a survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence...
s (highlighting city problems). SimCity 2000 is the only game in the entire series to have this feature (besides the discontinued children's version, SimTown
SimTown
SimTown is a 1995 personal computer game published by Maxis, much like the best selling SimCity and Sims but on a smaller scale. SimTown allows the player to construct a town consisting of streets, houses, businesses and parks and then control the people in it...
), though newer versions have a news ticker
News ticker
A news ticker resides in the lower third of the television screen space on television news networks dedicated to presenting headlines or minor pieces of news. It may also refer to a long, thin scoreboard-style display seen around the front of some offices or public buildings...
. The newspapers had random titles (Times, Post, Herald, etc.), and prices based on the simulated year. Certain newspapers have a special monthly humor advice column
Advice column
An advice column is a column in a magazine or newspaper written by an advice columnist . The image presented was originally of an older woman providing comforting advice and maternal wisdom, hence the name "aunt"...
by "Miss Sim". Some headlines have no purpose whatsoever in the game, such as "Bald Radio Found" or "Frog Convention".
Though there is no "true" victory sequence in SimCity 2000, the "exodus" is a close parallel. An "exodus" occurs during the year 2051 or later, when 350 or more Launch Arcologies are constructed; the following January each one "takes off" into space so that their inhabitants can form new civilizations on distant worlds (although the visual representation of the scene consists of the Arcologies exploding in a manner similar to bulldozed buildings, one by one). This reduces the city's population to those who are not living in the Launch Arcologies, but it also opens wide areas for redevelopment and returns their construction cost to the city treasury. This is related to the event in SimEarth
SimEarth
SimEarth: The Living Planet, the second life simulation computer game designed by Will Wright in which the player controls the development of a planet. The game was published in 1990 by Maxis...
where all cities are moved into rocket-propelled dome
Domed city
A domed city is a kind of theoretical or fictional structure that encloses a large urban area under a single roof. In most descriptions, the dome is airtight and pressurized, creating a habitat that can be controlled for air temperature and quality...
s that then leave to "found new worlds" (leaving no sapient life behind).
The game also included several playable scenarios, in which the player must deal with a disaster (in most, but not all scenarios) and rebuild the city to meet a set of victory conditions. These were based in versions of real-life cities, and some were based on real events such as the 1991 Oakland firestorm
1991 Oakland firestorm
The Oakland Firestorm of 1991 was a large urban fire that occurred on the hillsides of northern Oakland, California, and southeastern Berkeley on Sunday October 20, 1991, two years after the Loma Prieta earthquake...
, the 1989 Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo was a classical, destructive and rare Cape Verde-type hurricane which struck the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe, Montserrat, St. Croix, Puerto Rico and the USA mainland in South Carolina as a Category 4 hurricane during September of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season...
in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
, or dealing with the 1970s economic recession in Flint, Michigan
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
—but also included more fanciful ones such as a "monster" destroying Hollywood in 2001. More scenarios added with the SCURK included a nuclear meltdown in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
in 2007.
SimCity 2000 was the first Sim game to feature the semi-nonsensical phrase "Reticulating Splines", which means to make a network of spline
Spline (mathematics)
In mathematics, a spline is a sufficiently smooth piecewise-polynomial function. In interpolating problems, spline interpolation is often preferred to polynomial interpolation because it yields similar results, even when using low-degree polynomials, while avoiding Runge's phenomenon for higher...
s. Will Wright has stated in an interview that the game does not actually reticulate splines when generating terrain, and he just inserted the phrase because it "sounded cool". The phrase has since been featured in SimCopter
SimCopter
SimCopter is a 1996 computer game from Maxis. This game is a 3D offshoot from Maxis's normal fare, putting the player into a 3D city. Like Streets of SimCity, SimCopter lets the user import SimCity 2000 maps into the game.- Objective :...
, SimCity 4
SimCity 4
SimCity 4 is a city-building/urban planning simulation computer game developed by Maxis, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts. It was released on January 14, 2003. It is the fourth installment in the SimCity series. SimCity 4 has a single expansion pack called Rush Hour which adds features to the game...
, The Sims
The Sims
The Sims is a strategic life-simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Its development was led by game designer Will Wright, also known for developing SimCity...
, The Sims 2
The Sims 2
The Sims 2 is a strategic life simulation computer game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling computer game, The Sims, which debuted on February 4, 2000. It was first released on September 14, 2004 for Microsoft Windows. A port to Apple Mac OS X...
