The Rise and Fall of SimCity - The History of the SimCity Franchise
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- Опубліковано 12 вер 2024
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The Rise and Fall of SimCity. A somber topic for many, considering the sour note that the series went out on. In today's episode of Arcadology, we take a trip down memory lane with the history of SimCity. Starting back at the beginning, when the game was little more than a world editor for Will Wright's first game The Raid on Bungeling Bay, to the present day with the game's current status as an also-ran.
Along the way we will take a look at each of the games in the SimCity franchise: SimCity Classic, SimCity 2000, SimCity 3000, SimCity 4, and SimCity 2013, with a brief mention of SimCity Societies. The video also covers how Will Wright and Jeff Braun met, and Maxis's fall and sale to Electronic Arts.
Arcadology will be covering a wide range of topics, from video game history, to discussions of the design of video games. If you are interested in that kind of content, please consider subscribing!
Fact check! If you see anything that seems incorrect, let me know in this comment right here with a source. Although I try my best to ensure that all the information that I present to you is accurate, it is all too easy to make mistakes. Thank you so much for your patronage, and enjoy the video!
Ah yes I mention that right around that time that I'm talking about MySim mode. :)
One thing I think you missed regarding Will Wright talking about the interconnectedness of games and data - you could import your simcity 2000 cities into SimCopter and Street of Simcity, so this idea was explored and implemented well before the release of Simcity 4 :)
William Bratches Yup I actually mention that right around the same time, but I probably should have been more explicit that I felt the SC4 implementation was closer to the ideal he was talking about.
Im very late to the party, but I think you forgot about Simcity creator.
Isometric. Not diametric.
I really hope SimCity can make a comeback someday. It's been one of my favorite franchises of all time since I was about 8 or 9 years old, and I would hate to see it end on such a sour note.
Yeah this brought back memories for me. I missed the game thats why I went looking for some history on it, I did not know what had happened after 2002 which is the last time I played it. Many hours of fun lost in the game. All good though, eventually married and got a real life, ha! But yeah nostalgic for an awesome game for its time, especially when I was studying urban planning and economic development at the time I was playing this game.
Sim city will not come back since EA shut down maxis, Maxis was the only studio that new the game from the ground, EA wouldn't be able to replace them, EA in this day and age is sadly a cowardly company that only cares about money and not peoples jobs, Look at all those Maxis employees who lost there fucking jobs thanks to dumbass EA, So sad! EA will never learn that everytime it shuts down a studio the videogame industry suffers.
RatTail Tony Many western gamers have finally woken up and realized companies like EA Don't care about customer Happiness, Sad thing is too many millenial gamers like my dumb canadian friend are brainwashed to believe these companies are good.
Sadly but they just fucked up because they didn’t listen to its users. Cities Skylines did all we wanted in city builder. SimCity had its time. Thankfully SKYLINES came. Because they would still earn money for shitty simulator
I really doubt it. Besides, I have two words why bringing back SimCity isn't necessary.
*Cities Skylines*
I actually like Simcity 3000 even if 4 is arguably the best in all the series. As with the box art of Simcity 3000 Unlimited, that's Salesforce Tower which was recently completed. Simcity 3000 was made in the 90s!
...I spent a lot if time on 3000. Very cool. I had 4 on a computer that spat the dummy many years ago and went looking for the disc but to no avail. This was inspired after a trip to Sydney (...in Oz) this last Easter. "I'd like to build Sydney"
....but no disc. Then my youngest suggested Steam. And it's there and a couple of ago I found out about 'Skylines'.
So I have a choice to make.
Yeah! Also, I think "contradicting advisors" isn't a bug but a feature. I feel like they put a lot of effort into making it more real, and some of those decisions were seen as "problems" for a video game. Also I hope you don't choke on the dust and cob webs that just got knocked off this comment lol
We want a true sequel to simcity 4, that's what is needed
+Rapture582 That's true! I think despite Cities Skylines taking the top spot, a solid, isometric style city builder would still be appreciated.
I was thinking more the difficult urban planning gameplay aspect rather than the isometric view.
+Rapture582 Ah yes! Fair enough that too :)
I wouldn't mind another expansion pack. Maybe a flood or hurricane for sc4
City Skylines. It is not the same
Company but it is the best City Building today. (Still, it could be better)
I played Sim City literally for my entire life since the early 90's, and even I realize that Skylines is the true successor.
