~SimCity 2000 CD-ROM

Reviewed by Martin Keen


Has anyone else found it a little odd that SimCity HD has been sitting
on top of the floppy disk charts for over a year now? Maybe Maxis are
now sponsoring the ELSPA Game Charts! Whatever the reason they hope
to do the same thing again with the CD-ROM version. Don't get too
excited, it doesn't have a whole host of amusing video clips like the
original CD version, but it does come with a stack of new cities to
play with and a Urban Renewal Kit that lets you toy with the in-game
graphics.

The original SimCity proved to be one of the most addictive games 
ever written. Mark out areas for residential, commercial, and 
industrial, then link them up with roads and railways. Next build
airports, stadiums, and power generators. Then get to work on making
the whole city run as smoothly as possible. It all sounds pretty 
boring but in practise its almost impossible to put down. Maxis built
their entire reputation on this game but disappointed with the Sim
series follow-ups which proved to be either too complex (Sim Earth), 
too boring (Sim Farm), or too stupid (Sim Ant). So it was little
surprise when a sequel to SimCity was released last year. 

Just about every aspect of the game has been improved. The underlying 
concept is still the same but now there is so much more choice. Want
to build a power station? Then do you want a coal, oil, hydroelectric,
or solar powered one? Fancy a sports stadium? How about for American
football, soccer, rugby, baseball, or hockey? 

The citizens are more demanding. They'll want you to fork out for 
schools, colleges, and universities. Tourist attractions are a must
so be sure to build a big park or zoo. And of course fire, police, 
and ambulance services are essential. But if you do a good job the
citizens will buy you a mansion, erect a statue of you, or even throw
a spontaneous street party in your honour.

Everything is so much more detailed and involved. If you want to find
out what's going on in your city then take a look at the numerous
stories in the newspaper, after you've decided which of the many 
papers available you want to read. Take a look at how well the other
towns around you are doing with the local area map. And maybe set up
a number of schemes and rules which will fine citizens for smoking in
the city, or clamp down on industries producing too much pollution.

But the biggest new change you'll notice is the sewage works. It 
certainly doesn't sounds too appealing and it isn't. You've got to
supply water to every building in the city through a series of pipes
that work in much the same way as the electricity cables do. Its a
boring, tedious task that often causes problems during a drought and
really shouldn't have been included in the first place.

The extra cities and senarios that come with the CD version are worth
a look for a laugh and help to add some extra longlivity to the game.
The Urban Renewal Kit on the other hand is a bit of a waste of time. 
To modify an entire graphics set is a longwinded affair that is 
probably best avoided. 

SimCity 2000 the game is an outstanding piece of work that improves 
over the original in almost every way. However the additions on the 
CD are of little value so don't go splashing out on this if you've
already got the original.