Was it Really That Bad?

Written by: Adam "ManKorn" Korenman, CC2K Video Games Editor

1) Welcome to the World

When you boot up a new game, both titles look similar. You have a small square of land, usually connected to the outside world via a highway or heavy avenue. From there, you must build up the world, starting with water and power and a residential zone. Cities plays to the old school, requiring pipe to be laid and power lines to be erected. SimCity took a smart and innovative path that used roads to carry those particular assets. If the building you lay down is connected to a road, it is connected to the grid. Simple and easy, if not the most realistic.

Once you’ve established the basic utilities, you lay down some areas for new homes and wait. In Cities, the plots appear and are slowly constructed, and then new residents drive in from the highway and move into their homes. In SimCity, your utilities won’t even function until people arrive to man the stations. Plot appear, and construction crews drive up to build them (rather than scaffolding miraculously appearing). Once the home is built, the construction crew drives off and a moving van appears. A “For Sale” sign shows the home is waiting for someone to arrive. After the family moves in, the moving van has to leave the city. These small details really bring the city to life.

The same holds true for business and industry. You can watch offices and restaurants and factories rise up, but until someone actually occupies the building, it is shown as a vacant space.

Both games use their sims as voices of the common problems. In Cities, the ever-present Chirper lets you know the troubles brewing in the city below. Not enough water or power? They’re gonna tweet about it. In SimCity, the same work is done in a little more seamless a way. Though bubbles appear above buildings, color coded for easy understanding, and they let you know exactly what is happening down below. If that’s not enough, you can go to your city hall and see protesters voicing their complaints.

Of course, the largest difference between the two titles in the day/night cycle and realistic weather of SimCity. While they are mostly aesthetic touches, watching your structures slowly flip on the lights at night, or seeing the flickering lamps as a new building turns on the power for the first time, goes a long way toward making your town feel real.