SimCity... the end is near

[ZargonX]

According to what's out today, shot 1 is quite real, and this game isn't really meant as SimCity 5. It's basically a franchise game with the SimCity label just slapped on to whatever it is these chumps are making.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by bipolarbear
I wish they'd do something Spore-ish and combine this with The Sims, so you can cycle between the micro and macro.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by snoopy369
You're trying to give DrSpike a heart attack, right?

Fortunately high alcohol levels have insulated me. But my concern is I read this thread in the morning sobre - there's no telling what might happen.

[Wiglaf]

Originally posted by ZargonX
According to what's out today, shot 1 is quite real, and this game isn't really meant as SimCity 5. It's basically a franchise game with the SimCity label just slapped on to whatever it is these chumps are making.

Sort of like CivCity:Rome. lame brand marketing.

[Mr. President]

Originally posted by Adagio


most see it as it's going the wrong way it if becomes less realistic

Wrong.

Also, I think it's funny that the five or so people in this thread think they know better than not just all other SimCity fans in the world but also than the marketing department.

[Kuciwalker]

WTF are you on?

[CrONoS]

I was looking on Maxis Official website's and fan forum, and I found this.

Man, look how real is it! Is so real that I feel the dirt in my eyes...

So Awwsome!

[CrONoS]

Another screenshot, according to maxis this screenshot is a close up of the city view, that's why it's so pixelated.

[Wiglaf]

[John-SJ]

Originally posted by bipolarbear
I wish they'd do something Spore-ish and combine this with The Sims, so you can cycle between the micro and macro.

Actually, to some extent, that may be what they are doing.

If you took SimCity, a building/simuulation game, and married it to The Sims, a social/relationship game, increased the level of abstraction of both, you just might end up with a game very similar to Sim City:Societies.

Naysay all you like, but if done right this could be a really good game, maybe even a groundbreaker. Only time will tell, there is certainly too little information out now to make any kind of judgement not based primarily on prejudice.

John-SJ

[DRoseDARs]

Originally posted by Mr. President
Also, I think it's funny that the five or so people in this thread think they know better than not just all other SimCity fans in the world but also than the marketing department.

Those of us that have been playing since the very first Sim City (and I'm talking before Sim City Classic, that came after), yes we do know better than the people that weren't even born yet when that came out and the "marketing department."

Maxis is dead, former members of that company don't appear to be involved in this latest installment of the series, Titled Mills has some MIGHTY big shoes to fill or else this project is DOA...

[Adagio]

Originally posted by John-SJ
If you took SimCity, a building/simuulation game, and married it to The Sims, a social/relationship game, increased the level of abstraction of both, you just might end up with a game very similar to Sim City:Societies.

Maxis was working on a game like that called Simsville, where they tried to mix SimCity and The Sims. It was set to be released in 2001, but was canceled in 2000. Based on screenshots and gameplay videos, Simsville looked to be great game. The game was canceled because they were too busy with The Sims Online, or at least that's what most Simsville fans believe in
And the graphics in Simsville looks better than the screenshot we have of this new SimCity game. My first thought when I saw the screenshot to SimCity Societies was that someone had dug out some old beta screenshot for SimCity 3000 (~5 years ago it was revealed that SimCity 3000 was meant to be in 3D, luckily Maxis persuaded EA to give up their plans)

[Adagio]

There are 5 more images available:

http://www.1up.com/do/gameOverview?cId=3160082

But they don't change my opinion much. This is the best of them:



SimCity 4 looks better IMHO

[Kuciwalker]

Agreed.

[Kuciwalker]

UGLY.

[Spaced Cowboy]

I really don't care what it looks like, the game play is much more important to my enjoyment, but less to sales than eyecandy. Strange how this thread has changed from what it will play like to what it will look like....no wonder marketing is confused.

[Adagio]

Originally posted by Spaced Cowboy
I really don't care what it looks like, the game play is much more important to my enjoyment, but less to sales than eyecandy. Strange how this thread has changed from what it will play like to what it will look like....no wonder marketing is confused.

Of course how it plays like is the most important part, but considering that we only have screenshots (and a few quotes on the tilted mill forum) we can't comment much on the gameplay, except for the fact that tilted mill hasn't made any games with great gameplay yet

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by Spaced Cowboy
I really don't care what it looks like, the game play is much more important to my enjoyment, but less to sales than eyecandy. Strange how this thread has changed from what it will play like to what it will look like....no wonder marketing is confused.

