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. Arasine
    Apr 3, 2013
    0
    EA have taken a deep, relaxing simulation and turned it into an iphone game for 12 year old girls (imagine "The Sims" with a option to 'plop' houses down).
    City size is laughable compared to every other city empire building game out there. Servers will eat your gamesave, never to be seen again and you never even own the game, you are renting until EA turn off the servers whenever they    EA have taken a deep, relaxing simulation and turned it into an iphone game for 12 year old girls (imagine "The Sims" with a option to 'plop' houses down).
    City size is laughable compared to every other city empire building game out there. Servers will eat your gamesave, never to be seen again and you never even own the game, you are renting until EA turn off the servers whenever they feel like it (read when it's not making them enough profit).
    Learn from others mistakes people, do not buy.    … Expand
  2. Red-Rocket
    Jun 23, 2013
    2
    Ok i really want to enjoy this game, it looks good, i like the mechanics BUT THE ALWAYS ONLINE DRM is not for SimCity. And EA being EA this game will go offline and be unplayable in a few years. Thats not worth it
  3. alfdib
    Jun 26, 2013
    2
    I cannot believe SC5 is this game. The cities are ridicoulous little, you'cant expand...there are not underground like in SC4...the traffic is not sustainable due to skycrapers in a little village...water, even close to the sea run out easily and people left city because of no water this is ridicolous, in real life this is never going to happen). If you put a nuclear power station thenI cannot believe SC5 is this game. The cities are ridicoulous little, you'cant expand...there are not underground like in SC4...the traffic is not sustainable due to skycrapers in a little village...water, even close to the sea run out easily and people left city because of no water this is ridicolous, in real life this is never going to happen). If you put a nuclear power station then radioactivity kills everyone in the sorrounding in few months... this is absolutely not real life!!!! Who was the diretor of this game? probably a kid of 4 years old could have done better job.… Expand
  4. Josefrodo
    Jul 23, 2013
    0
    This has got to be the worst game I have ever bought in my life. I am (was) a huge fan of SimCity, and was looking forward to this with a lot of anticipation. After seeing the launch fiasco, I decided to wait. After I saw the reviews... I decided to wait a little longer. When I finally purchased the game, I had to go through the horrid Origin experience, useless and annoying interface.This has got to be the worst game I have ever bought in my life. I am (was) a huge fan of SimCity, and was looking forward to this with a lot of anticipation. After seeing the launch fiasco, I decided to wait. After I saw the reviews... I decided to wait a little longer. When I finally purchased the game, I had to go through the horrid Origin experience, useless and annoying interface.
    When I FINALLY logged on I saw that EA had decided to put advertisements while the game loaded, gee thanks, I'll go buy a car while the game loads, I guess.
    When I finally could play, I saw first hand what everyone was complaining about: dumb AI, uselessly small maps, and the DRM is infuriating, I lost whatever progress my tiny city made because the game would not save or lost connection somehow.
    All in all, I uninstalled the program after playing it three times, and since EA does not give refunds on online downloads, I feel like a sucker for giving SimCity 5 the benefit of the doubt.
    (PS. I bought this game in April but someone just brought up the topic and the memories enraged me enough to write this review)    … Expand
  5. peekitup
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    The game is simply unplayable and is a complete waste of money. Even if you can log in, your city will often not save to the servers, all of the regional interaction between cities. In fact, everything done on the server end seems to be broken by bugs or lag. You will lost hours of gametime, will be unable to play with your friends, unable to build anything of reasonable size that isThe game is simply unplayable and is a complete waste of money. Even if you can log in, your city will often not save to the servers, all of the regional interaction between cities. In fact, everything done on the server end seems to be broken by bugs or lag. You will lost hours of gametime, will be unable to play with your friends, unable to build anything of reasonable size that is functioning. A complete crash and burn in regards to trusting some server to be reliable.

    Do not buy.

    The War Z was better about giving out refunds.    … Expand
  6. DangerDave
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Origin required/ online always on required turd. I'm a huge fan of sim city, this however, is a mess of a release. Even if the origin virus/online requirement was dropped, the game would still have minuscule city sizes. This restricts from building a good sized metropolis, or megapolis and really limits the potential awesomeness of a city. Stick with Sim City 3000 or 2000 or the originalOrigin required/ online always on required turd. I'm a huge fan of sim city, this however, is a mess of a release. Even if the origin virus/online requirement was dropped, the game would still have minuscule city sizes. This restricts from building a good sized metropolis, or megapolis and really limits the potential awesomeness of a city. Stick with Sim City 3000 or 2000 or the original SNES classic.… Expand
  7. Ryster
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I actually bought the Digital Deluxe version on Origin for over £60... what I fool I now feel.

    I haven't been able to play a single minute yet due to EA's completely inadequate server infrastructure, and the requirement to be online to even play the game single player. An absolute disgrace. As they have sold me a product that is clearly defective, do I not have rights to demand a    I actually bought the Digital Deluxe version on Origin for over £60... what I fool I now feel.

    I haven't been able to play a single minute yet due to EA's completely inadequate server infrastructure, and the requirement to be online to even play the game single player. An absolute disgrace.