Skylines is very good. It took the foundation of city building that Sim City created and just ran with it.
Unless EA decides to funnel mass money into a true SIM City 5 reboot. Which EA could do, they have the resources. Only then, could Sim City 5 become reality and I would suspect it would be a massive hit because a ton of people have good memories of previous Sim City games. And that would lead to a lot of buyers, provided it was a well made game.
Andy Eccentric problem is City skylines is litterally full dlc, So basically they make you pay 60$ for a half finished default game and then paradox basically screws us over with dlc
Paradox is worse than maxis when it comes to dlc
but the Sims 4 Dlc is over priced ripoff EA and Paradox are pay to win ass wipes
@@ryantruax4635 I agree, Skylines is wonderful and clearly the successor - especially in terms of the Heavy/Light R/I/C demand balance, the power and water generation model, and the emphasis on health/crime/education/fire as the pillars of contentment.
That said, the one thing that beats at the heart of Skylines that was an afterthought in SimCity 2000 is traffic management. Its road mapping is fantastic - perhaps its driver behaviour is less so...
This is an excellent video on a topic I hold very near and dear to my heart. Well done!
Thank you so much!
I think you're missing the Elephant in the room with SC 2013 that the map size is so small that you can only build a village. This is ultimately the reason why it is so unpopular with previous sim city fans.
After being pilloried on the SimCity subreddit for the controversial statement of “it wasn’t that bad” I’d go as far to say that wasn’t the only complaint 😂
Wow, I just found this channel as I was searching for a history of SimCity, and this popped up. Highly underrated. You're another one of those channels who deserves more subs. Awesome video.
the only video game that got my attention & kept it...
i had simcity, then simcity 2000, & after a break of a decade or 2, now playing simcity 4...
This is top quality content. You deserve more subscribers.
Thank you! Need to get around to updating more often
@@Arcadology You and me both, pal. No need to rush yourself, though. Take your time.
I'm very surprised (in shock tbh) that he doesn't have hundreds of thousands of subscribers at this moment. He's very professional.
If they do end up bringing back SimCity, there is three things they need to add to keep me satisfied:
1. Bigger maps. The map sizes in SimCity 2013 were just too dang small.
2. More complexity while maintaining simplicity. What I mean by this is to have the detail that SimCity 4 or Cities: Skylines have, while keeping it easy to understand for newcomers.
3. For the love of God, do not make it always online. While the idea of online multiplayer for creating cities was cool, it was terribly implemented. I was thinking maybe a mix of Cities: Skylines and SimCity 2013, where you can buy more land, but so can other players. Maybe have an auctioning system for two players who want the same plot.
Those are my wishes for a future SimCity game. As for now, Cities: Skylines is the top dog.
4. Dad and I had an idea for data sets for rural and small towns. Easy to do but there was no way to contact EA. They did not and still do not allow feedback.
SimCity Societies felt like a stopgap between SimCity 4 and the 2013 version of SimCity.
Wow...
Raid on Bungeling Bay seems to have inspired the desert and jungle strike games back in the 90's.
Excellent video. Daniel Ibbertson from Slopes Game Room channel pointed me to your channel and recommended this video. I noticed someone commenting here calling this a "mini-documentary" and I think that's a great description. With so much information bundled into one 17 minute video without rushing through all the details, I thoroughly enjoyed learning even more about a franchise that it is close to me. Keep up the great work, I'll be checking out some of your other videos soon!
Thank you so much for the kind words! I’m trying to refine and improve my process so it means a lot that you enjoyed it so much.
That's great news! You seem to be on the right track so I hope your channel continues to grow!
3000 was pretty decent. I liked building large estates and having the option to buy and sell utilities from neighbors
RIP Sim City & Maxis. You were loved. Sim City 2013 was a great game, but once Cities Skylines showed us what we were missing, there was no turning back. Would still love to see EA revive Maxis & Sim City and give us a proper sequel to Sim City 2013
Actually 3000 was my favorite
This channel is so underrated
3 was the one I played the most, and I really enjoyed it.
Wow! Another killer doc. These are so good! Congrats!
Zach Graber Thanks Zach!
I didn't think SimCity 4 was very complex, I played it as a little kid fine.
