SimCity Video Game Series
Created by Will Wright, a series of strategy games in which players can prove themselves as builders and administrators of virtual cities. The series is developed by Electronic Arts-owned studio Maxis with the participation of other development teams (such as Tilted Mill Entertainment).
The first game in the SimCity series was released in 1989, gaining great recognition among players and critics. The title, counted among economic strategies, in fact launched a new sub-genre known as city-building simulation. Over the course of nearly a quarter of a century, the brand lived to see more than a dozen installments, of which six games released for PC are considered canonical: SimCity, SimCity 2000, SimCity 3000, SimCity 4, SimCity Societes, and SimCity (2013).
The gameplay of the games in the series SimCity is based on two elements. The first is building a city with, among other things, a system of road connections, power and water supply networks, service centers, public administration, etc. The second aspect is a concern for the satisfaction of residents, who need, for instance, job facilities, health care, education, and access to recreational areas. As in real life, the possibilities for the development of a virtual metropolis are strictly limited by the size of the budget fed mainly by tax revenues and various types of taxation.
The game can be played in campaign mode with top-down tasks to be completed or in freeplay mode. Along with SimCity 4 there was also a limited possibility of interaction with online players.
The success of the series SimCity is largely due to the realistic reproduction of the natural processes that govern modern American metropolises. The immediate inspiration for the devs of the series was the rapid development of cities in California in the 20th century. Hence the presence in the games of such elements as the division into clearly marked zones (separately residential, industrial, commercial and retail, etc.), cars as the primary means of transportation and random events caused by forces of nature (such as earthquakes).
It’s worth noting that the SimCity series is considered the direct protoplast of The Sims series.
SimCity Series Evolution
2014
SimCity BuildIt
2013
SimCity
2012
SimCity Social
2008
SimCity Creator
2007
SimCity Societies
2007
SimCity DS
2003
SimCity 4
1999
SimCity 3000
1997
Streets Of SimCity
1993
SimCity 2000
1989
SimCity (1989)
SimCity BuildIt
December 16, 2014
Strategy, City Builder, Economic, Singleplayer, Social Networking, Free-to-play.
A mobile free-to-play strategy game. It is a spin-off of the cult series of economic simulators developed by EA Maxis. Similarly to the full-fledged entries in the series, the player assumes the role of a mayor of a virtual city. Their task is to secure the expansion of the metropolis and the happiness of its inhabitants while also maintaining the budget. During the game the player is raising new buildings, creating power lines and collecting taxes. The gameplay mechanics are slightly different as building each house requires delivering enough materials produced by factories and commercial buildings. Each decision must be taken with the budget and happiness in mind, and each wrong action can have bad consequences to the whole agglomeration. Additionally, the game is a subject to typical limitations of the free-to-play model – each construction and production process requires the player to wait a specific amount of time.
Users
SimCity
March 5, 2013
Strategy, City Builder, EA Play, Economic, Internet, Co-op, Multiplayer, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass.
The fifth installment in the popular economic strategy game series - SimCity. The game was developed by EA Maxis Studios (known for The Sims and Spore) with publishing support from the Electronic Arts company. In accordance to the tradition of the series, you becomes a mayor of a virtual city who has to turn it into a bustling metropolis. To this end, you have to deal with complex management issues, economic and social problems, as well as quickly react to various random events (e.g. natural disasters). The new SimCity stands out from the previous games in the series thanks to its advanced game engine - Glassbox, as well as extensive social panel CityLog (inspired of similar systems used in Need for Speed and Battlefield games).
Users
Expansion Packs:
- SimCity: Cities of Tomorrow November 12, 2013
SimCity Social
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, Casual, City Builder, Economic, Facebook, Internet, MMO, Multiplayer, Browser, Free-to-play.
Browser version of the famous series of economic games addressed to Facebook users. We play the role of mayor and direct the expansion of the city from the moment of building the first house to the huge metropolis.
Users
SimCity Creator
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, City Builder, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Nintendo Exclusive, Isometric View.