    As they have sold me a product that is clearly defective, do I not have rights to demand a refund? So far they are refusing, and claim they will ban my account preventing me from playing every other game I ever bought for them if I get my credit card company to reverse the charge. Do they have a right to do that?    … Expand
  8. Yargdpirate
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I can forgive all the internet connections and requirements. But they left out the most important feature of a SimCity game, the ability to use save states. Sandbox games need that so you can play around, and it's not there.
  9. RogerWilco2099
    Mar 7, 2013
    2
    The premise has been lost with this game, with a name like Sim City you want to create just that. A vibrant metropolis of large scale. Unfortunately this has been lost forever now it seems. Maps are smaller then ever and while it has many great features these are virtually the same as the four games before it. The innovation that was promised really isn't there. The game forces you moreThe premise has been lost with this game, with a name like Sim City you want to create just that. A vibrant metropolis of large scale. Unfortunately this has been lost forever now it seems. Maps are smaller then ever and while it has many great features these are virtually the same as the four games before it. The innovation that was promised really isn't there. The game forces you more so then ever to link your city to neighbors which I felt was the fundamental flaw in Sim City 4. Everything under one roof so to speak now doesn't work. The choice isn't even there and has been simply removed. The are bugs and I had to hard restart the game on two occasions due to crashes. These didn't seem linked either so two hard restart bugs on launch isn't good at all. The biggest issue so far is the constant connecting to server issues associated with the needlessly over the top DRM. This function shouldn't make a game non-playable but it does. It kind of shocking that EA are so over-protective now that they will willingly hamper a players experience. I hope this is quickly patched. If so my rating will be higher, but in its current state the game is verging on unplayable.… Expand
  10. upupandaway
    Mar 7, 2013
    2
    Content-wise it is a really nice game very engaging and motivating, despite the criticism regarding map size or similar issues. If however I pay 80€ for a digital download of a game which is not an MMO and I am absolutely unable to play the game, lose progress on cities because connections are extremely unstable even 24h after launch something is very wrong with the deal... The two betaContent-wise it is a really nice game very engaging and motivating, despite the criticism regarding map size or similar issues. If however I pay 80€ for a digital download of a game which is not an MMO and I am absolutely unable to play the game, lose progress on cities because connections are extremely unstable even 24h after launch something is very wrong with the deal... The two beta were meant to evaluate server load prior to the release did they act on that? It seems that no: In the server list there is a total of 4 servers dedicated for european users next to US and pacific servers. Since EA is apparently that cheap, they´ll get an appropriate score from me... Don´t buy the game (now). At least wait.… Expand
  11. Wilian
    Mar 7, 2013
    1
    A game with great potential and vision, but as anyone soon finds out that potential is wasted on the fact you can not even enter the game. While I'd like to give a long meaningful review of this product and a score to reflect it, all that is possible right now, few days after the game hit the market, is to groan at the connection screen.
  12. Papa_Paul
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Pre-Ordered the Digital Deluxe edition from origin. Used a vacation day for 3/5/2013 to play it could not log on a server. Now 3/8/2013 still unable to even log onto a server. This is the the government need to allow consumers to hold these companies accountable for their fraudulent sales and allow us refunds on software!
  13. sagor
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Very small area for the actual city, comparing to previous versions of the game.
    Graphics is not as good as it was in the video (and I play on ultra high).
    And you cannot even play it right now, as all servers are down, even though official response is they are up and running. EA in all its glory!
  14. Chapy
    Mar 16, 2013
    1
    LISTEN, all these red reviews are for a reason, forget the server issues, read on! The game is riddled with bugs, gamebreaking bugs, and I don't even mean crashes or performance issues. Here is a reddit thread dedicated to listing some of these gamebreaking bugs. http://www.reddit.com/r/SimCity/comments/1a0taq/compiled_list_of_suggestions_and_bug_reports_to/ The AI of your utilityLISTEN, all these red reviews are for a reason, forget the server issues, read on! The game is riddled with bugs, gamebreaking bugs, and I don't even mean crashes or performance issues. Here is a reddit thread dedicated to listing some of these gamebreaking bugs. http://www.reddit.com/r/SimCity/comments/1a0taq/compiled_list_of_suggestions_and_bug_reports_to/ The AI of your utility workers are just broken, the pathfinding is atrocious. Just today I discovered a building that costs half a million dollars doesn't actually unlock things that it claims it unlocks in its description. A half a million is not change. These red reviews are acceptable based purely on gameplay bugs alone, but if you incorporate the legitimate server issues that STILL persist (3/16/2013) than this is a game that EA and Maxis should literally be ashamed of.… Expand
  15. Knurrli
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    I think all of this DRM, forced online connection to disconnecting servers and even forced clouding and no local saving is all a bunch of crap. I've decided now to not buy this game. So far, I rather keep playing my Simcity 4. No server problems there.
  16. bearsdenred
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    bought this game 2 days ago from Greenmangaming on discount, really should have checked the forums before purchasing this game. Simcity is not like the old games from Maxis, this is a hybrid EA online DRM fools paradise of a system. Launch here in Europe just like America has been one big joke, a joke played by the DEVS from Maxis and EA buisness managers that must be laughing their headsbought this game 2 days ago from Greenmangaming on discount, really should have checked the forums before purchasing this game. Simcity is not like the old games from Maxis, this is a hybrid EA online DRM fools paradise of a system. Launch here in Europe just like America has been one big joke, a joke played by the DEVS from Maxis and EA buisness managers that must be laughing their heads off with all the coming in. Yet whats the problem with this game. First, because EA want you to be forced to logon to their servers for DRM checking you cant ACTUALLY logon. Why? Because EA didn't provide enough SERVERS for the game. they claim they are fixing the issue yet at 1940PM on launch day NOT ONE single apology has been provided by EA MAXIS to the gamers out here wanting to play! BE WARNED DO NOT BUY THIS GAME STOP BUYING EA GAMES PERIOD. Until us the gamers revolt and stop putting cash into EA will they stop treating us like this. Everyone demand refunds, if none provided start Suing them… Expand
  17. williamflipper
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    There is a big potential inside this wreck train but for the price asked is offensive toward any consumer.
    It feels like a Cityvile or any sim/facebook type of game pumped up by high budget, You can not avoid to play with other players and also YOU NEED other players to share their resources because the game design doesn't allow the player to be self-sufficient with resources and able to    There is a big potential inside this wreck train but for the price asked is offensive toward any consumer.
    It feels like a Cityvile or any sim/facebook type of game pumped up by high budget, You can not avoid to play with other players and also YOU NEED other players to share their resources because the game design doesn't allow the player to be self-sufficient with resources and able to covers the citizens needs    … Expand
  18. colonelpepper
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Don't RENT THIS GAME! When EA shuts down its servers for good, your game becomes unplayable. Also, EA has introduced a whole slew of unnecessary problems by trying to tie the game to "Always Online". *No Saves **Cities lost and hours of design destroyed by EA SERVER problems. ***Waiting in a QUE for single player game for HOURS AND HOURS. F' this
  19. f0lly
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    EA should have seen this coming from the D3 fiasco. Not sure what is so hard for publishers to understand GAMERS DON'T WANT YOUR ALWAYS ON DRM OR DUMBED DOWN VERSIONS OF GAMES.
  20. NoAssociation
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    The game is currently un-playable. Even if it was playable, you can't build a modern city. No bicycle infrastructure, no subways, the streetcar can only be built on a 6 lane highway, etc. The plot you build your city on is also quite small. You will end up with skyscrapers next to grassy plots of land you can't build on for some odd reason.
  21. CornerBoy
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    So the game's been out for 2 days now, and I still haven't been able to play due to the ridiculous online only feature. It actually seems like people pirating the game are the only ones able to play.
  22. ramha
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    Pay and do not play by EA is the height of arrogance!
    Ubisoft has also had an experience on hard DRM protection, but EA did not listen to other people's mistakes and have started to do the same. It's a shame when good projects EA spoils And it is not the first time
  23. zugu
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    This game is unplayable. I have spent my hard earned money on it and I just can't play it, because EA is incompetent and greedy. Don't be mistaken, it is only greed that has created this monster.
  24. Bump
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    I spent $80.00 for a game I can't even play the single player. So disappointing. You would have thought EA had done something like this before....how can you possibly use DRM that doesn't even allow single player? And the issue of the two price options, either buy half a game or how it was intended to be played at $80.00!! They're losing gamers every minute because of so many poor choices.
  25. roguenealer
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Do not buy this game you can only play it if your signed up online and half the time it doesnt work. Its like diablo II but without the bugs being fixed Im sooo furious I bought this game and do not support these greedy people!!!!!
  26. Lagweed
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    All servers around the world are overloaded and can't be logged into without a wait, and when I do get in it can't load my city. Maxis robbed us all blind and proceeded to shove a proverbial wire brush into the rectums of all it's fans. Even when I do manage to play the game seems broken, certain types of buildings like casinos stop working and the only way to fix it is to restart the gameAll servers around the world are overloaded and can't be logged into without a wait, and when I do get in it can't load my city. Maxis robbed us all blind and proceeded to shove a proverbial wire brush into the rectums of all it's fans. Even when I do manage to play the game seems broken, certain types of buildings like casinos stop working and the only way to fix it is to restart the game and go through the horrid login/loading process again. Thanks for nothing Maxis, I am no longer a fan… Expand
  27. NazTfox
    Jul 28, 2013
    0
    I bought this game at release and have regretted it since. The game is bug ridden, the always online DRM is ridiculous considering this is a single player experience, and the it is difficult to create your own city when the plots are predetermined and very small. This is a sad excuse for a SimCity game. Don't waste your money on this crap.
  28. Fuu
    Mar 8, 2013
    2
    Sim City has really flopped, even if you remove the server issues from the equation. I feel really bad for the guys at Maxis who had to make the game like this, I have a feeling that it wasn't their decision. Over the last two days I've managed to play for about 10 hours on the Europe West 2 server despite the horrible server problems, and I'm already getting bored with the game. HavingSim City has really flopped, even if you remove the server issues from the equation. I feel really bad for the guys at Maxis who had to make the game like this, I have a feeling that it wasn't their decision. Over the last two days I've managed to play for about 10 hours on the Europe West 2 server despite the horrible server problems, and I'm already getting bored with the game. Having spent thousands of hours to all of the previous versions of Sim City, that is a surprise I didn't expect when paying 60€ for the game. At 6€/h that is a pretty steep price for two frustrating days of queuing to the servers and constantly being afraid to loose your progress.