, Spore
Spore (2008 video game)
Spore is a multi-genre single-player god game developed by Maxis and designed by Will Wright. The game was released for the Microsoft Windows and Macintosh operating systems in September 2008 as Spore...
, The Sims 3
The Sims 3
The Sims 3 is a 2009 strategic life simulation computer game developed by The Sims Studio and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling computer game, The Sims 2. It was first released on June 2, 2009 simultaneously for Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows...
, and The Sims Social
The Sims Social
The Sims Social is a Facebook addition to the Sims series of videogames. It was announced during EA's 2011 E3 press conference. As with the original Sims games, this addition lets users create their own customizable characters. In this version, though, players use their characters to interact...
. It is also used in the web-based game Glitch
Glitch (video game)
Glitch is a browser-based massively multiplayer online game released on September 27th, 2011. Glitch centers on traveling through time in an effort to save the planet, and in order to accomplish this the player must enter into a creation myth through which they shape the future.- Gameplay :Glitch's...
.
Scenarios
- CharlestonCharleston, South CarolinaCharleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
: Begins in August, 1989. The city is hit by a hurricane, a recreation of Hurricane HugoHurricane HugoHurricane Hugo was a classical, destructive and rare Cape Verde-type hurricane which struck the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe, Montserrat, St. Croix, Puerto Rico and the USA mainland in South Carolina as a Category 4 hurricane during September of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season...
. - Dullsville: Begins in June, 1910. The citizens are bored and the objective is to make the town into a metropolis.
- FlintFlint, MichiganFlint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
: Begins in August, 1974. The city has high unemployment, because of the mass exodus of industries. A recreation of the 1970s economic recession1973–75 recessionThe 1973–75 recession in the United States or 1970s recession was a period of economic stagnation in much of the Western world during the 1970s, putting an end to the general post-World War II economic boom. It differed from many previous recessions as being a stagflation, where high unemployment...
. - HollywoodHollywood, Los Angeles, CaliforniaHollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
: Begins in January, 2001. The city is attacked by a giant robot. - Oakland HillsOakland Hills, Oakland, CaliforniaOakland Hills is an informal term used to indicate the city neighborhoods lying within the eastern portion of Oakland, California.-The geologic feature:...
: Begins in October, 1991. A recreation of the Oakland Firestorm of 1991. - Davenport, IowaDavenport, IowaDavenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
: Begins in May, 1993. A recreation of the Great Flood of 1993Great Flood of 1993The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 occurred in the American Midwest, along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their tributaries, from April to October 1993. The flood was among the most costly and devastating to ever occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages...
.
Scenarios Vol. I: Great Disasters
In 1994, Maxis released a slew of expansions for the already popular SimCity 2000. One of these was a scenario package which include a number of disaster scenarios ranging from the fictitious (such as a UFO attack in future Atlanta, Georgia) to real world disasters, such as Great Flood of 1993Great Flood of 1993
The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 occurred in the American Midwest, along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their tributaries, from April to October 1993. The flood was among the most costly and devastating to ever occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages...
. This pack included:
- Atlanta: A UFOUnidentified flying objectA term originally coined by the military, an unidentified flying object is an unusual apparent anomaly in the sky that is not readily identifiable to the observer as any known object...
attack devastates Atlanta in December 2050, causing widespread panic and setting the city ablaze. - BarcelonaBarcelonaBarcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
: Terrorists have planted a nuclear bomb beneath the Estadi Olímpic Lluís CompanysEstadi Olímpic Lluís CompanysEstadi Olímpic Lluís Companys is a stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Originally built in 1927 for the 1929 International Exposition in the city , it was renovated in 1989 to be the main stadium for the 1992 Summer Olympics...
, where the 1992 Summer Olympics1992 Summer OlympicsThe 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
are going to be held. Right in the middle of the games, the bomb is detonated. The stadium and everyone inside are instantly vaporized and much of Barcelona is obliterated. Thousands are killed and the entire city is contaminated with radiation. - ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
: A major chemical spill routes the industrial sector of 1999 Chicago into an exodusHuman migrationHuman migration is physical movement by humans from one area to another, sometimes over long distances or in large groups. Historically this movement was nomadic, often causing significant conflict with the indigenous population and their displacement or cultural assimilation. Only a few nomadic...
of sorts, forcing the city to rebuild its corporate sector. - DavenportDavenport, IowaDavenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
: Massive amounts of rainfall instigate the flooding of the Mississippi River in 1993Great Flood of 1993The Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 occurred in the American Midwest, along the Mississippi and Missouri rivers and their tributaries, from April to October 1993. The flood was among the most costly and devastating to ever occur in the United States, with $15 billion in damages...
