Sim City 4 Deluxe - Initial Thoughts

About the Game (From the Steam Store Page)

SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition includes the bestselling SimCity 4 and the all-new SimCity 4 Rush Hour Expansion Pack. Create the most massive region of cities ever, with a farming town, bedroom community, high-tech commercial center, and industrial backbone. Take complete control of your city's transportation system, and solve U-Drive-It missions — from fighting crime to tackling disasters. Watch your population skyrocket as you get your Sims on the go and create the ultimate living, breathing megalopolis — the most expansive SimCity 4 compilation ever.

Features

Create an Entire Region of Cities — Weave together a tapestry of cities linked by a fully integrated transportation network and watch them share and compete for resources.

Wield God-like Powers — Sculpt the landscape to create a world based on your imagination, then summon volcanoes, tornadoes, meteors, and lightning.

Be a Responsive Mayor — Build a world-class city with stadiums, airports, universities, and real-world landmarks. Deploy emergency vehicles and join in the action as they battle blazes, mobs, and more.

Get Insight from Your Sims — Read the rhythm of the city, from commuter hell to mellow cruising, noon-time crowds to night-time calm.

Previous Playtime

1 minute

What Was I Thinking When I Bought This

I'd owned the game on disc for years, but the Steam version included a DLC I didn't own and had the convenience of not requiring a disc check. So I waited until it went on sale for 5 bucks and then bought it to save me the hassle of digging out my disc and reinstalling. I was initially very resistant to the idea of digital purchases (and I'm still not entirely comfortable with them), but I do have to admit that they're very convenient.

Expectations and Prior Experience

My first SimCity game was the original SimCity port on the SNES. I loved that game because it was so unlike anything else I'd played up to that point. After that, there was a long gap in my SimCity gaming, primarily due to the fact that my computer was never quite powerful enough to run the latest game in the franchise, and yet prior games in the series were not that easy to find. Then, a few years (and two computers) ago, I just happened to have a brand new computer at around the time that SimCity 4 was old, but available, so I picked up the disc.

I built a few cities, but never quite got into it. It's not the fault of the game, I think I was just so excited about having a new computer that I bought too many games at the same time and it got lost in the shuffle. I bought it around the same time as I got Spore, The Movies, and Civilization IV, so it never really stood a chance.

I'm therefore looking forward to playing it now. It feels like I'm rectifying an old mistake. I'm certain that I'll enjoy it. I love building things, and having the fate of an entire virtual city in my hands is right in my wheelhouse. My only worry is that the last time I seriously played a SimCity game, I was practically a child, and not very good at managing budgets and the like. I like to think that I've grown since then, but I may come face to face with some hard truths in the course of playing this game.