SimCity

 PC
User Score
2.2

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 4557 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 602 out of 4557
  2. Mixed: 428 out of 4557
  3. Negative: 3,527 out of 4557
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  1. TheFrapRap
    Dec 26, 2013
    0
    This game was fun for the first 10 minutes. Until it said I wasn't running my town right and it said it could repair it. So I click ok. And it take you back to the main menu. NOW it does it every 5 minutes not saving the progress to my town. They said they'd fix this over 9 months ago. Really EA really?
  2. cn2305
    Jun 12, 2013
    6
    Game appears to be good, but there are a moderate amount of issues with the game. The always-on DRM stops players from getting into the game, even in single player. Secondly there are a number of bugs in the game but there appears to be no way of fixing them, so this game has ton of problems.
  3. Triasadi
    May 19, 2015
    7
    I've done much research on the game before I purchased it because it was on sale, It's quite a good game. Most of the reviews here are irrelevant since Maxis had fixed the server problems and added a single player mode for SimCity. The game is very fun but every city I made usually last for only about a day or two because most people in the region has either stopped playing or abandonI've done much research on the game before I purchased it because it was on sale, It's quite a good game. Most of the reviews here are irrelevant since Maxis had fixed the server problems and added a single player mode for SimCity. The game is very fun but every city I made usually last for only about a day or two because most people in the region has either stopped playing or abandon their city. A better communication system should be added. And the biggest weakness in the game is the city sizes. The size of a city in SimCity is very small and square. It doesn't let me have much space for me to expand my city. The concept for a multiplayer city builder sounds great, but in reality, not everyone is a top-notch city planner. So playing with other people maybe enjoyable. So far I've been playing for about 20-30hrs, and I really enjoyed the game. I recommend buying it when it's on sale.… Expand
  4. Type4101
    Jan 13, 2014
    0
    Electronic Arts ruins yet another franchise, and yet another developer. It is hard to see how Maxis could recover from this nightmare of a game--a cash grab counting on the SimCity name, and nothing more--and we have likely seen the end of the SimCity franchise. Tiny maps, broken mechanics (even almost a year after launch) and dumbed-down casual gameplay makes this one of the worst gamesElectronic Arts ruins yet another franchise, and yet another developer. It is hard to see how Maxis could recover from this nightmare of a game--a cash grab counting on the SimCity name, and nothing more--and we have likely seen the end of the SimCity franchise. Tiny maps, broken mechanics (even almost a year after launch) and dumbed-down casual gameplay makes this one of the worst games ever made, when compared to the classics of SimCity's past.… Expand
  5. aldun11
    Sep 15, 2013
    0
    no fun, i dont understand why they have limited this game to tiny cities...no fun at all, woud have given a score of 5 if it woud be bug free.... minus 1 scorepoint for every 10 bugs i found....equals ZERO!
  6. lominero
    Sep 4, 2013
    2
    Don't bother! The map sizes will completely disappoint you. Just when things start to get somewhere you need to build another city to support your main one. Complete BS. The always online ruined this game. EA is just too greedy.
  7. Xus
    Sep 8, 2013
    0
    Not buying this game just because of the reviews. Thank you contributors. Frankly why make a single player game connect to a server? I hope the next SIM city is a real single player one.
  8. LairdEJM
    Sep 10, 2013
    2
    This game is such a disgrace to what used to be a stellar series, not due to the core game, but due to the cynical and life draining DRM and internet only play which restrict so much of what SimCity is about. Unfortunately even when actually managing to play, the game commits suicide by having tiny city squares and ridiclous restrictions on buildings, whose only raison d'etre is toThis game is such a disgrace to what used to be a stellar series, not due to the core game, but due to the cynical and life draining DRM and internet only play which restrict so much of what SimCity is about. Unfortunately even when actually managing to play, the game commits suicide by having tiny city squares and ridiclous restrictions on buildings, whose only raison d'etre is to persuade you to play with others, a feature that the game already betrays itself!

    Unfortunately I believe that this game is too flawed at the fundamental level to ever be a worthy successor to the brilliant SimCity 4. A shame, because the franchise at it's heart is legendary amongst the PC community and can be so much better.    … Expand
  9. RobertC
    Sep 17, 2013
    1
    Forget the abusive DRM. It is so buggy it is not worth playing at all. Sure, some great ideas but, you actually have to be able to play before that counts in my book. The trade bug, gifting bug, great works bug, traffic bugs (many), service vehicle bugs (many), the list just goes on and on. The high critic reviews (100?) show they never actually played the game to any degree in myForget the abusive DRM. It is so buggy it is not worth playing at all. Sure, some great ideas but, you actually have to be able to play before that counts in my book. The trade bug, gifting bug, great works bug, traffic bugs (many), service vehicle bugs (many), the list just goes on and on. The high critic reviews (100?) show they never actually played the game to any degree in my opinion (maybe paid reviews or a marketing firm?). Certainly not a human player that knows anything about games.… Expand
  10. tulir293
    Sep 30, 2013
    2
    Ignoring the servers, which are not a problem anymore, the game is playable. Of course, a big thing lowering the score is the map size and the always-online DRM. No local saving, the game will probably be down in some years when the servers get shut down and there is no single player mode. It is true that EA is just fishing for money from the Simcity 4 players who trusted EA that theyIgnoring the servers, which are not a problem anymore, the game is playable. Of course, a big thing lowering the score is the map size and the always-online DRM. No local saving, the game will probably be down in some years when the servers get shut down and there is no single player mode. It is true that EA is just fishing for money from the Simcity 4 players who trusted EA that they would make an awesome new version. I myself foolishly pre-ordered the game too, how could I have known that Simcity Digital was after the Simcity 4 was one of my favourite games when it was released? Unlike those who gave a zero, I am still able to give a two, as the servers are working fairly well now. Though I must admit that on the release the servers simply did not work for even nearly everyone… Expand
  11. Rome
    Jun 13, 2014
    1
    I really tried to like SimCity. I really honestly tried. But it's just not working well. The mountains of problems is huge, even now more than a year after release date. Not calling the game "Sim City 5" but just "SimCity" is very appropriate; because it clearly does not continue the success of it's predecessors.

    The list of issues is huge: - Cities not buying the required amount of    I really tried to like SimCity. I really honestly tried. But it's just not working well. The mountains of problems is huge, even now more than a year after release date. Not calling the game "Sim City 5" but just "SimCity" is very appropriate; because it clearly does not continue the success of it's predecessors.

    The list of issues is huge:
    - Cities not buying the required amount of power and water even though there is plenty of water and power to receive from the cities I have setup contracts to buy from. Forces you to utility buildings in your main city wasting valuable space and land value.
    - Tourists suddenly not coming to your city for no good reason at all, after you've had great success with tourist for a long while and made no changes. Suddenly they just not come anymore destroying your income completely forcing you to re specialize. Which is NOT fun.
    - Water tables drying out and not refilling unless you friggin build a sewage treatment plant just next to your water pump. What the hell is that about?! Like the only way to get clean water is from a sewage treatment plant... Rivers not having any positive effect on water table at...
    - Tiny city sizes...
    - Enormous traffic jams on intercity highways and absolutely no way of improving or building more. Only one road connection to intercity highway causing at times great traffic jams in your city at that road junction.
    - Street cars getting stuck and not moving. Can be 'fixed' by removing and readding section of road in front of street car depot, or sometimes streetcar depot needs to be removed. Not fun.
    - Cities got lost due to EA's crappy servers. Many many thousands of players experienced this.
    - Gifts of goods, like plastic and such, from one city to another cannot even be partially deliver if receiving city does not have storage to receive the whole lot in one go. The deliver truck will be forever stuck in the intercity highway until receiving city builds storage big enough to receive the delivery in one go. Who at Maxis/EA thought that was a good idea?? How hard can it be to implement partial delivery...?
    - Deliveries of goods to great works get stuck in the intercity highway traffic jam and often the delivery disappears or roam for a very long time.
    - Cities of Tomorrow DLC prevents you from claiming cities other players with this DLC have constructed and left, forcing you to buy DLC...
    - While music is not actually bad, it is a pathetic attempt compared to the genius godly sound track of Sim City 4 (search Sim City 4 OST on Youtube if you haven't heard it before). Bu tin that sense SimCity's music does fit the rest of the game.
    - All buildings, both zonable buildings and utility buildings etc. will demolish when just at single patch of road along it's side is demolished. I don't get why that is necessary and it only serves to needlessly complicate rearranging city structure. For example a road can be just next to a utility building and the module to place does not have any other space to be than on the same space as the road. Demolishing the road and replacing it elsewhere and replacing the utility building makes space to place the module on that exact same side. It's crazy that you can't do this without demolishing the whole main building structure.
    - Crappy low value with very limited content DLC's that sell for high prices
    - Great work sometimes not receiving any power (even though your cities clearly has lots of excess power) effectively destroying the whole purpose of great works.