Sim City Creator is another part of an extremely popular series of economic strategies, in which the player is given the opportunity to play the role of the builder and mayor of the metropolis he has created.
Users
SimCity Societies
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, City Builder, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer.
SimCity Societies is another part of the best-selling strategic-economic series, developed since the late 1980s. This time, however, the production process did not involve Maxis, but the Tilted Mill Entertainment studio, from which games such as Caesar IV came out. Along with the change of the traditional developer, the concept of fun has been slightly modified.
Users
Expansion Packs:
- SimCity Societies: Destinations June 24, 2008
SimCity DS
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, 2D, City Builder, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Nintendo Exclusive, Isometric View.
The SimCity DS is an economic strategy, designed exclusively for the owners of a two screen console from the Nintendo stables. It belongs to a well-known cycle, treating about the construction and development of the city. This item was created on the basis of the game SimCity 3000 published in January 1999, although it is not a 100% conversion.
Users
SimCity 4
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, City Builder, EA Play, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Isometric View, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass.
A new entry in the popular series of city builders developed by Maxis. In comparison with the previous installments, SimCity 4 offers a wide range of new additions and updates. The governed city is no longer a single entity – we are free to connect different cities into a single metropolis linked by industry, public services, or economic means. Moreover, we are now able to view the citizens of each neighborhood and investigate their views and worries regarding the functioning of the city. Creative players received access to new terraforming tools, enabling us to level hills, choose a terrain type, or introduce water basins. The world itself now features a day and night cycle, as well as fully functional public services such as fire departments. Interestingly enough, the developers have introduced the ability to import characters from The Sims and settle them in the city. SimCity 4 is characterized by much more detailed three-dimensional visuals and a new user-friendly interface.
Steam
Users
Expansion Packs:
- SimCity 4: Rush Hour September 22, 2003
SimCity 3000
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, 2D, City Builder, EA Play, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Isometric View, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass.
SimCity is the third full-fledged version of the cycle of economic strategies developed by Maxis. The player again has the opportunity to try his hand at the role of builder and manager of a large metropolis. The creators of the game put emphasis on the aspect of simulation of city life, which translated into an increase in the number of dependencies between the various socio-economic factors.
Steam
Users
Streets Of SimCity
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Racing, Internet, LAN, Multiplayer, Cars, Singleplayer.
Streets of SimCity is a game in which we can visit virtual cities, created in games from the SimCity cycle. We sit behind the wheel of a car and move freely through the metropolis, or we can start a career mode and perform humorous missions.
Users
SimCity 2000
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, City Builder, EA Play, Economic, Singleplayer, Isometric View, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass.
A classic entry in the famous Sim City series. It enables the players to once again become the mayor of a new city and to lead it to greatness by combining the necessity to make citizens happy with generating profits.
Users
SimCity (1989)
June 14, 2013, End of Life
Strategy, 2D, City Builder, Economic, Sandbox, Singleplayer, Top-down.
A classic strategic-economic game in which we play the role of the mayor of a hypothetical city. Whether a small village turns into a thriving metropolis will depend solely on our efficient management and cleverness.
Users
SimCity Series News
New York City's new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, may have prepared for his current role with SimCity 3000 as a kid
Calling back to a New York Magazine article published in 2002, apparently, a young Zohran Mamdani was asking for SimCity 3000 for the Winter holidays.
video games
November 6, 2025
![SimCity 4 Legendary Network Addon Mod Gets New Version on 20th Anniversary [Update: Version 48 is out]](https://cdn.gracza.pl/i_gp/h/16/418038512.jpg)
SimCity 4 Legendary Network Addon Mod Gets New Version on 20th Anniversary [Update: Version 48 is out]
We lived to see a new version of the excellent project called Network Addon Mod, the most important modification for SimCity 4.
Files and Mods
February 22, 2024
He Spent 100 Hours Designing a City; Screenshot Froze His PC
A SimCity 4 player created a city of 64 square kilometers, which he then decided to photograph. The process squeezed the last drops of performance from his laptop, freezing it repeatedly.
video games
July 15, 2022