Who remembers the 2008 SimCity game where you would start at the dawn of civilization to the far future?
snes simcity & simcity 2000 were my favs, but i also liked sim farm and sim tower.
It's crazy to me that SimCity 3000 is seen as the "weakest" in the middle 3 entries as it's personally the one I enjoy the most. I do understand how enjoying & being the best but I always felt it was a step forward from 2000 (though I'll always have nostalgia for it) & had more personality than 4 which always felt a bit sterile to me in comparison to 2k/3k. I know 4 is the most technically specific & has a lot of great management features, I just always felt like it lost the "Soul" of SimCity. I guess I just liked the quirky stuff associated with the 90s era of SimCity.
I struggle to see the value of the "IP". At any point since the 90's, someone could've come in and produced a decent game based on Wright's concept with none of its trademarks. So it's no surprise that someone eventually did that with C:S.
You should have way more suscribers. I hope you get those! Nice channel, keep it up!
Thanks! My subscriber total actually just doubled in the last month and I’m hoping to keep the momentum going next year.
Nice short documentary. I liked it. What music did you use on the background? Superb.
3000 was a step backwards? What? I’m not sure those people played the same game I did.
I enjoyed 3k. I still don’t understand why it got such a bad rap. For the time it was great. Granted it’s cartoon graphics wasn’t realistic, and the Interstate highways could’ve used some work, it was still a great in depth experience. I spent countless hours on it. When 4 came out I was in awe. It is by far the best of all the Sim City games and I continue to play today with mods of course. Sim City 2013 left a bad taste in my mouth with the size of the maps, and having each city already pre-connected. It’s a decent game, but was sorely lacking. Cities Skylines is by far the best city building/management game to date. With their continued support to push out dlc’s and mod support by the community, it will be the top tier city builder for years to come. This was a great history video on a game I still love.
Interesting enough the servers are still up, even though nobody really plays it with the online mode anymore.
actually i really enjoyed simcity 4 deluxe and managed to get a 1 million+ citizen city and i just build 1/3 of the map then i needed time for other games until i ultimately had to install a new OS. i really wanted to fill that town to the maximum.
Try it again!
Great video! My first run-in with SimCity was whichever version came on the SNES. Had a ball with it. Didn't play a SimCity title until the 2013 version which, despite the miserable launch and questionable DRM decisions, I had a lot of fun with.
Favorite sim game? There was an old dinosaur park sim game I played on PC when I was in school. Was it Dinosaur Tycoon or something? That might be nostalgia talking, but whatever.
Sweet! I don't think I played Dino Tycoon, but I just looked it up and saw it was by MECC, which is a name I haven't thought of in forever. Thanks for commenting!
Very nice in depth video. Subscribed!
+joshmanisdabomb Thanks so much!
I still play Sim City 4. It's been a great distraction during the pandemic.
Great work, and really insightful!
+Koffeey Thank you so much for commenting!
also simcity 2013 was launched without a proper single person mode which is mind boggling.
I'm not sure why, but, as far as I'm aware, Sim City was never quite so successful over here in the UK. In fact, I always thought Sim City was a spinoff of the Sims, haha.
+PAldousMusic Perhaps! Not quite sure of the sales numbers but would be interesting to look up.
I have surround sound 5.1 with good speakers and most other videos I can hear with only minimum adjustment but yours I had to crank up which will make every other video loud when I leave your channel. Please do some sound editing. It will make a HUGE difference.
For this video? The audio on this one is mixed to about -3 dB iirc. I’m not entirely sure why you would have had to push the volume up. I’ll double check.
I’m surprised by Moss’ claims that SC3000 is the weakest. Obviously, SC3000 replaced the gloomy Martian terrain by brighter, artistic pastel colours. 😀 I’d say the system of advisors was greatly enhanced; petitioners raised various complaints and advisors provided their (slightly biased) opinions. For instance, after raising funding for the police department, the police advisor would praise their efficiency, but it annoyed your financial advisor, and a petitioner was arrested for spitting his chewing gum on a sidewalk. As you became familiar with their personality you would know when they are trying to twist the facts. It was a depth that was less pronounced in SC2000 and virtually missing in SC4, possibly adding to their sterile environment. Moss also makes fuss about the water pumps because they deteriorated after a hundred years. 😅 In fact, the water system was virtually the same as in SC4, and much more user-friendly than in SC2000.
City Skylines is now king!