    Severe points reduction from the city sizes that are probably the most crippling aspect of this game. The current map is full to the edges after only few hours of play and you get a claustrophobic feeling in the game with no space to expand. Moving to second region just postpones it a few hours and frustration returns even stronger when it also runs out of space. Your city looks like a downtown of a real city that's cut out from a larger entity with real suburbs and all that nice surrounding built area. Developers say that the choice was made so that even low end PCs could play the game. I don't understand why they couldn't use the same approach that has been taken in Sim City 4: variable size maps. You just pick the map that your PC can handle when it's maxed out and that's it. If the choice was too large one, try again with a smaller one. Problem solved. It's annoying how the developers are trying to explain away design decisions with "pretend logic" and hoping that players don't notice. I'm guessing most likely the orders came from above to limit the city sizes for some future DLC release. Or some other crap like that. I just want to refuse to believe a serious game designer wouldn't notice how much the city size limit affects the game experience.

    Lots of minus from roads, somehow all the fun is missing from building the roads because of the minuscule city sizes and lack of choice on how to connect to neighboring cities. That's a shame because building roads and designing road networks has always been one of the key aspects of Sim City. It's also annoying how you have to upgrade all your roads to high density because otherwise your city just won't grow in population, and then you have a city with only high buildings. Having the curvy roads is great, but doesn't compensate for all the other lacks.

    To add insult to injury, there is the always on DRM that doesn't let me choose when to save regions, or allow me to reload regions at previous states. I don't have possession of my own save games from private region where I'm the only player. The pollution that crosses city boundaries into neighboring cities and abandoned city slots pretty much guarantees that I have no intention to play on public regions where I can't control actions of the other cities.

    The game is pretty and smooth, credits for that. The simulation engine seems to work nicely. But I'm not going to spend hundreds of hours to this game just because it looks pretty and I can follow each Sim around in the city. It must be fun to play, the City Building must be the primary activity and the current version just isn't any of that. Many of official reviews said the game is a lot of fun. I disagree.

    Looking at how EA did their calculations about the required amount of servers to support their player base, it seems that they need at least 4-8 times more server capacity to do the job than estimated. After the doubling of the initial capacity that I've seen today, the servers are still completely bogged even with the cheetah speed and game features disabled. So here's an interesting thought to ponder: How much is EA willing to spend on running these servers for an extended period? How many hours of server time at amazon did my 60€ buy? At what point is EA going to decide that it's time to pull the plug or they will start loosing money for every hour I spend on this game? Their initial estimates on the server costs were 4-8 times under the mark, and you can bet your house on it that EA is not going to allow Sim City to add to the red side of their balance sheet if the investors have any say on it. Be prepared to make a door stop from your Sim City DVD much sooner than you thought, this one is not going to be kicking for 10 years like it's predecessor. Please, don't repeat my mistake and support this horrible business model of always on-line single player games that pretend to be serious multi-player games to get your moneys. I would ask for my money back, but apparently EA doesn't refund games bought from Origin. Thanks EA for ruining Sim City.    … Expand
  29. Soulcrusher
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    COULD be a great game but I'll only say one thing: DRM online :(

    And in the future, if the servers go down, how can I play my game (yes, I paid for it), and my save, what guarantees I'll have?
  30. PreLighter
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Always-on DRM with awful servers, disappearing saves, useless support, small cities. this game is meant to be like the sims 2 and 3, to be able to can in from long time fans and sell them DLCs with awful service and high price.
  31. Verencius
    Mar 10, 2013
    0
    Absolute crap. Seriously. If you manage to connect to a server (there should be achievement if you do that, seriously, and then probably achievement for every 5 successful connections) then you might find your city there... or not. You may have an option to continue building your city, or not. Schroedinger is laughing in his grave. Even worse, if you don't find your city on the server thenAbsolute crap. Seriously. If you manage to connect to a server (there should be achievement if you do that, seriously, and then probably achievement for every 5 successful connections) then you might find your city there... or not. You may have an option to continue building your city, or not. Schroedinger is laughing in his grave. Even worse, if you don't find your city on the server then you can only play a tutorial (someone who came up with this idea should be fired and banned from the industry forever). 3 days after the release I've got to play the tutorial about 10 times. seriously if you are into sim city just wait 6 months until they finally improve the servers and you will most likely save money on the game too.… Expand
  32. Kilmeister
    Mar 16, 2013
    2
    As a long time fan of the series (Played every one including the original). I fell into the trap of thinking that the complaints weren't justified. Well they are. The game is so close to being a real great title, but has too many gamebreaking flaws. Always on DRM. I feel dirty for paying for this since I have balked at other titles for this very reason. At first I thought the smallAs a long time fan of the series (Played every one including the original). I fell into the trap of thinking that the complaints weren't justified. Well they are. The game is so close to being a real great title, but has too many gamebreaking flaws. Always on DRM. I feel dirty for paying for this since I have balked at other titles for this very reason. At first I thought the small city sizes was just a style preference, but I then realized it was a cover for the horrible pathfinding, which unfortunatly hinders not just traffic, but power,water,etc. I think this game still has a chance at redemption, but unless they clean this mess up, pass on it and save your money.… Expand
  33. kuau
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    When I can log on and play I might change this review. EA you suck. Why make a single player game require your servers? Adding some random characters to make this post longer.
  34. Stumblebee
    Mar 22, 2013
    1
    The obviously glaring issue here is the forced DRM, which I'm sure you've realized by now that it's not even required. The whole "The game is multiplayer" excuse EA are giving is a lie, seeing as how many other multiplayer games show that a constant internet connection isn't needed.