    I could go on and on and on but whats the point. I don't even want to talk about the (few) positive aspects. F*** you EA, go to hell and leave our games alone    … Expand
  12. Abarmard
    Oct 7, 2013
    0
    From download to start this game is not worth the time and money. I have been playing simcity since early days and this is a dumb down version of a game that should get more complex and interesting. Instead it is designed for kids to play. Download and software updates takes a long time and it's very frustrating. Almost nothing positive about this. I wish they took the concept of previousFrom download to start this game is not worth the time and money. I have been playing simcity since early days and this is a dumb down version of a game that should get more complex and interesting. Instead it is designed for kids to play. Download and software updates takes a long time and it's very frustrating. Almost nothing positive about this. I wish they took the concept of previous game and built on that rather they tried to mix Sim Societies and sim cities. You are not a mayor, you are a player who just puts things in spots that were promoted to put. Size of the map is small and limited options (rather than more) is provided. Don't like this game at all.… Expand
  13. bluered1956
    Oct 15, 2013
    1
    My husband bought and installed SC5 last weekend. I managed to play once. Every time I try to open it, I get a message saying we have not registered the Origin. Each time we have to re-register and then wait for 2-3 hours for the game to upload. Total waste of money. I can't understand why other game companies have not had the good sense to create city building games such as SimCity.My husband bought and installed SC5 last weekend. I managed to play once. Every time I try to open it, I get a message saying we have not registered the Origin. Each time we have to re-register and then wait for 2-3 hours for the game to upload. Total waste of money. I can't understand why other game companies have not had the good sense to create city building games such as SimCity. Truth be told, I will never buy another SimCity again.… Expand
  14. exdahle
    Oct 24, 2013
    0
    This game is over the user. Just you right? too small maps, no possible way to terraform areas, road system. Generally downgrade its soo much more to write
  15. rxgamer
    Nov 5, 2013
    0
    Corporate greed at its worst! DRM ruins a potentially good game. Like others have said, I will never support draconian DRM measures ever again especially for what should be primarily a single player game.
  16. zeNap
    Dec 16, 2013
    0
    I can not believe how people would actually give this a perfect score. It's completely rubbish compared to the previous game. Always some kind of a problem with the servers and not to talk about the "citties" you're supposed to build. In SimCity 4 you had the chance to build a real city unlike in this game where you can build a village. I regret spending money on this game so if anyoneI can not believe how people would actually give this a perfect score. It's completely rubbish compared to the previous game. Always some kind of a problem with the servers and not to talk about the "citties" you're supposed to build. In SimCity 4 you had the chance to build a real city unlike in this game where you can build a village. I regret spending money on this game so if anyone thinks about buying ths game: Do not. You're better off downloading/buying SimCity 4.… Expand
  17. TheExtraGuy
    Sep 30, 2014
    4
    Compared to Sim City Societies it's a lot better and at least acts like a Sim City game, but compare it to Sim City 4 and it's just an executive meddled piece of software that doesn't deserve to be considered a Sim City game. While there are some very interesting concepts with in the game like the statistics system and the fact you can have curved roads, as well as some of the conceptsCompared to Sim City Societies it's a lot better and at least acts like a Sim City game, but compare it to Sim City 4 and it's just an executive meddled piece of software that doesn't deserve to be considered a Sim City game. While there are some very interesting concepts with in the game like the statistics system and the fact you can have curved roads, as well as some of the concepts within the Glass Box game engine itself, however I don't think it's at all perfect and I certainly don't think it works well when it should.
    Gone is the easy and free placement of buildings, parks, etc. gone is the simple zoning... and in it's place are a lot of empty spaces that you can't fill because everything is bound to the road system.
    There's also annoyances with the fact that so early on in a serious game you can lose money just by building roads and not have enough money to buy police, fire and medical services which your city will desperately need early on.

    I go on about the littlest of details but that's what made the previous games successful, the little details that you can change and dictate yourself because it's your city, not EA's city.
    I really hope in the future somebody just buys out maxis and gives them free reigns over the work they used to produce. There is so much potential in the Sim City franchise and long times fans like me have been dreaming of a true sequel to Sim City 4... but it's sad that publishers these days particularly EA just care about appealing to a wider audience to get tons of money and doing it in the least amount of effort possible.    … Expand
  18. DownBusiness
    Nov 27, 2013
    3
    I really wanted to like this game. And the first couple of hours are nice. Its not broken because the game is playable. Its just bugged.

    Always online DRM is really bad.
    Servers are really bad: either its full or saves dissappear.
    Cities are too small.
    Still buggy after all this time.
  19. Hristos1982
    Nov 23, 2013
    0
    10 months after the release of the game and after so much talk at forums about city sizes and bugs EA releases an expansion? Are they kidding us? DO NOT BUY any simcity game. They suck a lot.
  20. Shulkster
    Nov 24, 2013
    4
    Sadly, i was disapointed by SimCity. I expected alot, and i was let down. You are forced to be online all the time, and then the servers are not working. What a great start. Anyway i forgave Maxis and after they fixed their servers i gave it another try... It is just so messy and buggy. It really seems unfinished to me.
    Missing support and not listend to the beta Testers SCREAMING:    Sadly, i was disapointed by SimCity. I expected alot, and i was let down. You are forced to be online all the time, and then the servers are not working. What a great start. Anyway i forgave Maxis and after they fixed their servers i gave it another try... It is just so messy and buggy. It really seems unfinished to me.
    Missing support and not listend to the beta Testers SCREAMING: "BIGGER MAPS!!" those are the things that make me tell you:
    Dont waste your money on this one, Seriously.    … Expand
  21. Janpi
    Dec 1, 2013
    3
    smh. So how does EA screw this up? The "always on" doesn't bother me much, its just that I can't even play the game without feeling frustrated. Traffic patters all screw up, cities being square and small. I don't understand why there is a city, and then next to it there's nothing just plains, no suburban, no rural towns, just trees and a road. Resource sharing is awful.
  22. Atraxerxes
    Dec 2, 2013
    2
    Honestly, buy SimCity 4 instead.

    The newest SimCIty should be called SimGraphicsCity instead. The only thing better about this version is that the shadows and lighting effects are cooler. Gone is the ability to create large sprawling cities with downtowns and residential neighborhoods. What really made the previous games fantastic was the amount you needed to micro manage. For god's    Honestly, buy SimCity 4 instead.

    The newest SimCIty should be called SimGraphicsCity instead. The only thing better about this version is that the shadows and lighting effects are cooler. Gone is the ability to create large sprawling cities with downtowns and residential neighborhoods. What really made the previous games fantastic was the amount you needed to micro manage. For god's sake, you had to lay water pipes and electrical lines.

    Did you like subways? yeah forget about that, it's gone.

    Remember how there were other cities you could interact with but it didn't matter? Well this is almost all about interacting with neighboring cities.

    Honestly, it feels like Farmville 2.0 at times. Here let me gift my neighbor a garbage truck.

    The only thing I can say that really stops this from being a complete turd is that the Info-porn graphic overlays are amazing.

    Oh yeah, and forget about playing this game on your laptop on the commuter train, or any place where you don't have internet access. You need to be constantly logged in for it to work.    … Expand
  23. ChrisLight
    Dec 3, 2013
    1
    Better graphic doesn't mean better game,the game is downgrade of Simcity 4.The online DRM is the worst thing ever because the server always full.I prefer my Simcity 4 than this Simcity...
  24. Probes
    Dec 3, 2013
    0
    Too small city areas and you have to be connected to a server at all times. Very bad implementation of a good concept. EA should be forced to refund this product or deliver a real single player mode with larger city areas.
  25. Stigggggggy
    Dec 9, 2013
    2
    Really looked forward to this game, but it just does not deliver to what it once was. If you want that old-school SimCity feel? Look elsewhere, you are gone so regret buying this game.

