This gorgeous, processor-intensive sequel has arrived for the Mac -- and it wants your hard drive.
260 megabytes of it, in fact. And 128 megs more for virtual memory. You’ll also need a 200mz PowerPC if you want to launch it. But if your Mac meets these requirements, you’re in for a wonderful treat. SC3K lets you build some amazing architecture, you can zoom in close on individual buildings, ambient noises add serious realism, and a smarter staff of advisors let you know how you’re handling the challenges of running a virtual metropolis.
SC3K has enough landmark buildings to construct accurate replicas of existing cities, or you can go totally surreal and put the Sphinx, the Eiffel Tower, and the Alamo on the same block. Another exciting new feature is garbage - you need to set aside landfill zones or the Sims throw their trash into the streets. Disasters have also improved considerably. Earthquakes can now warp your nice even terrain, destroying underground water pipes and subways.
You can enter into contracts with neighboring cities - pay them for electricity or take money to let them dump in your landfills. A discreet news ticker on the bottom of your screen replaces the newspaper subscriptions, and clicking on some of the news items will summon one your advisors to comment on the latest events.
The Sims of this new millenium still complain as much as they used to, but now they’re more likely to thank you when you do something right. If you’re generous with your education budget, for example, the third grade class writes a poem in your honor.
New ordinances like the industrial pollutant impact fee and the electronics tax incentive replace the old option of adjusting taxes for individual industries. This takes away some of your power to control what industries are welcome in your city, but it’s probably more true to what real mayors face.
Happily this version retains its original zaniness. References to llamas are everywhere, and the news is still full of bizarre non-sequiturs, like “After 30 Years of Marriage, Man Discovers His Wife Is a Rare Yucca Plant.”
For a game set 1000 years in the future, there’s not a lot of advanced technology here. There’s still the occasional flying saucer, but no mechanical monster emerges from within. Arcologies, the self-contained cities that appeared as rewards in SC2K, are no more.
I haven’t been able to find any churches either, except for a few of the landmarks. Churches used to pop up in the most inconvenient places in SC2K, forcing you to blow them sky high with the steamroller tool. Perhaps religious groups complained.
For a game that began its life on the Mac, Sim City has definitely forgotten its roots. Standard Mac conventions like Command-O to open a file, are ignored. So is Command-W to close a window (use the esc key). You can’t even access your menu bar. To return to the Finder, hit Command-Tab. If you’re lucky, you’ll get your cursor back.
SC3K ships with QuickTime 3, and performance on my Power Tower Pro felt considerably snappier after I removed QuickTime 4 and installed the older version. Hopefully, G3 owners won’t have to fuss with this. Performance can also be improved by turning off some of the animation and other features in the preferences.
It took a considerable amount of lobbying to get SC3K to the Mac, and the game deserves to be a big success. That said, however, the struggle isn’t over. As you read this, Windows users can play the original Sim City in teams on the Maxis website (http://www.simcity.com/home.shtml). And a free add-on called the Building Architect Tool, which lets Windows players customize and trade different landmark buildings, will not be ported to the Mac.
Electronic Arts, the parent company of Maxis, still needs some convincing that the Macintosh faithful are interested in buying their games. While this might make your blood boil, the fact is, it’s nothing personal. EA wants to continue to thrive in an extremely competitive business. If they believe that bringing their games to the Mac will help them do this, then they’ll bring their games to the Mac. If not, not. I for one am very pleased to see that Sim City 3000 made it.
So be grateful. At least you’re not a Sim in my city. I love this game, but I’m almost as bad at it, as some real mayors I could mention.