What a pleasant surprise seeing this video posted on /r/games. Will make sure to watch your other videos as I can see more that interest me. It also appears you've been making these style of videos for quite a few months, I imagine they take quite a bit of research, script writing and hardwork to create. I'm a massive fan of these type of videos and youtube never recommended you. A gem hidden in a sea of shit :)
+asdfy Hey thanks so much for the kind words! They do take a bit of work but I'm trying to streamline the process to get up to 2-3 releases a month.
The always online requirement was the nail in the coffin for SimCity 5. Yes they reversed it after the fact, but it was already too little too late. Not to mention the MTX. If SimCity is to make a comeback, they HAVE to remove these features. And also give us a much bigger map size, or even do what Cities Skylines did. Allow us to expand our own city. In a nutshell, they need to start a fresh on their own WITHOUT EA.
The first sim city game I played back in the early 2000s was sim city 3000 and I loved it. I remember playing hours upon hours with it.
The second one was sim city 4 and of course I loved it too.
It just made me sad that maxis is not existing anymore. And a new sim city with the latest technology today would be awesome.
I mean, they made GTA work. I bet a sim city game today in a higher level of processors and graphics would be mind blowing.
Perhaps! I just wonder how much internal motivation there is at EA for it.
@@Arcadology EA practically had a reputation to close studios and sub companies that makes great games. Sad.
The whole idea that SimCity 2013 had to be online for me was annoying.
For me it should be a disc or a download and that's it.
Good narrating :D
my favorite was simcity for the mac in the early 90s or mid 90s. i tried out simlife, was bored, and then simcity 2000, and that was too much to handle. i am hooked on buildit, but thats cause its addictive. the graphics are gorgeious though. this is definitely the time to create a new fleet of sim games, using killer graphics. they should do one for kids, one for teens, and one for actual professionals in urban design, or total geekoids. different levels of complexity.
One of the things I learned playing Sim City and taking courses in urban planning, is that its not a good idea to build an interstate that cuts a city in half. I actually did it once on Sim City and while one side of town flourished, the other side had businesses close down, abandoned houses and rising crime. Yet somehow, the City of Austin, still built the I-35, are their urban planners whats left over from the 1950s or something?
No idea! A lot of the way highways are placed have more to do with politics than actual urban planning I've heard. A lot of I-95 was placed in a way so it would only damage black communities, which is so sad.
Well where tf are u supposed to put tje highway tho....?
Simcity 2013 wasn't just a bad game it was the worst game. The map was too small and no way I want to have to "share resources". It has too many features and not enough room to build them. The Simcity 2013 development team is why we lost a childhood favorite.
I see Cities: Skylines being the true successor to the franchise and genre and what SimCity 2013 should've been. CS would not exist had not been for SC2013's disastrous launch and performance. Paradox originally abandoned the project seeing EA's announcement. Amazing when Colossal Order being a small developer based in Finland with only a dozen employees accomplish more than a multi-billion $ studio.
Hell yes. More please.
Thank you very much sir!
Nobody gonna talk about SimCity DS or creator?
Star Citizen will be a candidate for SimCity's replacement if Cloud Imperium Gaming can keep the "starship" flying while they are building it. I've watch and listened to many of its players and have no doubt that their passion for Star Citizen is equal to those who played SimCity in its heyday. Chek it out at Cobra TV.
I only buy dlc for a game when its really cheap, but most of the time i only buy the dlc if its a franchise i love to death, such as tomb raider series
Such a high quality video, yet so few views..
SimEarth was overly complex. SimAnt was super fun.
I don't care what A N Y O N E says - SimCity 2013: Offline Edition is a ton of fun. Once you take away the always-online nonsense, the actual game is thoroughly enjoyable, with an accessible, user-friendly design and a beautiful presentation. SimCity's one of my favorite franchises, and this video absolutely does justice to the brand.
...But you forgot the coolest detail - in 1995, following SimCity 2000's success, Maxis moved its HQ from Orinda, CA to Walnut Creek, CA. Growing up where one of your favorite IP's was developed is a nice detail you learn about long after the fact.
Thanks Max! And yeah saying SimCity 2013 was “not bad” caused a lot of hubbub in the SimCity subreddit when this video got posted there haha.
I have just some few words to say... road grade too steep
Are you still gonna do "The Sims" episode? The 3D game?