    Ill gibe em 2/10 for the effort yeah effort of ruining a perfect franchise...
  26. guest91111
    Dec 28, 2013
    0
    This game is, like most other EA games (I know Maxis made it, but EA did parts of it), terrible. But EA brought this to a whole new level of terribleness, by putting always online DRM on this game. They said you have to be online, which is nonsense; People have changed the code and made it possible to play offline! Furthermore, the graphics are reasonable, 3D is ok, maps are tiny,This game is, like most other EA games (I know Maxis made it, but EA did parts of it), terrible. But EA brought this to a whole new level of terribleness, by putting always online DRM on this game. They said you have to be online, which is nonsense; People have changed the code and made it possible to play offline! Furthermore, the graphics are reasonable, 3D is ok, maps are tiny, menuscreen is worse than Big rigs over the road racing's one.… Expand
  27. Magnetarizgin
    Dec 30, 2013
    3
    Suits in charge have runed another franchise, why do people that probably hate videogames think they know better than us? Easy, they may think they are superior to us and they dont respect us at all... Suits also seem rushed in t making a new videogame crash, I don't know, maybe they want to kill videogames alltogheter in the firstplace so their normal perfectly fine hoobies return onceSuits in charge have runed another franchise, why do people that probably hate videogames think they know better than us? Easy, they may think they are superior to us and they dont respect us at all... Suits also seem rushed in t making a new videogame crash, I don't know, maybe they want to kill videogames alltogheter in the firstplace so their normal perfectly fine hoobies return once again to supremacy?? Whatveter, the future for this inustry is grim if we keep enabling this retards.… Expand
  28. shywen2004
    Feb 16, 2014
    0
    Game was poorly made. Marketing tactics were deceiving and unethical. We were told that the game was build around an "always online" experience and offline single player mode is just not possible. And here we are almost 1 year later with the impending release of an offline mode. Next, we're probably going to get bigger maps and EA expects us to forget what they said during those pressGame was poorly made. Marketing tactics were deceiving and unethical. We were told that the game was build around an "always online" experience and offline single player mode is just not possible. And here we are almost 1 year later with the impending release of an offline mode. Next, we're probably going to get bigger maps and EA expects us to forget what they said during those press release? Glad I cancelled my pre order the moment I heard of always online DRM.… Expand
  29. PartyTurtle
    Jan 13, 2014
    3
    I was soooooo excited to play this game with all the famous people playing it and all, but when I bought it and it crashed on me and it deleted it and tried to redown load it and it sad it wouldn't because some on else bought it. sooooooo angry and no refund for $69.99.
  30. alexanderyou
    Feb 1, 2014
    3
    There are many great features in this game: beautiful graphics, multiplayer (kinda), and that's pretty much it. The many faults I found in this game are: 3x the price for a third the content, almost completely unbalanced and impossible to fulfill late game requirements, and very limited options compared to the vast amount of buildings present in previous simcity games. I have simcityThere are many great features in this game: beautiful graphics, multiplayer (kinda), and that's pretty much it. The many faults I found in this game are: 3x the price for a third the content, almost completely unbalanced and impossible to fulfill late game requirements, and very limited options compared to the vast amount of buildings present in previous simcity games. I have simcity creator on the Wii and it has more content...… Expand
  31. justchuck
    Feb 1, 2014
    4
    It certainly had the potential to be a really great game--worthy of the SimCity franchise. But it fell short by an "always on" DRM...I'm sorry, an unnecessary connection to an EA server. Now that wouldn't be so aweful IF EA made 100% sure their servers are always functional and can handle the traffic--of course there's always the chance something may happen with your isp too. Anyway, itIt certainly had the potential to be a really great game--worthy of the SimCity franchise. But it fell short by an "always on" DRM...I'm sorry, an unnecessary connection to an EA server. Now that wouldn't be so aweful IF EA made 100% sure their servers are always functional and can handle the traffic--of course there's always the chance something may happen with your isp too. Anyway, it was completely unnecessary to make the game work and caused many problems.

    Now on to game play, which the raw gameplay itself I found to be very good--detailed buildings, individual sims, etc. I also enjoyed upgrading buildings and working toward certain goals to unlock more options in the game. However, as others have pointed out, the maps are smaller than I would have liked and there's no option that gives you larger maps.

    Overall, the game was okay but it could have been a whole lot better.    … Expand
  32. dennispublic
    Apr 16, 2014
    1
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Spolier alert: This game sucks very very badly.

    I registered on this site only to warn people about this game. I own hundreds and hundreds of games and I can honestly say this is the worst $45 I've ever wasted. This game is horrible, horrible, horrible. Never mind all the DRM problems, even with out them is a horrible game. In all my years of gaming I have never hated a game as much as I hate this one. Not only do I want my money back, I want to be reimbursed for the time I wasted. I would however pay another $45 if I could spit in the developers' faces.

    This game is pathetic and I will never ever by another game from "Origin".    … Expand
  33. ye73812
    Apr 28, 2014
    7
    Having read the very mixed reviews for the game, I figured the only way I'd find out if it was any good was to buy it and try it for myself. Downloading from Origin was fairly straightforward and the game was up and running within an hour of purchase.

    Visually, the game is very very good. It looks like an animated model at extreme zoom levels and it's quite nice to just sit back and    Having read the very mixed reviews for the game, I figured the only way I'd find out if it was any good was to buy it and try it for myself. Downloading from Origin was fairly straightforward and the game was up and running within an hour of purchase.

    Visually, the game is very very good. It looks like an animated model at extreme zoom levels and it's quite nice to just sit back and watch the sims go by while having a coffee. It's like Sim Parisian Cafe! The tutorials are straightforward, the controls straightforward and the user interface is very visually appealing.

    On the downside, some of the building menus are a bit hard to navigate. You'll often be asked to build a church, for example, and then give up because the church is hidden in the City Specialization -> Culture -> Worship menu. The maps are small, although it does make the game more challenging and, dare I say realistic, as you can't just plop a building down and build a few houses for the workers - you really have to think about how to balance competing land use demands in order to make the city work.

    A lot of complaints centre on map size, and it is true, they are much smaller than they were in Sim City 4. However, intelligent region play can overcome the limitations of city size by enabling resource sharing, effectively turning separate cities into a conurbation.

    My main gripe is the DLC. It is absolutely terrible. $10 for a building set that gives you a double decker bus, Big Ben and a couple of British-looking buildings? $5 for a few airships or $10 for an amusement park that appears to promise the kind of creative madness of Roller Coaster Tycoon, but ends up being more like Zoo Tycoon. EA removed the modding freedom that Sim City 4 gave us in order to maximize profits from DLC. I don't mind that so much, they are a business and they have to generate revenue, but don't expect value for money because there really isn't much to be had. Wait for the GOTY edition or some bulk bundles and save your cash, because the current DLC is not worth it.    … Expand
  34. FuzzyPuppy
    Aug 25, 2014
    1
    I really was excited for this game. And I continued to be excited for about 30 minutes after I started playing. The moment that I logged on it was like a ghost town. The maps are tiny. And what's with the constant Zombie outbreak and getting your city demolished by meteors? Huge let down, as I've been a really big fan of their past games. Too bad.
  35. iduncan91
    May 20, 2015
    0
    EA destroys every good thing they get their greedy hands on: SimCity, the Sims, Battlefront. If you want a city building game go purchase Cities: Skylines. SimCity is dead and Cities: Skylines has been built to replace it because face it, EA rapes whatever they can get their hands on.
  36. jakaclank
    Nov 24, 2014
    0
    I'm a huge Simcity 4 fan and love other builder games, but this game must have been my biggest mis buy ever. Not looking at all the bugs (in general and on line, as for me I can't even play on line...), it's just plain ugly, you never feel accomplished with you childish looking city, there's not really any variety in each city you make, very limited building options, everything looks theI'm a huge Simcity 4 fan and love other builder games, but this game must have been my biggest mis buy ever. Not looking at all the bugs (in general and on line, as for me I can't even play on line...), it's just plain ugly, you never feel accomplished with you childish looking city, there's not really any variety in each city you make, very limited building options, everything looks the same, and very American, not everything is made out of cardboard.., the buildings don't connect well, there are gaps everywhere (you must at least be able to choose how dense your city is), income overview sucks as does everything that has to do with economy, your city can have up to 6 different specializations which aren't worked out very well, again the building possibilities are very limited and you get bored with it once you built it once, mostly you can also only specialize in one of them because your city region is so small (Las Vegas isn't only specialized in gambling, they have to manage culture, mining and eduction as well as gambling.), and why is gambling even a major specialization? Is it really just to remake Las Vegas? If you really wanted to, they should have made gambling an option in tourism and focused more on trade and economic options. The only good thing about this game is the music, which stops you from throwing down your computer as you wait for an endless loading screen. I had such high hopes for this game, but it was a huge letdown. I just don't understand how simcity 4 (an 11 year old game) can still bypass any building game today, even all the simcity succeeding it..… Expand
  37. Titannumber20
    Mar 15, 2015
    3
    All the good things that this game has managed to achieve are overshadowed by the poor design choices made and the technical issues. Simcity is not even the best city simulation game in the market, that honour belonging to Cities:Skylines.
    Simply put, do not buy.
  38. Toxsick
    Feb 3, 2017
    0
    This review won't be very detailed. It's simple: Buy cities skyline. Leave this crappy bunch of scripts on the shelf.
    It's simply better in every single way except for the online part. And anyways, in sim city you can't build cities but only small districts, i think more info is not even necessary.
  39. jsoo
    Jan 2, 2016
    0
    This game is so bad compared to Simcity 4. The map where you can build on is way too small, there is no agriculture available, there are no driving missions, the graphics are disappointing, the cooperation possible between cities is **** and there are no ordinances as in Simcity 4 in the game. I recommend not to play this game, if you want to play SImcity you should play Simcity 4. SimcityThis game is so bad compared to Simcity 4. The map where you can build on is way too small, there is no agriculture available, there are no driving missions, the graphics are disappointing, the cooperation possible between cities is **** and there are no ordinances as in Simcity 4 in the game. I recommend not to play this game, if you want to play SImcity you should play Simcity 4. Simcity 5 is crap, Simcity 4 is great though!!!… Expand
  40. Silverzapper
    Jan 31, 2016
    2
    This game is the perfect example of what happens when you rush a game out for sales alone. The city sizes are tiny and things don't work how they're supposed to. The sims are terribly programmed causing one of my roads to be stuck in gridlock and the other almost completely empty. Once I reached a high enough population my sewage system stopped functioning and my city was ruined. When aThis game is the perfect example of what happens when you rush a game out for sales alone. The city sizes are tiny and things don't work how they're supposed to. The sims are terribly programmed causing one of my roads to be stuck in gridlock and the other almost completely empty. Once I reached a high enough population my sewage system stopped functioning and my city was ruined. When a game requires mods just to work you know it's a bad game. Don't buy this. It's bad even with mods.… Expand
  41. rhansonn
    Mar 24, 2016
    0
    This game has a lot of issues... Online multiplayer is pretty much unusable, unable to share anything with your neighboring cities without sitting around for an hour waiting for it to come through, whether its sharing resources, or unlocking something for your region, it just doesn't work.