    It's as simple as this EA want to force people to use Origin, simply to claim that people ACTUALLY use    The obviously glaring issue here is the forced DRM, which I'm sure you've realized by now that it's not even required. The whole "The game is multiplayer" excuse EA are giving is a lie, seeing as how many other multiplayer games show that a constant internet connection isn't needed.

    It's as simple as this EA want to force people to use Origin, simply to claim that people ACTUALLY use Origin, to use in their snazzy advertising campaigns that "Oh, 10 million people use Origin" when those 10 million people are forced to use Origin and more tha likely just use it to install their game and never buy anything from Origin at all.

    Honestly, you'd think with all the crap that EA have been getting, even to the fact that it forced the CEO to resign, that they'd stop stuff like DRM, DLC-mania and Microtransactions. What ever happened to make game, release game, get money? Rather than make game, try to grab more money, end up having lackluster sales, blame the developers?

    Anyways, rant aside and launch problems aside, this is essentially a $60 facebook game, it's SimCity Societies with snazzier graphics. I'd honestly recommend SimCity 4 to you guys anyways, better music, around the same graphics, more stuff to do, you can actually launch the game, plus it's like $14.00 on steam or something.

    Despite what people are saying, I don't think gaming is dead, I don't even think EA is dead, there's SOME glimmer now that the CEO's resigned and they got their largest kick in the ass so far, but I DO think gaming journalism is dead. Paid reviewers everywhere! Subjective journalism feuled by opinions everywhere!    … Expand
  35. FGRaptor
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    I’m not a reviewer or anything, but I figured I might as well try something like this. However, I can’t review SimCity because I only played about 30 minutes so far and spend about 1 hour trying to play it.

    What I have played was nice, although plagued by graphical glitches, bugs, and connection problems. The game looks nice and is actually more difficult than I imagined after playing    I’m not a reviewer or anything, but I figured I might as well try something like this. However, I can’t review SimCity because I only played about 30 minutes so far and spend about 1 hour trying to play it.

    What I have played was nice, although plagued by graphical glitches, bugs, and connection problems. The game looks nice and is actually more difficult than I imagined after playing the beta (demo) weekend.

    I don’t understand why you have to play the tutorial every time you join a new server instead if all menu options being available at all times though. This is the worst decision I have ever seen being made (probably not the worst), and I don’t know how this got through QA.

    The game is currently plagued by server problems and basically unplayable. The fact there are different servers instead of a one-server technology like The Secret World uses, is bad enough as it is. You can’t really play with everyone and your cities are saved to specific servers and this unavailable anywhere else.

    Maxis might have made a good game here, but it’s impossible to tell.

    I wouldn’t recommend anyone to buy this at the moment, as it’s equivalent to buying a not working product or entering a scam deal that asks for 30 quid in exchange for a good fortune. Personally I already feel cheated, having paid for a product that does not work. This is, in my opinion, a scam.

    I will update my view on it when the game actually works.    … Expand
  36. ckount
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Everything that needs to be said has already been said. EA is the real culprit here and it's a sad moment for us gamers as well as the designers and the developers of this long awaited title. If I only could hope that any lesson was learned by the bean counters I wouldn't fret as much but EA/Origin (as well as UBISoft/UPlay) has proven that that isn't the case. I have the money. I believeEverything that needs to be said has already been said. EA is the real culprit here and it's a sad moment for us gamers as well as the designers and the developers of this long awaited title. If I only could hope that any lesson was learned by the bean counters I wouldn't fret as much but EA/Origin (as well as UBISoft/UPlay) has proven that that isn't the case. I have the money. I believe in paying for my entertainment but the distributors are making it harder and harder to not turn to other suppliers. Sure I could wait a while and this will settle.
    But I paid for this. And pre-ordered it to be able to play come launch day.
    This way of treating me, the customer, is not alright.
    I want the product. I just don't want EA or Origin to be any part of it. Nor UBISoft and UPlay either.    … Expand
  37. GolferGuy
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I cannot connect! This is incredibly frustrating. How can you release a game that requires connectivity and not have your back end servers ready and deployed.
  38. dockmann
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    This is probably one of those moments where everyone with just a sense of knowing about history will be left in such disbelief that this can happen, that it's actually not even funny. It's more enraging. I mean obviously we only have to look back to Diablo 3, and what a failure that was. But as happens so often, some people just don't learn from history, and therefore they fail. This isThis is probably one of those moments where everyone with just a sense of knowing about history will be left in such disbelief that this can happen, that it's actually not even funny. It's more enraging. I mean obviously we only have to look back to Diablo 3, and what a failure that was. But as happens so often, some people just don't learn from history, and therefore they fail. This is such a disgrace, and I definitely believe this incompetence from EA will make me think again about buying games from them, this is just plain stupid. There should definitely be a total refund policy be put in place for this.… Expand
  39. AceMe
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Always online DRM, smaller, non-connected cities due to engine limitations, DAY 0 DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT, poor customer service and delivery of product (waited almost an hour to connect to my single player game), and a swath of simplifications in the gameplay that ruins it for a SC veteran like myself. Don't bother to get this game. Save some money and buy Sim City 4, or Sim City 2000. YouAlways online DRM, smaller, non-connected cities due to engine limitations, DAY 0 DOWNLOADABLE CONTENT, poor customer service and delivery of product (waited almost an hour to connect to my single player game), and a swath of simplifications in the gameplay that ruins it for a SC veteran like myself. Don't bother to get this game. Save some money and buy Sim City 4, or Sim City 2000. You can play them OFFLINE as well.

    Real Talk.

