SimCity (SNES)

SimCity

SNES - USA - 1st edition.

Developer Nintendo Publisher Nintendo Published 1991-04-26 Platforms SNES Genres Management simulator, Sandbox, Simulation, Strategy Themes Management Series Sim Distribution Commercial

SimCity is an open-ended city-planning management simulator developed and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System on 1991-04-26. It is a port of SimCity that is so different from the original, I think it deserves to be considered a different game. The SNES port has big improvements to the graphics and music as well as added objectives, bonus buildings, a plucky cartoon guide, and unlockable content to make it more like a typical game than the sandbox toy which was typical of the Sim series at the time.

Personal

Own?	Yes. A loose USA cartridge. I have two manuals, one missing the cover.
Won?	Yes. Completed all scenarios, and Megalopolis on easy 061 and Freedom.
Finished	2024-04-22.

SimCity was the first game I bought for the SNES and the second game for the system (it came with Super Mario World). This was have been shortly after getting my SNES for Christmas, probably late 1991 or early 1992. This was the first time I had played a SimCity game, and my first attempt was a very messy city which I promptly erased. Over time, I read through the manual and got better at the game, able to beat some of the scenarios and get around 300,000 population. However, I kept getting stuck on the Detroit scenario and eventually used the $999,999 cheat to beat it all all the remaining ones. In 2024, wanting to finally finish the game legit, I played the game through again, spent more time testing on how to play it properly, and finally got good enough to beat all the scenarios, and achieve a megalopolis on both the freedom map and map 061 on easy difficulty. I don't have much interest in trying to get a megalopolis on hard difficulty.

Review

8	6	8	10	6

Best Version: SNES

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

• The graphics have been greatly improved compared to all the computer versions of the game. I especially appreciate the palette shifting to simulate seasons.
• Soyo Oka did a fantastic job on the soundtrack, one of my favorites on the platform. Each song is not only enjoyable in its own right, but the soundtrack has a continuity across the whole game.
• The addition of prizes like amusement parks, expos centers, and landfills was a great idea, and adds to the fun of the game.
• The cut-scenes from from Dr. Wright are funny and informative. Much better than just a message box.
• The addition of scenarios that can be beaten was a great way to give the player a proper challenge, and I love how the game maps resemble the actual city layouts.
• The game manual is fantastic to the point where it doubles as a strategy guide. Not only does it teach you how to play the game, and give good strategies, but it also gives suggestions on how to enjoy the game outside of the usual goals.

Bad

• Roads are little more than an impediment to a good city. The manual makes it clear right from the practice city, don't use roads at all. Rails create no pollution or traffic so they're guaranteed to do better. Of course, this makes the city look ridiculous and the designers should have figured out a way to make roads mandatory or make rail less perfect.
• The random land generator is slow and too many of the maps look the same. If they couldn't get it to create maps with more interesting layouts, they should have just programed a couple dozen set maps of varying styles. Plus, since the land/water ratio varies quite a bit, certain maps are objectively better for obtaining a megalopolis (map 061 has the most land).
• Even with the added scenarios, there isn't a true way to win the game. You could say that unlocking Freeland is a "victory" condition, or obtaining a megalopolis on hard, but you don't get the typical end game cutscene or credits roll.
• The scenarios vary wildly in difficulty. Bern and Tokyo were cakewalks which I finished on my first attempt without even trying, but I spent a couple dozen times failing Detroit before I finally figured out a viable strategy. Also, sitting through 10 years, even at top speed, only to discover you lost, makes for a very disheartening wait.

Ugly

• Too much of the game is waiting around for next year's taxes to come in so you can afford to expand your city. They really should have come up with a faster speed.

Media

Box Art

• 

  The original Japanese box art uses the American art used for the PC releases. This "city computer" art is spot-on.

• 

  The North American and European art is a building in the shape of the game's title with a birds-eye view of a city for a backdrop. It accurately depicts the game, but it's quite boring.

Documentation

• 

  Dr. Wright's Urban Planning Guide - US manual.

Maps

• 

  Scenarios.

Videos

Review - SNES Works.

Play Online

SNES (Europe), SNES (France), SNES (Germany), SNES (USA), Super Famicom (Japan)

Representation

Strong female character?	Fail	Dr. Wright is the only character.
Bechdel test?	Fail	There are no women.
Strong person of color character?	Fail	There are no people of color.
Queer character?	Fail	There are no queer characters.

Titles

Language	Native	Transliteration	Translation
English	SimCity
Japanese	シムシティ	ShimuShiti	SimCity

Links