    When you claim a new city plot, you will have to wait a very long time to gain access to all of    This game has a lot of issues... Online multiplayer is pretty much unusable, unable to share anything with your neighboring cities without sitting around for an hour waiting for it to come through, whether its sharing resources, or unlocking something for your region, it just doesn't work.

    When you claim a new city plot, you will have to wait a very long time to gain access to all of the unlocked features in the region. (I tend to claim a city, send some money from a neighboring city, and go do something else for a couple hours while the city slowly gains access.)

    City plots are incredibly small, compared to it's predecessors, its unreasonably tough to work with.

    Road options are just terrible, apparently major highways have traffic lights now-a-days, the designers threw away any possibility for realistic road layouts; one-way streets, high-way junctions, on/off ramps. This really just doesn't make sense.

    MegaTowers tend to up and fail after a few gameplay months. "There's no school" - it's right next to you. "Theres no shopping" - it's right below you, and said store is begging for shoppers. This isn't due to traffic issues, or a wealth mis-match, its an obvious defect.

    They game looks great - but is a blatant fail in terms of usability.

    Once again I find myself losing confidence in EA.    … Expand
  42. Avalon011
    Mar 30, 2016
    0
    This game has one serious design flaw, what happens when the city runs out of water? Water in Simcity is the most precious commodity in the game but theirs no way to replenish the water once it runs out which isn't long. As of the latest patch 10.3 the sewer treatment plant no longer produces water! They broke the game.

    Even EA of all people saw fit to shutter Maxis.
  43. Pogrebnyak880
    Apr 18, 2018
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Я ожидал что simcity 5 будет лучше чем прошлая часть, но как то состоялся релиз и поиграл, хрен тебе. Как только я купил эту игру в Ориджине и скачал, у меня при запуске сначала выдавалась ошибка, что из-за чего мне пришлось перезапускать игру. Вообще лучше купить Cities: Skylines.… Expand
  44. GoodMorningAss
    Jan 29, 2020
    0
    the server is full, he give me a choice to choose another server but the save on new server is not sync, that mean you have to play a new game in every new server what a stupid design, I agree
  45. medv4380
    Mar 6, 2013
    3
    If the game had an Offline Option after logging in like SC2 had then it wouldn't be that bad of a game. The basic problem this model has is that in the long term you only provision for 20% of your users being online at any one point in time. However, during launch that's not exactly the case. You can easily have 80% or more logging in all at the same time. Without an offline mode toIf the game had an Offline Option after logging in like SC2 had then it wouldn't be that bad of a game. The basic problem this model has is that in the long term you only provision for 20% of your users being online at any one point in time. However, during launch that's not exactly the case. You can easily have 80% or more logging in all at the same time. Without an offline mode to release the stress of everyone logging in you end up with people taking the day off to play and being justifiably upset that they can't even start-up the game. The tutorial could have and should have been an offline option. It would have made it so that people could have a taste of the game without hammering the servers all at once. This model also requires the servers to be up-to-date. If you were able to get on last night and then later this morning you may have found yourself faced with a forced tutorial button that you weren't last night. This is clearly due to the servers being on a different version of the software. The is the most likely cause of game corruptions this morning. A 60$ franchise title is not the time or place to test out new strategies. You should know this will work long before you launch. Instead we're faced with inexperienced admins who didn't know to keep the servers up to date for launch or to turn them Off if they were on the wrong version. This is stuff you only learn with experience, and Sim City was not the time or place to get that experience. This tells me that they're using an Ad-Hoc methodology, and we should expect more hiccups as long as they insist on an instant roll-out of updates and not have the server go though some burn time to make sure it works first. For Single Player the maps are a bit small. You can work around it a bit, and I can see how this encourages Multi-Player. However, I'm the type of person who plays MMOs Single Player so I personally get very little benefit from this model. The game play from prior versions is vastly improved. If you're willing to wait a Month for server load to die down you probably should wait. You'll be able to get a far superior experience if you do.… Expand
  46. Hilliary
    Mar 6, 2013
    2
    This game is awesome! When I'm able to play it... Unfortunately, the always-online DRM that comes with this game makes it very difficult to do so. Yes, it is only the first few days of launch, but it sure would be nice if I didn't have to worry about server loads, disconnects, rollbacks, downtime, maintenance, losing hours on my cities, ect. I understand it's no longer a single playerThis game is awesome! When I'm able to play it... Unfortunately, the always-online DRM that comes with this game makes it very difficult to do so. Yes, it is only the first few days of launch, but it sure would be nice if I didn't have to worry about server loads, disconnects, rollbacks, downtime, maintenance, losing hours on my cities, ect. I understand it's no longer a single player game, but I'd much rather have the option to play online with friends rather than be forced to play by their server scheduled when all I want to do is play in my own region.

    I defended Diablo 3s always-online model, mostly because I was blinded by fan-girl-ism and I thought a game shouldn't be rated based on a games servers. Not anymore. This game deserves the metascore that the critics give it, but I just can't feel the same as long as this DRM is in place. It's such a terrible model to prevent piracy and companies like EA and Blizzard need to learn this. Fast. It only hurts the consumers that paid actual money.    … Expand
  47. foxofblades
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    The problem here is that the game may indeed be great, epic, huge improvement, etc but with road blocks as big as not being able to play, glitches in menu, unclear saving/loading processes, and horrible game technical support make this an incredibly unreasonable purchase. I looked forward to this game very much and had high hopes even through the low user reviews. But here me now, I haveThe problem here is that the game may indeed be great, epic, huge improvement, etc but with road blocks as big as not being able to play, glitches in menu, unclear saving/loading processes, and horrible game technical support make this an incredibly unreasonable purchase. I looked forward to this game very much and had high hopes even through the low user reviews. But here me now, I have learned the lesson I should have learned when I bought Diablo 3 do not make this purchase.… Expand
  48. Zeph
    Mar 17, 2013
    4
    SimCity is finally *playable.* I'm not going to bother with the always-on DRM pros/cons/WTF EAs except to say I don't feel like it helps the game at all. (Most of you probably have your own opinions on this, and I'll bet 99% of you agree with me) So, the game itself... it is a more simplified game than SimCitys past. And when I say simplified, I mean really simplified in almost everySimCity is finally *playable.* I'm not going to bother with the always-on DRM pros/cons/WTF EAs except to say I don't feel like it helps the game at all. (Most of you probably have your own opinions on this, and I'll bet 99% of you agree with me) So, the game itself... it is a more simplified game than SimCitys past. And when I say simplified, I mean really simplified in almost every way. For a newbie to simulation strategy games, then SimCity may be a decent start for you. The mechanics of the game are easy to learn. The sizes of your cities are tiny. Tiny to the point where if you know what you are doing, you will fill that entire space to maximum capacity within about 6 hours of game time. You can potentially have a city half covered in skyscrapers in that amount of time. That's with Llama speed too (the 2nd fastest game pace, and the fastest available as of writing). So, from there, you either keep growing in... or you make a new city. What does making a new city do? Well, it freezes your other city for starters (your city only progresses when YOU are inside of it), and you basically start a brand new city from complete scratch. Cities in the same region are connected in a sense, regions can share almost any asset possible, ranging from workers, to resources, to wealth. What happens in one city can also make impacts on the rest. Cities in the same region are very intertwined with each other. For example, I have a city in the same region as a friend. My friend is specializing in industry, however, I'm specializing in tourism. Sadly, I'm downwind of him, so all that air pollution he produces is making its way into my region, causing widespread illness. Luckily, hes willing to get those factories upgraded, but there is nothing I can do to force him. Are you seeing the pros and cons of this? On the topic of specializations, while we are mentioning it, they are helpful, but they don't feel significant. What I mean by that is, you could go ahead ignoring all city specializations and be fine. Maxis seemed to emphasize these, but they feel like an afterthought to me unless I am specifically looking for a coal mine or something. So, if you are a long time SimCity fan, this game is going to be a mixed bag. I'm sure many of you will enjoy some of the enhancements, but I'm also certain that that same many of you will loathe a lot more of them. My final score is 4/10. SimCity is a game that has a lot going for it, but the complexity has been diminished severely and relying on the SimCity servers is a pain (I guarantee the servers WILL be the thing you will hate most about SimCity). Otherwise, the game itself plays well when the servers are working.… Expand
  49. Broofist
    Mar 6, 2013
    4
    The maps are unbelievably small and that scale takes away from any real experience in creativity you could have. I've created about 5 "cities" in the same region, and have had others join my region and fill about 3. I've basically seen every feature in about 6-8 hours. If you don't zone a formulaic grid of high density streets around a central avenue, you won't get anywhere near 100kThe maps are unbelievably small and that scale takes away from any real experience in creativity you could have. I've created about 5 "cities" in the same region, and have had others join my region and fill about 3. I've basically seen every feature in about 6-8 hours. If you don't zone a formulaic grid of high density streets around a central avenue, you won't get anywhere near 100k population. The size of the cities is an absolute joke considering many aspects that provided depth in sc4 have been removed. Yes, I can zoom in and watch my sims, but what part of watching them is considered "gameplay". I guess it's no big deal that I've explored the same space 5 times and plopped almost every item in the first day of playtime. Avoid buying this, it's nowhere near the quality of game you'd expect. It needs a serious patch right now to address the scale. A "major sports arena" or other large park or landmark will take up so much space(a few "blocks"), that you won't want to place many at all, because it will knock out about 5-10%(not exaggerating, maps are that small) of your housing!… Expand
  50. MacrosTheBlack
    Mar 13, 2013
    0
    Things I've run into:

    1) Constant server connection issues 2) CIty sometimes not saved 3) Schools completely empty despite sims complaining they want to go to school 4) Sometimes can't export goods, it just sits there in a depot 5) Sudden and extreme drops in budget 6) Giant stalagmites rising out of the ground (no joke) 7) 10 firetrucks all going to the same fire, but ignoring    Things I've run into:

    1) Constant server connection issues
    2) CIty sometimes not saved
    3) Schools completely empty despite sims complaining they want to go to school
    4) Sometimes can't export goods, it just sits there in a depot
    5) Sudden and extreme drops in budget
    6) Giant stalagmites rising out of the ground (no joke)
    7) 10 firetrucks all going to the same fire, but ignoring the other ones. This also happens for other vehicles.
    8) etc. etc etc.

    These are just bugs, apart from this, the multiplayer is absolutely broken as there is barely any real interaction, the group chat doesn't work usually and the city sizes are terrible. I feel comfortable saying that this product probably shouldn't have been released until it was actually done. Thanks for ****ing up the franchise!    … Expand
  51. Clean515
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    For a game called Sim City it's certainly dissapointing that you can only build small european towns. What a waste of potential by restricting their users like this, always online is not a deal breaker for me but it's also dissapointing that it results in the game not actually working half the time, EA with their approach to games having to be online and have micro transactions inFor a game called Sim City it's certainly dissapointing that you can only build small european towns. What a waste of potential by restricting their users like this, always online is not a deal breaker for me but it's also dissapointing that it results in the game not actually working half the time, EA with their approach to games having to be online and have micro transactions in everything should be ashamed and Maxis should put their foot in the door and not let themselves be pushed around by EA who constantly messes up any IP.… Expand
  52. MacNamedDre
    Mar 6, 2013
    2
    There isn't anything more offensive than cloud computing errors causing game to me nonexistent. Moreover, spending nearly $60-$80 on a title so HIGHLY exclaimed as the GOY, and yet comes off as a huge failure. When the game is playing, it's fun, social, and is a refreshing update to the simcity franchise. What ruins the game for me is as follows: No single player, No save option outsideThere isn't anything more offensive than cloud computing errors causing game to me nonexistent. Moreover, spending nearly $60-$80 on a title so HIGHLY exclaimed as the GOY, and yet comes off as a huge failure. When the game is playing, it's fun, social, and is a refreshing update to the simcity franchise. What ruins the game for me is as follows: No single player, No save option outside of forced incontinent cloud storage), server errors (you think they would have gotten this ready for the launch), inaccurate protesting (crime levels down to zero, yet protests for high crime change power source for town when paused and after relaunching game town protests lost of power), force closing (it's the only game in the last 3 years I've played with massive force closures on a regular basis) EA support (no upgrades after launch day errors, and seemingly weak support), ORIGIN ran.… Expand
  53. tmas
    Mar 7, 2013
    1
    I read a good review of the game and was excited to get it. The review was in the tech section of CNN or AP I forget which. I haven't been playing games for quite some time and I was feeling the need lately to immerse myself in a good game. So I went to the Gamestop next to my work and bought the boxed Simcity limited edition. I haven't been in that Gamestop in years. I had the next dayI read a good review of the game and was excited to get it. The review was in the tech section of CNN or AP I forget which. I haven't been playing games for quite some time and I was feeling the need lately to immerse myself in a good game. So I went to the Gamestop next to my work and bought the boxed Simcity limited edition. I haven't been in that Gamestop in years. I had the next day off and was planning on wasting it on this game(in a good way like I used to) It's been 5 hours now and I've only been able to partially play the tutorial for about 15minutes. Then when the tutorial had me try to connect to another city I got disconnected from the server, Game Over restart. Well I haven't actually been able to restart so just game over. What I did see looked pretty good but I'm not too sure about this on-line thing. No save/load is difficult for this veteran gamer. I think I'm done with gaming. Gonna go outside for a bike ride. DON'T BUY THIS GAME. To spend $60 on beta testing is totally unacceptable. Don't games get tested before release anymore? Their official website says "Most Anticipated of 2013" did the people responsible for this server disaster not see that info? PS the disparity between user reviews and paid critic reviews is very telling of the BS that they spew.… Expand
  54. Goekhan
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Let me sum it up:
    -"Unable to create your city at this time. Please claim a city again." This issue haven't got fixed on beta. 3 days after release, and I STILL GET THIS.
    -Busy servers; either get in line, or go play on some other server (if you can) where your cities are NOT stored at -VERY SMALL city areas. Are you kidding me? Areas should be AT LEAST 4 TIMES BIGGER. -Always online    Let me sum it up:
    -"Unable to create your city at this time. Please claim a city again." This issue haven't got fixed on beta. 3 days after release, and I STILL GET THIS.
    -Busy servers; either get in line, or go play on some other server (if you can) where your cities are NOT stored at
    -VERY SMALL city areas. Are you kidding me? Areas should be AT LEAST 4 TIMES BIGGER.
    -Always online DRM I'm mostly fine with this, but due to 1st and 2nd points I've made... the server load I mean... Enough said, I think?    … Expand
  55. iziqis
    Mar 7, 2013
    4
    One thing that I don't get by this publisher is how low they treat us customers that bought the game with our hard earn money, and slapped our face with middle finger by introducing always online DRM, micro transition ramshackle servers, etc. and those who pirate the game are likely to be having the most fun. I give you red.
  56. Splackity
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Will update when game is playable. Game is not playable. Game has not been playable for over 6 hours. Game queue is not a queue, it's a time waster. Game is worthless. Single most pointless launch ever. Capacity is a joke.
  57. Anarchy
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    DRM has made this promising game totally unplayable. People can't download the game, can't join a server, can't save their game and are having their cities wiped all because EA have unimaginably forced always-online DRM even though they know the risks and the fact that it has little to no benefit. In fact, piracy for this game will be through the roof. Shame on EA, disgusting greedy RIP Simcity.
  58. Hornybeast
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Dear EA can i please play my single player game i purchased from you
    some may think i'm asking too much of a big company like EA to see me as worthy of playing their game
    but after parting with it would be nice to "have a go"
  59. MrHuckabee
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    This is why PC games will never, ever be able to compete with consoles. PC games are so concerned trying to counteract piracy they cripple their game. Just to play this game by myself I have to wait until the servers are online and not full. This game does not allow you to save locally; so don't experiment on your city and hope that neither your internet connection or their servers goThis is why PC games will never, ever be able to compete with consoles. PC games are so concerned trying to counteract piracy they cripple their game. Just to play this game by myself I have to wait until the servers are online and not full. This game does not allow you to save locally; so don't experiment on your city and hope that neither your internet connection or their servers go down. My guess is that the maps were downsized because the developers do not want you saving locally, making your saves to the cloud smaller. Same goes for terraforming. Innovation in this game is absent and the enjoyment I have had playing this game was due to not playing a Sim City game in such a long time.… Expand
  60. zombiexm
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    The game itself is fine, there are the lacking features tho.
    The size of the space is too small, and theres no farmming.
    But forcing me to play online in a game that does not need to be online for a single player portion of it. Sorry, no sale. The nation does not have 95-100% Broadband coverage, and mobile LTE Does not count has internet when it comes to gaming with these caps on the    The game itself is fine, there are the lacking features tho.
    The size of the space is too small, and theres no farmming.

    But forcing me to play online in a game that does not need to be online for a single player portion of it. Sorry, no sale. The nation does not have 95-100% Broadband coverage, and mobile LTE Does not count has internet when it comes to gaming with these caps on the top two.