    This is an $80 facebook game. This origin (spyware) dumbed down piece of garbage, not only costs $80 for the full game (any lesser version witholds ingame content), but comes intact with intrusive, always-online DRM. Many people, even reviewers, were unable to access their games or load old saves because this. As a consumer, we should have a zero-tolerance for this sort of practice and boycott any game which is essentially an $80 rental. As to the content of the game, the city plots are abysmal in size, deals with neighboring cities is done automatically, connections with other cities (highways and rails) is done automatically, and much content like subway stations have been cut. The overall nature of the game is so limited that it when taken into context with it's social gaming aspects, you have to conclude that would be better fit for a facebook or iphone game.    … Expand
  40. NEWater
    Mar 8, 2013
    2
    I really like the idea and concept that no city lives in a vacuum, and the game attempts to reflect that by including multiplayer elements of cooperation with municipal services and competition in global trade of commodities, but in terms of the simulation it feels like it's "SimCity Lite". There were many features that were central to the SimCity franchise that got cut out in the name ofI really like the idea and concept that no city lives in a vacuum, and the game attempts to reflect that by including multiplayer elements of cooperation with municipal services and competition in global trade of commodities, but in terms of the simulation it feels like it's "SimCity Lite". There were many features that were central to the SimCity franchise that got cut out in the name of "streamlining" i.e. plan your own highway off-ramp locations, tiny plot size, terraforming, etc. Sure, the much-vaunted Glassbox simulation engine that tracks the activity of every individual sim promises a more "accurate simulation", but it's moot when so many aspects of the game's AI behave like retards. Traffic goes into a standstill even if you spend 75% of your budget on public transport if you commit the crime of having more than 5 intersections in your main arteries. Someone even proved how pants-on-head retarded the traffic AI is by making a city out of one single winding snake road spread out across the lot, and managed to have a successful city because of it because 0 intersections 0 gridlock. vOv

    I really want to like the game and the synergy it promotes, but unfortunately there are many things that need to be done for the game to be a success. The Always-Online system is not necessarily a DRM, but also something in-built to the game that had poorly thought-out execution. It failed to account for the contingency that someone's game would disconnect, and does not have an offline save that could be uploaded to the cloud the next time the player reconnects to the server (Diablo III and StarCraft II had that, at least). EA/Maxis also failed to properly stress test in their popular beta stages, and additionally they were piss poor in their communication to their players when they were attempting to sort out their server woes.

    On top of the always-online stuff, the game itself is in need of a significant overhaul. Traffic AI needs to be fixed. The RCI indicator is a lie after 2 days of playing and finding out that zoning according to the RCI indicator did nothing for my economy, I clicked on my population window and found everything I needed to know in the detail tab. I then decided to ignore everything the game was telling me through RCI and the ingame prompts, and did much better in my subsequent cities. There are just way too many aspects of the game that were either because of poor design decisions and poor execution that kind of border on amateurish. Somehow, I think that this SimCity 2013 has become a deeply wounding blow to Maxis's reputation. Lots of fanbois will protest and say that Maxis is perfect, and EA is at fault. But I've been observing this game for a long time, and Maxis is just as complicit as EA in this, from the Online Lead being a Maxis staffer to Maxis designers themselves who wanted the always-online concept to begin with. Lots of people who have been playing Maxis games since the 90s have since lost their trust in Maxis, and it can only go downhill from here.    … Expand
  41. Slaw
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    This product is marketed as a game but is in fact a service platform for delivering content already built and located inside the software and making it available for a fee.

    This service can only be accessed when and how EA wishes it to be done so. Additionally any actions taken while using this service are located and stored within EA's servers. At time of writing almost all of these    This product is marketed as a game but is in fact a service platform for delivering content already built and located inside the software and making it available for a fee.

    This service can only be accessed when and how EA wishes it to be done so. Additionally any actions taken while using this service are located and stored within EA's servers. At time of writing almost all of these servers are inaccessible as are key features.

    Product is INOPERABLE.    … Expand
  42. JPLazyNinja
    Mar 7, 2013
    2
    If you can't guess why, please look above or below me. Its the SAME. DAMN. ISSUE. Its one thing to have a bad game, its another to gave an unplayable game.
  43. sintri
    Mar 7, 2013
    1
    Ignoring the fact that your city sizes are small as hell. The cities themselves function normally even without any connect to the internet at all so there's really no reason for the size limit or an internet connection at all. Also ignoring that portions of the game are still a mess, for one the sims look like crap and some of them are even missing models, and alot of the game assetsIgnoring the fact that your city sizes are small as hell. The cities themselves function normally even without any connect to the internet at all so there's really no reason for the size limit or an internet connection at all. Also ignoring that portions of the game are still a mess, for one the sims look like crap and some of them are even missing models, and alot of the game assets don't line up properly at all, floating utliltiy buildings, roads protruding over each other, service vehicles doing continous U-turns for no reason at all. Ignoring all that, bottom line is it's day 3, and most of us haven't even been able to log on once, and those who have spent more hours trying to log on than actual playing. So yea, not likely to be buying another Origin game ever again.… Expand
  44. sexconker
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    This game is broken. I would advise anyone who has not purchased it to refrain from doing so for at least a month (until April 1st 2013). There are so many server issues that the game is unplayable in its current state. Even when you are able to get on and play, you'll run into game-breaking bugs and you'll have to restart your city.

    Thanks to always online DRM and EA's terrible    This game is broken. I would advise anyone who has not purchased it to refrain from doing so for at least a month (until April 1st 2013). There are so many server issues that the game is unplayable in its current state. Even when you are able to get on and play, you'll run into game-breaking bugs and you'll have to restart your city.