. This scenario recreates the Davenport incident. - Homestead, FloridaHomestead, FloridaHomestead is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States nestled between Biscayne National Park to the east and Everglades National Park to the west. Homestead is primarily a Miami suburb and a major agricultural area....
: A major hurricane, based on Hurricane AndrewHurricane AndrewHurricane Andrew was the third Category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the United States, after the Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 and Hurricane Camille in 1969. Andrew was the first named storm and only major hurricane of the otherwise inactive 1992 Atlantic hurricane season...
, has devastated a 1992 Homestead. Fortunately, FEMA funds have finally arrived. - Malibu: In the fall of 1993, Southern California was ravaged by terrible forest fires. This scenario recreates the infamous Malibu incident.
- ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
: Manhattan's efficient nuclear power station has a major meltdownNuclear meltdownNuclear meltdown is an informal term for a severe nuclear reactor accident that results in core damage from overheating. The term is not officially defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency or by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission...
in October 2007, sweeping the city with chemical fires and radiation. - Oakland: In 1991, Oakland suffers a fire destroying some of the city and the player must rebuild it. This references to the Oakland Fire in 1991.
- PortlandPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
: A summer's day in 2001 Oregon is interrupted when a previously unknown wellspring of volcanic activity erupts right in downtown Portland, destroying a large portion of the city. - San Francisco: In October 1989, the Loma Prieta earthquake single-handedly demolished many areas of Santa Cruz. Of the areas affected, San Francisco also suffered extensive damaged, including many fires caused by erupting gas mains. This is a recreation of that particular disaster.
- Silicon ValleySilicon ValleySilicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
: The high-tech society of the 2010 Silicon valley is hit hard when its futuristic power source goes awry - microwave beams transferring solar energy from an orbital satellite miss their intended receiver and instead incinerate many businesses and people in the area. - Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
: A fictitious day in 1995 is beset with hordes of drunken lawyers causing riots and mayhem.
SimCity Urban Renewal Kit
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
, but most buildings were made by fan-artists and shared on the Internet. Several SCURK designs influenced the designs of SimCity 3000
SimCity 3000
SimCity 3000 is a city building simulation personal computer game and the third major installment in the SimCity series. It was published by Electronic Arts and developed by series creator Maxis, a wholly owned subsidiary of EA...
s original buildings.
The SCURK is divided into three areas.
- Paint the Town – A graphics program fashioned to produce custom buildings for SimCity 2000.
- Pick and Copy – A tileset (building set) modifier, which allows users to produce new tilesets that display specific custom buildings.
- Place and Print – A sandbox-style city builder with fewer restrictions than SimCity 2000, which also enables users to print cities on paper. The SCURK was also bundled along with Streets of SimCityStreets of SimCity-External links:* *...
and SimCopterSimCopterSimCopter is a 1996 computer game from Maxis. This game is a 3D offshoot from Maxis's normal fare, putting the player into a 3D city. Like Streets of SimCity, SimCopter lets the user import SimCity 2000 maps into the game.- Objective :...
, as the Place and Print aspect of the program was especially useful for non-SimCity 2000 users who intended to build custom cities for either game.
The cities made in SCURK can be saved and used for SimCity 2000.
Ports and special editions
SimCity 2000 has been released on a wide range of platforms and version since its debut in 1994, ranging from ports of personal computers and video game consoles, to special editions.SimCity 2000 Special Edition
A re-packaged version of SimCity 2000, SimCity 2000 Special Edition, was released in 1995 for Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
PCs
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
, partly because the original SimCity 2000 in 1993 could not be run under Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, even in command prompt mode.
In addition to containing All expansions, it also featured the SimCity Urban Renewal Kit, the Vol. 1 scenario pack, remade music, new cities selected by Maxis from a 1994 competition, bonus scenarios and cities, and movies.
The movies were a first for Maxis; SimCity 2000-SE was the first "Sim" game to feature "real" videos (compared to "animated bitmaps", such as the winning screen in SimAnt
SimAnt
SimAnt: The Electronic Ant Colony is a 1991 life simulation computer game by Maxis and Maxis' Third Product, focusing on ants. It was designed by Will Wright, maker of other 'Sim' games such as SimCity and The Sims...
). These videos included the introduction movie and four commentary videos by Will Wright; the latter were accessed via the "WillTV" application that came with the game.
