SimCity's launch in March was so bad, it went from astounding to confounding in severity: massive server queues, small cities, blatant lies about game mechanics – you name it! On top of that, it was simplified for the people who wanted an upgraded Facebook game and not a hard as nails city building simulator. Just plop down a park and rich people will flood to the neighborhood, because Simsmericans are all about property value and not getting taxed (seriously, crosses have less effect on demons than taxes do on the "Sim percent"). But people play it, soldiering on despite better judgment. And for those select few comes the Cities of Tomorrow expansion pack.
It adds two "Factions". The Academy building pack depends on the control field emitted by the titular Academy and provides green future technology. While there are cool ideas – fusion power plant needs a lot of power to start, for example – it's mostly just pulp science fiction, like the garbage atomizer. Meanwhile, on the other side of hilarious stereotyping, is the Omega Corporation, which is here to make a quick buck. The buildings in its chain are all about producing Omega (a drug? That's got to be a drug), distributing it and, for some reason, building flying drones that can work as a police force, firefighters and so on. There are also sky towers – huge skyscrapers built from modular floors and connected by skybridges. If there's an option to dump the sewage off on the heads of less wealthy Sims, I've yet to notice it. Priced at a lofty 25 FreedomPies, that's about 2-3 bucks per building.
And of course you want to pay that – after all, SimCity improved so much after launch! Right about now, they're proud to announce what they achieved in the mean time:
Improvements
Improved game stability – Stability has seen significant improvements, greatly reducing cases where cities stop processing or cannot be found. (Ah, yes, „cities disappearing" was the great plague upon SimCity games that didn't process everything in cloud servers)
Restored disabled features – Cheetah Speed, Achievements, Global Markets, Region Filters and Leaderboards are now available. (You really have to rethink your game making skills when you have to disable relatively simple game features on launch)
Improved traffic – Traffic behavior is smarter. Vehicles can make right turns on red lights and accelerate and decelerate faster, allowing them to leave buildings and cross intersections more efficiently. The number of lines formed by all available vehicles converging in a single spot is reduced, and commute times have been staggered to make for a more realistic flow. (Still no smart, realistic traffic that was promised– we have to be thankful for „right turns on red lights")
Upgraded servers – All servers have been upgraded to ensure faster speed and performance.
Tuned RCI zoning – The game has been tuned to make Industrial zones a more important part of your city. There is now a profit dependence on freight deliveries that is crucial to keeping your Commercial buildings happy. Additionally, demand bars will respond more accurately to which zones are needed in your city. This means the game is more challenging, industrial cities are more important in region play and the RCI bars provide players with clearer direction. (No more city wide strip malls!)
Fixed terrains – Improvements have been made where the terrain covers sections of the road when the camera is zoomed out.
New additions
Raise and lower roads – A new tool allows players to raise new roads, turning them into bridges, or lower them to create tunnels and underpasses. (How about doing the same to terrain? Too hard?)
Multi-entrance maps – Six region maps, including two with multiple entrances that were designed in celebration of the upcoming SimCity Cities of Tomorrow Expansion Pack, have been created. These free maps include Edgewater Bay, Desolation, Granite Lakes, Serenity Key, Rambling Badlands and Verdant Jungle. (So, if I understand that right, multiple entrances are useless without expansion pack?)
New buildings: More than 80 new variations of existing buildings and 20 new hotels add more variety to your cities. (well, this is somewhat better, variety is always welcome)
New free content: Reignite the glory of Rome with the new Roman Luck Casino or keep your residents happy and spiritual with four distinct Houses of Worship. Available to play in game now. If you purchased the game before Sept 12, you also received the free Launch Park as a reward for being one of our first players. (Las Vegas – the reason to never again be creative with casinos)
Tree tools: Place individual trees along your city roads. This tool is located at the end of the Nature Parks menu.
Oh EA, you're adorable! I still remember how you offered Medal of Honor as a possible consolation game for those that bought SimCity at launch. Well, luckily for me, SimCity sucked so hard, I got a free Battlefield 3 from it!
So, anyways, any of you playing the game? Looking forward for (small) Cities of Tomorrow?