    Thanks to always online DRM and EA's terrible quality control, one of the most famous franchises in the industry has been turned into a turd.    … Expand
  45. Deadalon
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Game built around DRM with zero thought of how much service the company needed to add to make that work. Is it worth it for preventing piracy? To let paying consumers not be able to play? Ofc not. If companies want to prevent piracy of games they need to find other ways than always online. D3 and now SimCity have hopefully done enough damage for players to never buy a DRM alwaysGame built around DRM with zero thought of how much service the company needed to add to make that work. Is it worth it for preventing piracy? To let paying consumers not be able to play? Ofc not. If companies want to prevent piracy of games they need to find other ways than always online. D3 and now SimCity have hopefully done enough damage for players to never buy a DRM always online game again.… Expand
  46. hawdskinna
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I am giving this game a rating based on the content I have experienced so far... and since I bought the game on release, and have yet to be able to play it, despite many efforts... I give it a 0. Only online play to prevent piracy, don't have servers to even support a fraction of the player base... and guess what... Skidrow cracked it ANYWAY... and in less than 24 hours. Good job. AnotherI am giving this game a rating based on the content I have experienced so far... and since I bought the game on release, and have yet to be able to play it, despite many efforts... I give it a 0. Only online play to prevent piracy, don't have servers to even support a fraction of the player base... and guess what... Skidrow cracked it ANYWAY... and in less than 24 hours. Good job. Another EA masterpiece… Expand
  47. douchette
    Mar 29, 2013
    0
    I'm going to ignore the big and obvious issues. Once I was able to log in and actually play the game for a few consistent hours, I start to notice a few major flaws. The cities are tiny, and the AI is HORRIBLE. Compared to the last title in the series, the city boundaries you are given in this game is tiny. It's done to convince players to use their broken online play and attempt toI'm going to ignore the big and obvious issues. Once I was able to log in and actually play the game for a few consistent hours, I start to notice a few major flaws. The cities are tiny, and the AI is HORRIBLE. Compared to the last title in the series, the city boundaries you are given in this game is tiny. It's done to convince players to use their broken online play and attempt to cooperate with your griefer neighbors in your public region. The AI in this game is completely stupid. Your citizens will ALL take a tiny dirt road over a 6-lane avenue if it means the path is shorter by ANY distance. My city with 4 fire halls managed to have a whole block burn down because all 6 of my firetrucks were doing a Congo line clogged up responding to the SAME fire on the other end of the city. Why does the game send all my firetrucks to the same fire? I don't know. This is the same for all emergency services. The citizens going to work all behave the same way too! They wake up in the morning, and head to the CLOSEST workplace to them! Not the one they've worked the day before, but just the closest. If one work place is closer to your residential area than the rest of all your workplaces, then that place is going to have a massive traffic jam every morning. Same thing applies for the evening commute. Online reviews can claim that you just have to plan and build your city with those AI restrictions in mind, and I ask them, why do I have to build a city that only functions properly given some weird AI programming made by a supposed city simulation game? Should be called "SimAlternateuniversewithweirdrulescity". Avoid this game at all costs. These problems can't even be fixed one year past release, stick with the last Simcity, which should be $20 DRM-free.… Expand
  48. Belkanell
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    Impossible de télécharger, de jouer un jeu pourtant facturé 70€ dans sa version collector. Gros foutage de gueule de la part d'Electronic Arts. Ce n'est pas comme si il n'y avait pas eu d'exemples juste avant avec Diablo 3 ou même Guild Wars 2. Ce n'est pas le joueur qui doit s'adapter aux jeux, mais bien l'inverse.
  49. Tubey
    Nov 26, 2014
    2
    Oh dear, what a massive disappointment! I avoided this when it was released due to the widespread bugs - but I heard they'd been fixed and it was available cheap so I gave it a shot.

    To be perfectly blunt, this game does not hold a candle - even today - to Sim City 4. It's laughable in comparison. Everything has a gloss on it which gives a distinctly cartoon-like feel, completely    Oh dear, what a massive disappointment! I avoided this when it was released due to the widespread bugs - but I heard they'd been fixed and it was available cheap so I gave it a shot.

    To be perfectly blunt, this game does not hold a candle - even today - to Sim City 4. It's laughable in comparison. Everything has a gloss on it which gives a distinctly cartoon-like feel, completely ruining immersion in the simulation. It doesn't look "bad" as such, but it isn't what I'm looking for in a city simulator; why micromanage something that doesn't take itself seriously? Don't get me wrong, adding a bit of fun and quirkiness has always been a feature of the Sim games, but that can be done by the context of the game (such as the llama references and such) rather than with the graphical look.

    The maps are so small that it should be called Sim Village. They even managed to ruin the UI, which was one of the only weaknesses in Sim City 4 - it's now outright annoying.

    So even at a low price, I can't recommend this title. Sim City 4 is available on GOG and is comfortably the superior game in pretty much every respect.

    In summary, Sim City and Sims 4 shows how far EA have fell with this franchise. Both are cash cows for the gullible, and I won't be caught out again.    … Expand
  50. SpaceMonkee420
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Don't make an online only game and then not plan for enough space for all players. I just bought the game for 60 dollars, and now the game is telling me that all the servers are full. WTF. I paid for a game, not the privledge to wait in a 5 min countdown over and over again. DO NOT BUY! I think to no ones surprise EA has put profit ahead of its customers satisfaction. These companies won'tDon't make an online only game and then not plan for enough space for all players. I just bought the game for 60 dollars, and now the game is telling me that all the servers are full. WTF. I paid for a game, not the privledge to wait in a 5 min countdown over and over again. DO NOT BUY! I think to no ones surprise EA has put profit ahead of its customers satisfaction. These companies won't change unless we stop supporting them by buying these garbage titles.… Expand
  51. MobusDorphin
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    3 days was more than enough time for EA to get their...stuff... together and get this working. The sad part is this game is amazing. Of what little time I've been able to get in playing it, the experience is amazing. Unfortunately, this always-on DRM completely ruined the game. I cannot play this in a single player mode if the servers are offline. There is absolutely no reason to3 days was more than enough time for EA to get their...stuff... together and get this working. The sad part is this game is amazing. Of what little time I've been able to get in playing it, the experience is amazing. Unfortunately, this always-on DRM completely ruined the game. I cannot play this in a single player mode if the servers are offline. There is absolutely no reason to not have an optional offline mode, for when the servers go down and we can't connect. This is not an MMO, and just because you wanted to add multiplayer elements to the game is no reason to have this intrusive always-on DRM. If you want to learn how to properly DRM a game, take a look at Steam. You DO need to connect to the internet to play a game, but once you log in, you have the option to play offline for up to 30 days, for if the server were to go down, or your internet. EA., Congratulations on having a worse release than Diablo 3. You claim always-on DRM is the way of the future but apparently awful releases are going to be the way of the future as well, and if it continues, you will find fewer and fewer people will be buying your games.… Expand
  52. VelvetVelour
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Have not been able to play a all. Tutorial stopped functioning half way because it couldn't load city because server was full. Have not been able to play ever since.
  53. Kp_109
    Mar 10, 2013
    0
    To be honest the gameplay of the game is good, it has his pros and contras like every game.
    BUT if you want to join the game with the fully cloud storage you have to get a place at the server.
    If there is none well then you have to wait for 30 minutes YES 30 Minutes Save your money for something better than this! I made the mistakes to spend 50€ for a game where i can wait some    To be honest the gameplay of the game is good, it has his pros and contras like every game.
    BUT if you want to join the game with the fully cloud storage you have to get a place at the server.
    If there is none well then you have to wait for 30 minutes YES 30 Minutes Save your money for something better than this!
    I made the mistakes to spend 50€ for a game where i can wait some hours to play it and that just totally sucks!
    Goodbye forever EA!    … Expand
  54. Sh4rk82
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    It 's the second day and still there are problems accessing the server. It 's amazing that a person who spends 60 euro for a game bought legally can not play for days. You should compensate all the fans who have spent money on not being able to play with their legal copy. FRAUD ...
    A server that show the word "available" get stuck for hours when authenticating with servers simcity. Shame!
  55. cameronrogers
    Mar 7, 2013
    1
    I bought it, but then took it back. Walmart DID allow me to take it back. Thank god they did. First of all, lets list the pros:
    PROS:
    Graphics Thats all. Now cons: -Small cities. EACH CITY is smaller then the small city in Simcity 4. Not a joke. -Aggressive Anti Piracy. It seems like EA wants to shoot themselves in the foot. This is just terrible. It requires the server to be    I bought it, but then took it back. Walmart DID allow me to take it back. Thank god they did. First of all, lets list the pros:
    PROS:
    Graphics

    Thats all.