    There is no modding system, which should of been BUILT IN when looking at how well sim city 4 has done with modding. But no they claim it will "come". but It will not as they will lose money on DLC, and Add-on packs (see sims 3) Do not buy the game unless they fix this, or someone finds a way to force the game offline.    … Expand
  61. Grenade_Cobra
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    DON"T BUY THIS! I never given a game a 0/10 before cause I mean how can a game be 0? I have played a lot of bad games but this one goes beyond that to the point of insulting. This is my first 0 because of all the reason already stated so well by others. I should have known better and I'm done with origins for good. At this rate maybe gaming altogether if this is an outlook to theDON"T BUY THIS! I never given a game a 0/10 before cause I mean how can a game be 0? I have played a lot of bad games but this one goes beyond that to the point of insulting. This is my first 0 because of all the reason already stated so well by others. I should have known better and I'm done with origins for good. At this rate maybe gaming altogether if this is an outlook to the future. It reminds me of the National Lampoon;s Vegas vacation quote every time I buy EA. "Why don't you give me half the money you were going to bet, then we'll go out back, I'll kick you in the nuts and we'll call it a day!"… Expand
  62. ozmox
    Mar 31, 2013
    4
    Origin and EA's DRM scheme is horrible. That aside, the game itself doesn't deliver on its promise. Total city size is *very* small. Traffic is badly bugged (police patrols, buses, and garbage trucks all move in a giant cluster rather than dispersed throughout your city). Simulation depth just isn't there after you build a high school, elementary schools no longer needed; after you buildOrigin and EA's DRM scheme is horrible. That aside, the game itself doesn't deliver on its promise. Total city size is *very* small. Traffic is badly bugged (police patrols, buses, and garbage trucks all move in a giant cluster rather than dispersed throughout your city). Simulation depth just isn't there after you build a high school, elementary schools no longer needed; after you build a university no other type of school required, period. Transportation options limited: no highway over/under-passes and no subways. And because it's multi-player mayors in neighboring towns can grief the entire region by building a high-crime, high-pollution town and there is nothing you can do about it. Watch as your budget dives into the red because you are forced to build tons of police services to manage the criminals coming in from the other town. If you want to build huge cities go with CitiesXL or SimCity 4. If you like depth of simulation go with Tropico 4. This product just doesn't deliver on either level, imho.… Expand
  63. Zman922
    Mar 6, 2013
    4
    I had to sign up to reply to some of these positive reviews. Someone said they recommend buying a $60 game first and than to get the 10 year old game. Why not start with the better 10 year old game since you can play it when where you want. Sim City 4 you can save your own game you can build an actual city. Sim City 4 is not a little square confined by white dotted lines. Sim CityI had to sign up to reply to some of these positive reviews. Someone said they recommend buying a $60 game first and than to get the 10 year old game. Why not start with the better 10 year old game since you can play it when where you want. Sim City 4 you can save your own game you can build an actual city. Sim City 4 is not a little square confined by white dotted lines. Sim City (5) has fun gameplay until you fill up the map in a couple hours. This by far is the most jarring thing to me. 10 years later and the maps get smaller and confined by dotted lines. I hope they fix this without charging more money for DLC that should be standard in a AAA release. DLC is fine if its not removed from the original game to sell later… Expand
  64. Drago99
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Small City Map, DRM, Server Problems, they probably plan to sell us add-on that should had already been included the original game at that price. All I can say is that I won't get caught buying a game like this again.
  65. lleti
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    DRM Aside, I would score this at around a 3 or a 4; the fact that EA insist on making me wait in an online queue in order to play an offline game, bounces us straight down to zero; paying $60+ for nothing, is worth a negative score if anything.

    Zoning density is gone missing. Cities are tiny you can barely fit a village into your map space. Terraforming/God mode is gone the way of the    DRM Aside, I would score this at around a 3 or a 4; the fact that EA insist on making me wait in an online queue in order to play an offline game, bounces us straight down to zero; paying $60+ for nothing, is worth a negative score if anything.

    Zoning density is gone missing. Cities are tiny you can barely fit a village into your map space. Terraforming/God mode is gone the way of the Dodo. Games will only save/load if EA's server can accommodate your request; often times it can't, and you lose data. Also adds to the sluggish behavior of the game, as contacting and sending packets to an overseas, overloaded server, is a lot slower than writing to your local disk.

    Looking forward to the teams that will be working on a local server emulator to remove the DRM requirement hopefully the loss in income will send a strong message, as clearly, shouting "screw you" to your customer base is still resulting in sales.    … Expand
  66. dr_mibbles
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    A great franchise, ruined by EA. People are buying the game in good faith, despite reservations about always-online DRM. They are then finding they cannot log into the server, or constant disconnects, or cities failing to save/being constantly rolled back. The game is unplayable, and getting a refund is very challenging when the only way to contact EA is though live chat support with a 6A great franchise, ruined by EA. People are buying the game in good faith, despite reservations about always-online DRM. They are then finding they cannot log into the server, or constant disconnects, or cities failing to save/being constantly rolled back. The game is unplayable, and getting a refund is very challenging when the only way to contact EA is though live chat support with a 6 hour wait. Yes, six hours.