SimCity 2000 Gold/Network Edition
A Gold version of the game, SimCity 2000: Gold Edition was released in 1996 for Windows only.SimCity 2000 Network Edition featured slightly different gameplay in network mode, where mayors may start with more money, but must buy land before building upon it. The Gold edition had the ability to share in-game resources and to compete or cooperate with other cities. If the user is on an appropriate network
Computer network
A computer network, often simply referred to as a network, is a collection of hardware components and computers interconnected by communication channels that allow sharing of resources and information....
(TCP
Transmission Control Protocol
The Transmission Control Protocol is one of the core protocols of the Internet Protocol Suite. TCP is one of the two original components of the suite, complementing the Internet Protocol , and therefore the entire suite is commonly referred to as TCP/IP...
or IPX
IPX
Internetwork Packet Exchange is the OSI-model Network layer protocol in the IPX/SPX protocol stack.The IPX/SPXM protocol stack is supported by Novell's NetWare network operating system. Because of Netware's popularity through the late 1980s into the mid 1990s, IPX became a popular internetworking...
), then SimCity 2000 Gold Edition works in a similar way to SimCity Societies
SimCity Societies
SimCity Societies received mixed reviews. GameZone praised the game's increased accessibility and less "sterile" gameplay compared to previous titles in the SimCity series, and Game Informer concluded that the changes to the gameplay were "inventive"...
, giving the ability to Not use Zones while building cities.
This version also features a revamped user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
. Instead of a static toolbar
Toolbar
In a graphical user interface, on a computer monitor, a toolbar is a GUI widget on which on-screen buttons, icons, menus, or other input or output elements are placed. Toolbars are seen in office suites, graphics editors, and web browsers...
, items are accessed via cascading menus from the right of the screen, resulting in more screen real-estate for SimCity itself, without sacrificing functionality.
SimCity 2000 (Sega Saturn)
The first console version of the game and one of the first titles for the American Sega Saturn. Released in fall of 1995.This version had several changes. The game has enhanced graphics for all buildings.The buildings will change at the year of 1950 and 2050. There are also 3D animations displayed for each building in the building query windows.
The game play remains the same for the most part. Instead of the Braun Llama Dome, there is a Space Terminal which assist the launching of the Arco. The arco can be seen launching from the city along with a special animated video.
There are several new animated videos. The opening sequence displays a scene of the Alien/Monster chasing a Launch Arco in space.
SimCity 2000 (PlayStation)
The PlayStation version of the game is based on the Saturn version, however with some features removed and others added. This version was released on the PlayStation Network in Europe for both PSPPlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
and PS3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
on November 20, 2008 and in North America on Aug 28, 2009.
This version use the same graphics as the Saturn version, however the city doesn't evolve.
The only additions are new scenarios from Great Disasters scenario pack, including one that involves a new volcano forming in Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
(destroying most of the city, and requiring the mayor to rebuild it). The Silicon Valley and Washington DC scenarios are on the disk but isn't used.
The port also allows the player to tour their city from a car's perspective and has a full motion video
Full motion video
Full motion video based games are video games that rely upon pre-recorded TV-quality movie or animation rather than sprites, vectors, or 3D models to display action in the game. In the early 1990s a diverse set of games utilized this format...
intro. The graphics are identical to SimCopter
SimCopter
SimCopter is a 1996 computer game from Maxis. This game is a 3D offshoot from Maxis's normal fare, putting the player into a 3D city. Like Streets of SimCity, SimCopter lets the user import SimCity 2000 maps into the game.- Objective :...
.
SimCity 2000 (Nintendo 64)
A JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
-only release of SimCity 2000 for the Nintendo 64
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
in 1997, produced and published by Imagineer Co., Ltd.
It featured some additional features, mainly minigames, a dating game, TV to replace the newspaper, horse races and monster breeding, among others, all of them in 3D. A few new "natural" disasters were also included, most of them being giant monster attacks (players were able to use their monster to fight against them). Even when these extras gave the game a lot more to do, many consider it lost the original feeling of the game, since the extras were intended to appeal specifically to the Japanese market.
SimCity 64 (Nintendo 64DD)
Another Japan-only release, SimCity 64 was based on the SimCity 2000 game but was heavily customized for the Nintendo 64DDNintendo 64DD
The is a peripheral for the Nintendo 64 game console. It plugged into the N64 through the EXTension Port on the Nintendo 64's underside, and allowed the N64 to use proprietary 64 MB magneto-optical discs for expanded data storage...
game system. The ability to view the city at night was added, pedestrian level free-roaming of a city, and individual road vehicles and pedestrians controlled by their own AI wandered the player's city. Cities in the game are also presented in much more advanced 3D graphics, making SimCity 64 the first true 3D SimCity game.