    Now cons:
    -Small cities. EACH CITY is smaller then the small city in Simcity 4. Not a joke.
    -Aggressive Anti Piracy. It seems like EA wants to shoot themselves in the foot. This is just terrible. It requires the server to be connected too, so 24/7 internet is a must. Look online, the massive flood of people is causing the game to not be playable due to server requirements. Lol fail. -Server is basically DOA. You cant connect at all. I wanted to enjoy it, i really did. But you know what? Im 100% done with EA, Maxis and all franchises from this company. They ruined Dead Space 3 for me, now Simcity. Whatever EA. I will be sure to spread this review all over. You wont get away with ruining Simcity.    … Expand
  56. otinanai
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Pros: good graphics Cons: tiny cities (why is it called Simcity anyway?), always online DRM, servers not working, rollbacks, very bad car AI (example: cops all follow each other while there is rampant crime all over town), a ton of bugs (it's pretty much still in beta), no terraforming, all around unrealistic(why are there buses and streetcars in a 2km x 2km square?), city regions are tooPros: good graphics Cons: tiny cities (why is it called Simcity anyway?), always online DRM, servers not working, rollbacks, very bad car AI (example: cops all follow each other while there is rampant crime all over town), a ton of bugs (it's pretty much still in beta), no terraforming, all around unrealistic(why are there buses and streetcars in a 2km x 2km square?), city regions are too far apart, very few maps, no subways, time stops on the cities you aren't working on (unrealistic), very low replay value compared to the other Simcity games...… Expand
  57. Cubster1980
    Mar 8, 2013
    2
    Had high hopes, but was disappointed by several things. Obviously the connection issues and launch problems, but those are temporary issues for the most part. Overall I was was most annoyed by limited city size, and what seems like watered down tools. Multi-player isn't my thing so I'm forced to manage several small "cities" to get every thing going, which only makes the annoying loadHad high hopes, but was disappointed by several things. Obviously the connection issues and launch problems, but those are temporary issues for the most part. Overall I was was most annoyed by limited city size, and what seems like watered down tools. Multi-player isn't my thing so I'm forced to manage several small "cities" to get every thing going, which only makes the annoying load times when switching that much more annoying. I live in a rural area and the occasional drop in connection is expected, losing work to server issues is frustrating. Thankfully I purchased through Amazon and got my refund. The graphics are good and when it works it was ok. Launch issues, limited size, and the likelihood of paying to increase that size through DLC, limited life of the game, and terrible communication by EA are the reason for my rating. I won't complain about the DRM masked as multi-player/server side processing, but that isn't a plus. BTW roughly half the PRO Reviews where done on EA's private server before launch, and polygon lowered it's score.… Expand
  58. aggrazel
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I had such high hopes for SimCity because I love the genre. It would have been an instant buy except for the fact I cannot play offline. I cannot mod the product. I cannot have my own save games. You don't buy the game, you basically buy a subscription, which they can revoke for any reason at any time. (they reserve this right, its in their ToS) So if a few years from now some bigwigI had such high hopes for SimCity because I love the genre. It would have been an instant buy except for the fact I cannot play offline. I cannot mod the product. I cannot have my own save games. You don't buy the game, you basically buy a subscription, which they can revoke for any reason at any time. (they reserve this right, its in their ToS) So if a few years from now some bigwig decides to kill this Simcity because they want to release a new one, there is absolutely nothing you could do about it. I can right now go and load up my original Commodore 64 Sim City disc if I want to and play. But 20 years from now you will more than likely not be able to play this game. If your internet has problems, this game will be problematic. If you like to play offline, you won't play this game. If you like to own your games, you can't play this game. Its terrible. Not to mention, the hideous cash grab about making all the normal features of the game "DLC".

    Do not support EA. Do not buy this or any EA game until they stop this nonsense. Vote with your dollar and let them know you won't put up with being treated this way. I will not be a customer of EA any longer.    … Expand
  59. SchleyDogg
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    It has been well over 24 hours and I have not been able to play the game, I chose this over Tomb Raider, over Dead Space 3. Do not buy the game, it's been 3 days and it's still broke, and it hasn't even released in Europe yet, if they're having problems now, how will they fare when another whole continent can play. It's sad cause I was so excited for the game, but any of the reviews areIt has been well over 24 hours and I have not been able to play the game, I chose this over Tomb Raider, over Dead Space 3. Do not buy the game, it's been 3 days and it's still broke, and it hasn't even released in Europe yet, if they're having problems now, how will they fare when another whole continent can play. It's sad cause I was so excited for the game, but any of the reviews are people who simply were bought off, or could play before the servers collapsed. Buy it in a month or two, get something else now like the new Sims expansion or Tomb Raider.… Expand
  60. mo_karney
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    This game has TOO MUCH DRM! Do not buy the game in order to send EA a message about their sh!tty Origin authentication! I for one will not buy it but pirate it JUST to piss off EA.
  61. KiwwHi
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    OMG This is such a foutage de gueule as they say in french. Day one DLC is a shame Servers not working at all Game is as complicated as the last Dora The Explorer What a game. Doesn't even deserve a single point.
  62. hwextreme
    Mar 23, 2013
    3
    Too many bugs that frustrate you to make this game enjoyable. I have buildings that regularly close reporting they are without power even with 100MW of excess generation.
    Traffic chaos, car get stuck for days at junctions.
    Lack of workers seems to be a common issue above 200k population causing power stations, oil pumps and fire stations to close. Doesn't matter how many schools you    Too many bugs that frustrate you to make this game enjoyable. I have buildings that regularly close reporting they are without power even with 100MW of excess generation.
    Traffic chaos, car get stuck for days at junctions.
    Lack of workers seems to be a common issue above 200k population causing power stations, oil pumps and fire stations to close. Doesn't matter how many schools you have, even they sometimes close due to lack of workers     … Expand
  63. Adlerson
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    It would be a good game, I'm sure, IF I could play it. I've had a few hours in it, over the past few days, but having to start over because your progress on this 'Always online DRM' 'feature' isn't saved is becoming old.
    And today I can't get in at all, no matter which server I try, or now many times I try.
    EA screwed the pooch with this one. No more 'always on' DRM! Ubisoft tried and    It would be a good game, I'm sure, IF I could play it. I've had a few hours in it, over the past few days, but having to start over because your progress on this 'Always online DRM' 'feature' isn't saved is becoming old.
    And today I can't get in at all, no matter which server I try, or now many times I try.
    EA screwed the pooch with this one. No more 'always on' DRM! Ubisoft tried and failed, EA should have taken note.    … Expand
  64. FurballHero
    Mar 8, 2013
    4
    Welcome to: Simcity Children addition