Er, graphics are pretty important. If I put a lot of effort into a city it ought to look pretty cool.

[snoopy369]

If it lets me have realistic traffic management (dramatically more so than SimCity 1-4), then I'll be happy. If it doesn't, then to them and to me buying it.

[Adagio]

A preview is up:

http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3160151

he mere fact that you can now select and place all the buildings (rather than watching them spring forth from your zoning) sets the stage for a major metamorphosis.

Just great... they take the WORST feature from city life to replace one of the best features in SimCity

no pipes to lay, no power grids, no manual emergency-response funds to disperse, no individual building-funding.

This is both good and bad... My guess is most SimCity fans would hate those changes, but personally I'm happy that we don't have to lay those pipes manually... IMHO it didn't really add to the game

The game introduces six "social energies" (such as Wealth or Obedience) that influence your city's look and feel

Sounds interesting, but hopefully it wont be anything resembling city lifes take on this. But based on the preview it doesn't sound like it... If done right, this could be good

Sims (yes, they're using that term) will skip work if they're in a bad mood or start engaging in criminal activity

Skip work? How would they show this in the game?

[Adagio]

And there's a few more screenshots available here:

http://www.simtropolis.com/forum/mes...&enterthread=y

[Blake]

The game introduces six "social energies" (such as Wealth or Obedience) that influence your city's look and feel

Sounds interesting, but hopefully it wont be anything resembling city lifes take on this. But based on the preview it doesn't sound like it... If done right, this could be good

I have to say, the "Obedience" part caught my eye.

Sadly, it probably wont match my expectations of roving squads of death guards and an ambiance of sims wailing in anguish.

[Blake]

Hmmm maybe I should play Black and White 2 again, mainly to enjoy the wailing of despair, my own mostly, no doubt.

[DrSpike]

No, get back to fixing BtS already.

[Ari Rahikkala]

Originally posted by Spaced Cowboy
I really don't care what it looks like, the game play is much more important to my enjoyment, but less to sales than eyecandy. Strange how this thread has changed from what it will play like to what it will look like....no wonder marketing is confused.

SimCity... gameplay? My good man, what are you on, and may I have some? The point of SimCity, unless you're simply idly playing it to pass time, is to build a *beautiful* city within the rather loose economic constraints the game imposes on you. I'm the first to demand more focus on gameplay than graphics in most kinds of games - I happily play roguelikes, for instance - but in SimCity, it's important that the game can make the city you worked hard on look beautiful. More important, IMO, than the details of things like how to make a working subway or plumbing network, since you don't see those things anyway (and, for what it's worth, most of the time later on you don't see things like bus stops either).

[Maquiladora]

Originally posted by Ari Rahikkala

The point of SimCity, unless you're simply idly playing it to pass time, is to build a *beautiful* city within the rather loose economic constraints the game imposes on you. I'm the first to demand more focus on gameplay than graphics in most kinds of games - I happily play roguelikes, for instance - but in SimCity, it's important that the game can make the city you worked hard on look beautiful.

Spot on

[Adagio]

If it's that important to be able to make a beautiful city, then how is it that the first SimCity games are that well liked? It's not like SimCity classic or SimCity 2000 had great graphics

[Wiglaf]

Adagio, this developer quote is what freaked you out earlier:

This SC is not a realistic urban simulation, which I understand, to many, represents the heart of what SC is.

Realize that SC has never been a realistic urban simulation of anything, and chill. Don't start making "the end is near omfg!" threads just yet.

[Wiglaf]

Originally posted by Adagio
If it's that important to be able to make a beautiful city, then how is it that the first SimCity games are that well liked? It's not like SimCity classic or SimCity 2000 had great graphics

The basic urban planning, which was in no way realistic, was fun and yes, back then watching your city grow from a few green plots into a huge metropolis was pretty cool.

I thought a big city in SC2000 was awesome looking. Standards change.

[Nikolai]

SC2k looked awesome in it's time. I don't care for the realism and I have played all SC's and loved them. I don't mind good graphics, in fact while I don't care much for them usually, I want them in a SC game. But I never use the zoomed in function. It's the view of my city getting bigger and fluorishing I love so much.