    When they realise that the (unnecessary) DRM is preventing them from playing a game they paid good money for, or wasting hours of their time by not saving their cities, they are understandably feeling let down. They believe the product is at fault. The reviews on Amazon/Metacritic reflect that sentiment with total and complete accuracy.    … Expand
  67. Geofferic
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    The game simply does not work. I've been in queue for 40 minutes at a time, get disconnected, have to get back in queue The Day 0 DLC is shockingly insulting. The cities are tiny. Very, very little innovation other than slightly snazzier interface. $80 bucks to get the game as it is intended to be played is ridiculous. This is garbage. Stay away. Ignore the raw lies that are theThe game simply does not work. I've been in queue for 40 minutes at a time, get disconnected, have to get back in queue The Day 0 DLC is shockingly insulting. The cities are tiny. Very, very little innovation other than slightly snazzier interface. $80 bucks to get the game as it is intended to be played is ridiculous. This is garbage. Stay away. Ignore the raw lies that are the 'journalism' reviews.… Expand
  68. spewey
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Maxis should never have rolled this out without providing for the robust server support it should have known was necessary. I've hardly been able to log in; most attempts failed. At least this has kept me from fuming about the small size of cities we are limited to. Maxis' insistence on DRM may protect them from a few pirates, but it has greatly inconvenienced thousands of their users,Maxis should never have rolled this out without providing for the robust server support it should have known was necessary. I've hardly been able to log in; most attempts failed. At least this has kept me from fuming about the small size of cities we are limited to. Maxis' insistence on DRM may protect them from a few pirates, but it has greatly inconvenienced thousands of their users, and turned the most anticipated game of the year into a massive disappointment.… Expand
  69. Slaymeister
    Mar 11, 2013
    0
    I play offline. I play all games offline. Half the time, I'm playing a game as I'm sitting on a plane with no internet connectivity, but I don't play online at other times. I don't care about leaderboards. I don't want achievements. I play games like Simcity because I want a sandbox to play in for a bit before I go back to working on a presentation for my next meeting or trying in vain toI play offline. I play all games offline. Half the time, I'm playing a game as I'm sitting on a plane with no internet connectivity, but I don't play online at other times. I don't care about leaderboards. I don't want achievements. I play games like Simcity because I want a sandbox to play in for a bit before I go back to working on a presentation for my next meeting or trying in vain to catch up on my inbox. I play offline, so that means I can't play Simcity. This new Simcity, tied to EA's servers like a umbilical cord, sucks. Their aggressive DRM goes far beyond mere inconvenience caused by an attempt to strike a balance between playability and ensuring the game is properly licensed by players. This approach is positively antagonistic, with no gameplay allowed without EA in the middle, players needs be damned. Additionally, continued gameplay is beholden to their servers, their desire to continue supporting the game, and the capabilities of their servers to handle the workload. I have always pulled out Simcity games for years after my first play though. But what happens when EA decides the ROI to maintain the game servers isn't there anymore? I can't play this game, and I'm pissed.… Expand
  70. Zeeboid
    Mar 11, 2013
    0
    I travel for work and as of yet have been unable to play due to the slow/nonexistent internet connections on airplanes and at my hotels. No other SimCity has required me to be online to play, and I feel as a father and husband with two children, if this is what I get for my money, you have done a dis-service. Please restore off-line single play to SimCity. I am ready to never purchaseI travel for work and as of yet have been unable to play due to the slow/nonexistent internet connections on airplanes and at my hotels. No other SimCity has required me to be online to play, and I feel as a father and husband with two children, if this is what I get for my money, you have done a dis-service. Please restore off-line single play to SimCity. I am ready to never purchase another EA game over this.… Expand
  71. redfacedanger
    Mar 12, 2013
    1
    This game was a pain at launch, we all know that by now. But don't worry because when you're actually able to get into it, it's actually... mediocre. It's not as good as the reviewers make it, to be honest i'd like my money back, it's pretty to look at but the mechanics are simply broken. It was made so you'd have some choice to how you'd like to build your city, but it feels like there'sThis game was a pain at launch, we all know that by now. But don't worry because when you're actually able to get into it, it's actually... mediocre. It's not as good as the reviewers make it, to be honest i'd like my money back, it's pretty to look at but the mechanics are simply broken. It was made so you'd have some choice to how you'd like to build your city, but it feels like there's only one REAL path to make. it's a unfinished game, don't buy it.… Expand
  72. exmachina64
    Mar 12, 2013
    0
    1) Always online DRM.
    2) Small city sizes to run on low spec PCs.
    3) Population padding (your population is actually much smaller than the number you see in the game).
    4) The simulation is fundamentally broken (http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=523158).
  73. sweet
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    DRM issues aside, it's a tiny crippled game that doesn't game close to measuring up to its predecessors. Hopefully the failure of this game will be a watershed moment in gaming history.
  74. Globular
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Aside from the grotesque DRM and the inevitable overpriced DLCs for a game that costs $60, this game is too casual and streamlined, and lacks a lot of what the previous simcitys were about. This game should be called SimTown, not SimCity; the plot sizes in the new SimCity are embarrassingly small, but even if they increased the size I don't think the game would look much like a cityAside from the grotesque DRM and the inevitable overpriced DLCs for a game that costs $60, this game is too casual and streamlined, and lacks a lot of what the previous simcitys were about. This game should be called SimTown, not SimCity; the plot sizes in the new SimCity are embarrassingly small, but even if they increased the size I don't think the game would look much like a city because the buildings look disproportionate/cartoonish/repetitive and the spaces between buildings look like eye sores (they should at least fill them in the way the game CitiesXL does). A single plot can be filled within the first 10 minutes then all you do is stare at your city, upgrade here and there, and struggle to fit in some of the new buildings you end up unlocking it's a miserable experience after you fill up the entire plot of land. The only creativity in this game is making those unconventional curved roads. This game feels more like a node simulator than a city simulator (if that makes any sense), and everything is automatic this game was made for lazy people it seems. There is no terraforming. The cities in the regions are separated, so there are no super metropolises or your very own created rail and road systems in your very own created wilderness areas which separate your other cities. No farming. No subways. I also found a lot of the features like the statistic maps, the different kinds of roads, the people walking on the streets, etc.. to be gimmicky, for example, you'll always end up using the high capacity roads, so why not just start out with them (it's also a pain to upgrade your low density roads later on in game) so the presence of dirt roads and such are gimmicky to me make the most of the small land you are given, right?… Expand
  75. parkour86
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Always online DRM, what more do I have to say?
  76. BlueOtter
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Unfortunately, this edition of SimCity, while fun to play and far more challenging in its intricacy than its predecessors, is completely unusable to those wishing to play on the go. Using my laptop, I'm unable to launch or play the game much of the time because if the always-online DRM requirement the publisher has imposed on this game. It's bad enough to call a critical bug that rendersUnfortunately, this edition of SimCity, while fun to play and far more challenging in its intricacy than its predecessors, is completely unusable to those wishing to play on the go. Using my laptop, I'm unable to launch or play the game much of the time because if the always-online DRM requirement the publisher has imposed on this game. It's bad enough to call a critical bug that renders my game play unusable.… Expand
  77. dpofs10
    Mar 12, 2013
    0
    Wow, a week after launch and the servers still don't work. Just got kicked out and lost 2 hours work and can't sign back on at all. PLEASE don't make the mistake I did and give this company your money for a defective by design product.
  78. Sir_Trigg
    Mar 13, 2013
    0
    Seriously, don't buy this game. At least, not until they fix everything. The constant online DRM has crippled the game so people who bought it can't even play. The main thing I bought it for was to play with friends but the server list splits you up from them. Even if you change server, you can't keep the maps you already made! Most servers are 'closed' so you either have to hope peopleSeriously, don't buy this game. At least, not until they fix everything. The constant online DRM has crippled the game so people who bought it can't even play. The main thing I bought it for was to play with friends but the server list splits you up from them. Even if you change server, you can't keep the maps you already made! Most servers are 'closed' so you either have to hope people will abandon all their work and join or play by yourself/with random people online. Even if you do manage to get on a server and log in, it still won't let you load maps up! I tried playing for a little bit before work and I can't get on either of my two maps to play. This game is a joke. Don't get me wrong, I had a lot of fun when I could actually play it. By making sure no one pirates the game, they are screwing over the ones who want to legitimately pay and play the game. I've learnt my lesson, sorry EA but we're over. Don't call 'cause I won't answer.… Expand
  79. jblair52
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Bought the game online, it installed quickly. I played for about an hour and witnessed a few bugs, but nothing gamebreaking. Then I was notified I was disconnected from the server and the game crashed. I have been trying off and on for 4+ hours trying to reconnect to play. The game is not finished and the servers cannot handle the numbers trying to play. Terrible job. This is why I rarelyBought the game online, it installed quickly. I played for about an hour and witnessed a few bugs, but nothing gamebreaking. Then I was notified I was disconnected from the server and the game crashed. I have been trying off and on for 4+ hours trying to reconnect to play. The game is not finished and the servers cannot handle the numbers trying to play. Terrible job. This is why I rarely buy an EA title, and now I doubt I ever will again.… Expand
  80. Stabwoundz
    Mar 5, 2013
    3
    I suggest that people ignore those ridiculously positive scores from critics as they are likely biased. When then game first launched I was able to play for a few hours and I was addicted. For the most part the game was fun and interesting, except there are some bugs like poor vehicle paths and unnecessary traffic congestion that can't be resolved without a patch from EA.. The majorI suggest that people ignore those ridiculously positive scores from critics as they are likely biased. When then game first launched I was able to play for a few hours and I was addicted. For the most part the game was fun and interesting, except there are some bugs like poor vehicle paths and unnecessary traffic congestion that can't be resolved without a patch from EA.. The major problem is that this game requires a constant connection to EA servers. Tonight I got home from work to play and I could not connect to the game in my region. Granted- all internet based games seem to have high traffic on launch. But this type of game shouldn't even require an online connection to play sandbox modes. Since I am not able to play in the the North American region, I decided to try the European regions. When I connected and started playing I was forced to play the tutorial (you cannot skip it) which was somehow bugged because the game puts me into the tutorial region but none of the menu's or actions are available. So not only can I NOT play the game offline in a sandbox style mode, but even when I connect, I am forced to play a tutorial scenario that is bugged to where I can't progress past and cannot be skipped. I truly enjoyed playing this game last night but these Online-DRMs NEED TO GO! Also there needs to be a way to skip the tutorial.. EA has published games long enough to know better than this. So far I am disappointed.… Expand
  81. ThtCooperFellow
    Mar 5, 2013
    3
    I love the actual game for the most part, but the fact that this is a game that should have been single player and now I just can't plain play I have to give this at best a 3. Maxis did a wonderful job and I have no doubt that EA forced this BS always online drm from the start and the multiplayer aspect. Always online has been, and continues to be a terrible idea.
  82. harderjw
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Unskippable tutorial that doesn't run correctly. Completely unplayable. I understand that glitches happen in games, but I'm sick and tired of this garbage getting released while clearly under tested.
  83. Drew0927
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Can't play single player because you have to have a connection to the server. Brilliant. I hope heads are rolling at EA. So concerned about "piracy" you make game play impossible for cash paying customers. Super smart.
  84. tifunkalicious
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Impossible to rate above a 0 because the game is impossible to play.

    Get kicked off because the servers are down. Unable to create new cities on different servers due to a vague error.
  85. adiliyo
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    great game, runs smooth, excellent graphics and well tuned game mechanics.

    HOWEVER with the way DRM is worked into it, you can't play w/o an internet connection, which is a pain in and of itself, but if EA's servers are down or overloaded (like now, at launch) you can't play the game at all. it will also randomly delete your regions and cities that are not saved at all locally, so there    great game, runs smooth, excellent graphics and well tuned game mechanics.