SimCity 2000 (Super Nintendo Entertainment System/Super Famicom)
This was actually one of the first console ports of SimCity 2000 to any home system. However, there were a lot of losses and differences from the original version of SimCity 2000.The scrolling screen takes much longer than normal to scroll, which was considered to be one of the reasons for the overall rarity of this particular port of the game. However, the in-game controls, while having big icons that would be later used in the PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and Game Boy Advance ports of the game, were actually considered to be far easier to use than the original controls for the PC version of the game. As the previous SimCity title, there was no SNES Mouse support for this game. Also, there were far more errors than the original PC version of the game when it came to the newspapers and their articles.
The disasters of riots and volcanoes (as well as possibly a few other disasters) were removed from the game. The game had less songs to choose from than the original PC version but they were also considered to be surprisingly superior to the original version of SimCity 2000 on the PC. Finally, each city allows the player to choose a name for the mayor at the beginning instead of being forced to have the same name unless the game was reinstalled as in the PC version. Also, compared to the PC version, the SNES port omits the cheat codes, limits the city maps to six, has no difficulty setting and only includes five generic scenarios.
Furthermore, there was only one newspaper for the whole city, no matter what size that the city is, and it will be always labeled as (insert the name of a city here) Newspaper. In addition, unlike the PC version of the game, the stock photographs were replaced with more Japanese anime/manga-like pictures in this port of the game. This is the only port of the game to feature such pictures. All team names, city names, and mayor names were limited to only 8 characters, whereas the PC version allows for up to 32 characters for a city name and a mayor name.
There were, however, additional gifts: a bigger city hall at 1,000,000 population, a TV station at 2,000,000 population, and a rocket launching pad at 3,000,000 population. The player can also see an actual launch of a single launch arco when you achieve 5,000,000 population in the last scenario.
SimCity 2000 (Game Boy Advance)
Released by Zoo Digital in 2003, SimCity 2000 for the Game Boy Advance featured most of the same content as previous versions, but several features are omitted,such as launch arcos. There is no water system, but it is unknown whether this was to make it a better portable experience or because of technical limitations.Subsequent releases based on SimCity 2000
- SimHealthSimHealthSimHealth: The National Health Care Simulation, released by Maxis in 1994, is a management simulation of the U.S. Healthcare system produced with assistance from the Markle Foundation.-Summary:...
– Released in 1994, the game simulated President Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
's healthcare reform proposals for the USUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; designed for a niche audience at best, the simulation never achieved great popularity. It featured a user interfaceUser interfaceThe user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
that resembled a city in SimCity 2000. - SimCopterSimCopterSimCopter is a 1996 computer game from Maxis. This game is a 3D offshoot from Maxis's normal fare, putting the player into a 3D city. Like Streets of SimCity, SimCopter lets the user import SimCity 2000 maps into the game.- Objective :...
– An arcade helicopter flight simulator based on the cities of SimCity 2000, SimCopter was published in 1996. It had the capability of importing SimCity 2000 cities and allowing the user to pilot a helicopter around them and accomplish missions such as rescuing people or putting out a fire. SimCopter was perhaps best known for a rather notorious Easter egg which, if successfully triggered, depicted scantily clad men in a homosexually provocative state. Due to the uproar, this "feature" was patched over in a future release. - Streets of SimCityStreets of SimCity-External links:* *...
– Published in 1997, Streets of SimCity was a racing gameRacing gameA racing video game is a genre of video games, either in the first-person or third-person perspective, in which the player partakes in a racing competition with any type of land, air, or sea vehicles. They may be based on anything from real-world racing leagues to entirely fantastical settings...
based on the SimCopter engine. In addition to racing, it also featured courierCourierA courier is a person or a company who delivers messages, packages, and mail. Couriers are distinguished from ordinary mail services by features such as speed, security, tracking, signature, specialization and individualization of express services, and swift delivery times, which are optional for...
missions and vehicular combat. However, the fact that this game was incredibly processor-intensive prevented this game from being a commercial success.
External links
- [ftp://ftp.ea.com/pub/maxis/patches/SC2000/ SimCity 2000 updates]
- [ftp://ftp.ea.com/pub/maxis/patches/SC2000%20Network/ SimCity 2000 Network updates]
- [ftp://ftp.ea.com/pub/maxis/patches/SCURK/ SimCity 2000 Urban Renewal updates]