Yes planning on The Sims after I finish my current video on melancholy
In all honesty, I don't really have a fave Sims game. I've dabbled with just about every version of "SimCity" since the original on Windows 3.1, but the task of managing a growing metropolis is just too daunting to me. I'd say I've had the best time with "The Sims" and its myriad spin-offs, if only because following people's lives is an easier concept for me to wrap my head around, but even then, I don't play with them for very long. I want to like them, but I haven't found the right fit. Maybe one of the GBA installments?
Perhaps! I think there's also a bit about what mindset you are in when you sit down and play them. The Sims and SimCity are very chill. I haven't personally been in the right head space for them myself for a couple years now, haha. Would love to go back to them though.
12:34 Is there really a Sim City 4 big box art style like that??
+dollores I'll double check and confirm for you! Thanks for commenting
+dollores Unfortunately I can't confirm that it was actually used, but I'll keep checking around. Sorry about that!
No worries, thanks for checking, I was just wondering because it would become my next white whale at thrift shops, etc!
Ah yeah! That's a good point. Yeah it would be a nice to have to match the style of the first three games.
When will you be making the Sims video?
Not sure, hoping this year though!
Hey, Kevin. Took me a second to find the channel because Arcadology isn't on your business card.
MrWesford Yup- rebranded a couple weeks after VidCon haha
"All passed on it, except for one"
Isn't this obvious? Why keep looking when you already found a deal
The only game I played in the series was the first one, but I enjoyed every moment of it, right down to destroying the city XD
+The Gaming Saloon Nice! Yeah there was always something satisfying about the disasters.
in many ways the sims was the beginning of of the end for sim city proper. i actually wish they had not made the sims.
while I agree with your closening statement, it pains me deeply that EA shuted Maxis for what that studio represented to me. It's really sad watching such a great franchise free fall into oblivion like Simcity did.
+Robert Perez Oh I totally hear you. Maxis, Brøderbund and others have all vanished for the most part over the years and it's like a little piece of my childhood fading away. But these things happen and it's good to understand why if only for closure.
Yeah, that's where I wanted to go with my comment. It's like a friend it's no longer with us. It's neat that from their absence, new games have come, but so many of us were somehow shaped by this old franchises that are mostly gone. Btw, cool video! Keep them coming!
like all games sim City is not à real game but only make for graphic cards like if was only à 3d modeling application
I love SimCity 2013 that was my first city builder game that got me hooked. Though it was rough before changing to the single player it still was a fantastic game.
SimCity4 + Steam + Windows 10......can anyone elaborate.
My cities skylines actually glitches and breaks and crashes a lot of times now I cannot use so now I use simcity (2013)
Firstly, how dare you make 3000 out to be a bad game or insignificant? Also Sim City 2013 is riddled with bugs and eliminates transportation options.
I didn’t say it was a bad game or insignificant. In fact it definitely was not insignificant as it was the last hope of an independent Maxis that never came to be. I referenced contemporary articles that put it behind 2000 and 4.
And ea shutting down maxis come to play to make the Grox join Anunnaki
The best franchise in my opinion!
I'm glad you like it!
Ive played SIm city all my life and although Sim city 4 is better and more detailed I have to say I enjoyed sim city 3 more.
That's fair, whatever floats your boat!
I am 11 years old and i have been a gamer for 9 years😂😂
city simulators then
simcity classic
simcity 2000
simcity 3000
simcity 4
simcity societies
simcity 2013
city simulators today
cities skylines
cities xl
city life
theo town
makes sense
Honestly, same will happen with the sims. The sims 4 is such a disappointment and as a billion dollar company, they should be able to give what the players want. The fact that modders in their own bedrooms wihout a budget can creat better content with mods and cc is unbelievable. They are trying to sell as much with the bare minimum and after this eco lifestyle flop announcement, more people are looking up to Paralives another simulation game in development. Finally a competition.
I'll look into Paralives
Why do you need SimCity 5, when you can play SimCity 2000, 3000 and 4 anytime you want? What is wrong with them? Or I guess you just care for the wellbeing of EA... I still play Civilization 2 and I don't care for Civ 6, 7 or whatever number. Oh, and I play Chess ver. 1.0 too...
Cool. So you play chess before the introduction of the pawn being able to move two spaces? Anyway thanks for reading into things that aren’t there.
Fuck EA!