    HOWEVER with the way DRM is worked into it, you can't play w/o an internet connection, which is a pain in and of itself, but if EA's servers are down or overloaded (like now, at launch) you can't play the game at all. it will also randomly delete your regions and cities that are not saved at all locally, so there is no way to recover them.

    great game hampered by a complete waste of a distribution/play model. i'm getting a refund.    … Expand
  86. tspjunk
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Sad, just sad. Zero depth compared to SimCity 4, or even SimCity 2000! Puny cities, no offline mode, none of the complexity of a SimCity. I loved this game until this horrific game came out. I only wish I could get my money back from Origin. I hope EA properly responds to this tragic game by recalling this game and starting over from scratch with a competent team!!!
  87. KaerosD
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    To deserve a rating higher than zero only requires the game to function. EA has reached new levels of incompetence, I'm ashamed to have wasted money on another one of their nonfunctional abortions of games. If there's a line for refunds, point me to it.
  88. us3th3forc3
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    This game is terrible. Actually, I don't really know if the game is terrible or not since I haven't been able to play it. EA's decision to make me play online the entire time has made it impossible to play the game at all as the servers are busy. And when I sign in it makes me do a tutorial that I cannot even do as the controls are grayed out. So my tutorial is me just sitting thereThis game is terrible. Actually, I don't really know if the game is terrible or not since I haven't been able to play it. EA's decision to make me play online the entire time has made it impossible to play the game at all as the servers are busy. And when I sign in it makes me do a tutorial that I cannot even do as the controls are grayed out. So my tutorial is me just sitting there waiting for something to happen. I LOVED SimCity 3000 and was so excited about this game, but now I am really disappointed that I bought this game at all. Maybe someone will let me know if this game is fun or not once they get a chance to play it.… Expand
  89. SayAhoy
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Very unhappy with my purchase. Can't even play the game. Server let me on, but won't let me actually create a city or play. The game itself might be fun, if only it would let me play.
  90. wildchicken
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    This game does not run for me at all. The server is listed as available. But when I go to create my city it states that it cannot be claimed. Does not matter the server I am on.
  91. Teamsprocket2
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Surely EA can do no wrong? That's a wrong statement there. Sim City needs to be online to work in the first place. I got about 10 minutes offline before it gave me error about not being connected online. Aren't Sim City games normally single player and can be played offline? Seriously EA, get a grip.
  92. yodagirl
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    The idea that we don't have an option to turn off online play seems like someone made a mistake. I beta tested on the 2nd and 3rd runs and realized very quickly that the space allowed to build on was out of touch with previous releases. I am a long time city player and I have to say the whole game has lost it's interest. I can fill up a city in an hour, where is the strategy in that? IThe idea that we don't have an option to turn off online play seems like someone made a mistake. I beta tested on the 2nd and 3rd runs and realized very quickly that the space allowed to build on was out of touch with previous releases. I am a long time city player and I have to say the whole game has lost it's interest. I can fill up a city in an hour, where is the strategy in that? I know on release day they are going to have glitches and such but when you add the variable of servers, whoa the experience sucks. Many of the servers are in BUSY and when I did get on as soon as I get to the point of naming the city the game stops responding. Super annoying!… Expand
  93. david22585
    Mar 6, 2013
    2
    Small city sizes makes the game not true to the simcity series. In addition, the always on connection required with servers that cannot handle the loads just further drops the ball. Maxis had a great idea, great game plan, great foundation, but failed to deliver with the execution of the final simcity game. I call it the final, because they will lose a lot of long time fans of the seriesSmall city sizes makes the game not true to the simcity series. In addition, the always on connection required with servers that cannot handle the loads just further drops the ball. Maxis had a great idea, great game plan, great foundation, but failed to deliver with the execution of the final simcity game. I call it the final, because they will lose a lot of long time fans of the series with this one.… Expand
  94. Brzhk
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Not able to play, Thanks EA. Along with the usual marketing europeans served after americans DRMs all the way we're still unable to play the game. Like Diablo 3. When it's not the update server, it's the unavaiability to connect. When it's not the connection, it's the stuck tutorial. When it's not the stuck tutorial, it's the unability to create a new city. Lessons learned? yeah,Not able to play, Thanks EA. Along with the usual marketing europeans served after americans DRMs all the way we're still unable to play the game. Like Diablo 3. When it's not the update server, it's the unavaiability to connect. When it's not the connection, it's the stuck tutorial. When it's not the stuck tutorial, it's the unability to create a new city. Lessons learned? yeah, right, thanks EA. The game developpers have more important things to do than struggle with your genious DRM related problems and the customers too.… Expand
  95. Styrkyr
    Mar 12, 2013
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The Good: Simcity has very good graphics. The data overlays are beautiful. Construction looks realistic. Nonrenewable resources add a new and interesting flavor to the game. Multiplayer regions with multiple cities online add a new and very fun flavor. There are new disasters which look and play realistically, have unexpected effects on your city. You can now build curving roads and road/road overpasses. Roads now govern your buildings density. There is a good selection of different buildings. The Bad: -Serverside
    Always-Online DRM means that you have to have a stable internet connection; the slightest hiccup in your internet will result in the game crashing and you losing hours of game play. The servers are horrible; most of them are either "busy" or "full", meaning that you can't play at all. They also crash often. Server capacity is abysmal. There is no "offline" option for single player games. All saves must be synced with EA's cloud servers; you cannot have any local saves on your hard drive. -Clientside
    Buildings often look half finished and devoid of color or decoration; it is clear that this was an unfinished product that was rushed out. City sizes are limited to approx. 2km x 2km; slightly smaller then the smallest map size on Simcity 4. Buildings cannot be placed anywhere where they are not adjacent to a road; you can no longer fill in the interior of city blocks with parks/etc. Some graphics appear half finished, i.e. grass showing through a road, dirt overlapping on a road, or jagged/flickering graphics. The game is slow to respond to neighbor deals, such as sending power or sewage to a neighbor. Parks look like they're made with astroturf. Waves/beaches look unrealistic. Zones are aligned on a road and cannot be expanded to show the entire zone; this makes planning for city blocks very difficult. There is no subway, elevated rail, monorail, or highways available to be built. Agriculture/farms have been completely removed from the game. It was not designed to be compatible with player-designed mods. Overall:
    This game had the potential to be something great, to be a truly awesome game. But with the forced DRM limitations EA has imposed on us, as well as the horrifying state of their servers, this game has become yet another destined for the bookshelf. Maxis outdid itself with bringing new ideas, concepts, and operations into the game, but with the client-side limitations such as city sizes and lack of transportation options, not to mention the server-side DRM, the game is effectively crippled. Bluntly, I can not recommend this game to anyone. One can only hope that EA will listed to the community and fix what is wrong.

    Pentium Core i7 4.2 ghz OC
    32gb DDR-3 Kingston HyperX RAM
    3 x EVGA GTX 680 2gb SLI'd
    OCZ Octane 1tb SSD    … Expand
  96. MrAnt
    Mar 12, 2013
    1
    massive screwup from EA and Maxis. First the servers were screwed, then after playing for about 20hrs each of my cities ends up bugged and I cant play them anymore. Never again will I preorder a EA game. Such a shame this had so much potential...
  97. jdestroyer82
    Mar 13, 2013
    2
    This game is fundamentally broken on almost all levels. AI is oversimplified and a hindrance to game advancement. Online only functionality is not worth the restrictions. Players end up with a tiny generic city that becomes more and more frustrating to grow. This game is a massive disappointment, even beyond the restrictive DRM and launch issues. This will be the last EA game I willThis game is fundamentally broken on almost all levels. AI is oversimplified and a hindrance to game advancement. Online only functionality is not worth the restrictions. Players end up with a tiny generic city that becomes more and more frustrating to grow. This game is a massive disappointment, even beyond the restrictive DRM and launch issues. This will be the last EA game I will purchase, no matter what the name of the studio they assimilate. Because, that studio is only a name. None of the original Maxis seems to exist in this product. I hope this serves as a lesson to the game industry and its consumers.… Expand
  98. Gayfish
    Mar 26, 2013
    0
    This game is terrible I don't recommend it to anyone. Any game with always-online DRM should be avoided at all costs, it never works out and just frustrates the customers. I shouldn't be forced to be online to play a SINGLE player game!!! And the max size of the city is way too small. Go play SimCity 4 or 3000 they're much better than this steaming pile.
  99. absolutcrobi
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    So there are less basic features then previous Sim City games (seriously no subways). Cities are capped at stupidly small sizes (who want's to build a megalopolis anyway). It is a single player game with forced multiplayer and an always on internet drm, this is not a MMO there is ZERO need for a constant connection. Wanna play when your internet is down, too bad. Want to play when EA'sSo there are less basic features then previous Sim City games (seriously no subways). Cities are capped at stupidly small sizes (who want's to build a megalopolis anyway). It is a single player game with forced multiplayer and an always on internet drm, this is not a MMO there is ZERO need for a constant connection. Wanna play when your internet is down, too bad. Want to play when EA's servers are down for maintenance, so sorry. Want to play while you are stuck on a family camping trip in the middle of nowhere, hope you like singing Kumbaya. Basically you are paying $60 for a game that you do not own, you are streaming the game when EA will let you. I won't even go into the fiasco of EA being too incompetent to allow the game to be preloaded on systems that pre-purchased the game. DO NOT BUY THIS. Do not support always on DRM. You want a good Sim City game, buy Sim City 4. I am playing it right now.… Expand
  100. Grims
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Th game itself by Maxis is pretty good and probably worth roughly 40-50$. The origin connection makes the game non-playable (literally 100$ non playable), late release access and thus completely worthless.

    Thank you EA for taking 80$ from me for something I can't play.

    Strongly recommend you do NOT buy this game. Grim
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Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
21
#21 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
64

Mixed or average reviews - based on 75 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 26 out of 75
  2. Mixed: 39 out of 75
  3. Negative: 10 out of 75
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Jun 5, 2013
    65
    Given enough patches and DCLs, SimCity might eventually become the game that should have been on its release and justify the ambiguous choices that its developers made. [May 2013]
  2. Games Master UK
    May 9, 2013
    68
    Hints at great things but is limited by small cities and promises it can't deliver on. [June 2013, p.80]
  3. Hyper Magazine
    May 9, 2013
    40
    There's more problems with this game than I have words. Looks great though. [June 2013, p.80]
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