    My specs: E6600 Processor, GFX: 660TI, 12 gigs ram, highspeed internet Price: 59$, Very steep considering what you get, more on this later (3 on 10) Installation: I picked up the digital version, it took about 15 minutes to download and about 40 minutes for the first patch. I would have MUCH preffered it on STEAM though, Original is very    Welcome to: Simcity Children addition

    My specs: E6600 Processor, GFX: 660TI, 12 gigs ram, highspeed internet

    Price: 59$, Very steep considering what you get, more on this later (3 on 10)

    Installation: I picked up the digital version, it took about 15 minutes to download and about 40 minutes for the first patch. I would have MUCH preffered it on STEAM though, Original is very finicky (6 on 10)

    Booting up: The game took a while to start, and after several attempts I was finally able to join a server.
    (1 on 10)

    Adding friends: At the time of this writing this feature does not properly work, many many errors and adding a friend is very painful to do. You can forget about playing with a friend at this point. we tried for about 2 hours, many reboots and even more errors. We gave up and decided to play "solo" until they fix it
    (1 on 10)

    Creating your game: My first issue was getting to the game world, there were constant errors and I had to do multiple restarts just to get to the region view of my game world. (1 on 10)

    Map: Maps are VERY small, you cant modify the terrain in any meaningful way. (4 on 10)

    Graphics: They work, they arent mind blowing but arent ugly either. (8 on 10)

    Gameplay: Difficulty: VERY EASY on my first play through of about 2 hours (after skipping the tutorial) I was able to get 7,000$ per hour with no real effort or specialization. A nice little town with schools, fire halls, police stations, everything my citizens needed, taxes 10%. So I sat there thinking "Well now what??" (3 on 10)

    Layout: The UI is very intuitive, everything is well layed out, the layers sub section needs work as there's many icons and it's difficult to see which is which. (7 on 10) Building: I really like the new road system, very intuitive and works great, I like the way zoning snaps to the road and builds appropriately however I would also like a more advanced zoning option, one where you can customize exactly what size of zone you want, I like how government buildings are all modable however there is not NEARLY enough base building options for the 59$ price point. I know they plan on adding a whole bunch of DLC in the way of buildings and maps but for this price you get just the very basic buildings. Sad to see because its very obviously a money grab. (5 on 10)

    Always online: I HATE this feature, I personally don't have an issue with it but my dad would love to play and he simply can't because he lives in the boons and has no reliable internet access. Please include an offline mode! (1 on 10)

    Conclusion: Positives: The game looks decent, the overlays are nice, dynamic roads, sim immersion, traffic simulation, modable buildings.

    Negatives: Difficulty is very easy, Very few base building options, always online, impossible multiplayer with friends, small maps, gameplay is too simple (no power lines or pipes at all), no complex tax system, all graphs are gone.

    If I was to rename this game I would call it: SimCity Children Addition

    My Rating: 3.6    … Expand
  65. CPES
    Mar 7, 2013
    2
    I am done with EA. Simcity is worse then Aliens and Duke Nukem. The always online DRM is awful and my internet isn't very good so it crashes a lot. The city is smallllllllllllll and the AI is terrible. Origin is awful. you EA I am giving my next 60 dollars to Valve
  66. Mietitrice
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Want some DRM with your game? No? Too bad. Forced DRM makes it very, very, VERY difficult to play a game that you cant even access the servers on. If you ask me, try and find some DRM free version online if it exists.
  67. zaamer
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Fact is that everyone was so happy/ excited to play it.... now 2 days later, severs still are out, nothing syncs up between cities, the you continually lose hard worked on cities. Really that they pooped al over a simply great game that once was, now it reminds me of a Hollywood reboot of a good movie series.
  68. rawieboy
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Oh wow do I feel stupid. I didn't really believe all these people complaining about how fail this always online DRM or whatever ruined the game. Boy did it bite me in the ass. I just got this game right now and I cannot even play it. This could be the greatest game in the world... If I could actually play it. The Origin launcher is buggy. Everything doesn't seem very polished and maybe itOh wow do I feel stupid. I didn't really believe all these people complaining about how fail this always online DRM or whatever ruined the game. Boy did it bite me in the ass. I just got this game right now and I cannot even play it. This could be the greatest game in the world... If I could actually play it. The Origin launcher is buggy. Everything doesn't seem very polished and maybe it was rushed to release. Why would they release this game as unplayable? EA has critically hurt the reputation of the franchise. Seriously? You try to save this game from pirates only to screw over the people who actually pay for the game. Come on now... Pirates will find a way to get around this DRM and I hope they do because you guys deserved to be screwed over after screwing us over.

    TLDR: LISTEN TO THESE USER REVIEWS!!!    … Expand
  69. tjgiannhs8es
    Jun 21, 2013
    2
    The game is kinda fun without all the issues with the connection and servers, etc. However, the space you have now is very limited and it is the biggest flaw in the gameplay as you can build a whole metropolis in less than a day. The mechanics are fun, but I cannot compare them to another simcity unfortunately. Also, stupid DLCs and crappy graphics (unless you have a REALLY powerful PC)The game is kinda fun without all the issues with the connection and servers, etc. However, the space you have now is very limited and it is the biggest flaw in the gameplay as you can build a whole metropolis in less than a day. The mechanics are fun, but I cannot compare them to another simcity unfortunately. Also, stupid DLCs and crappy graphics (unless you have a REALLY powerful PC) make it a complete letdown. It definitely is not worth ANY money, even for the hardcore fans as it will frustrate you more than it will amuse you.… Expand
  70. Goatee
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    This is actually a score for meta critic itself. Reviews of sim city show EXACTLY why meta critic should be considered invalid. Have a great day NOT playing simcity.
  71. NT1997
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    After 3 days of trying to connect to their stupid servers, I end up coming here to give this game a 0. The launch is worse than D3. The Always online DRM is a complete failure. EA! listen! I understand online DRM is to counter piracy. But it is also annoying your paying customers at the moment because your stupid server cannot handle the overwhelming traffic.
  72. PProni
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    I've bought this game on launch date and in3 days I almost managed to complete the tutorial....twice since server keep crashing down and losing my progress. If you barely survive Diablo 3 error 37, don't buy this game!
  73. samdaman83
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    The game has a lot of problems. Only one of them actually matters. Never support always online DRM for a single player game. Lots of people cannot play their single player game because of this and gamers need to do everything they can to stop developers from including it. Do you still play SimCity 4? Good luck playing this game in 10 years. The servers will probably be down then and you'll
  74. Demon_Shinigami
    Mar 10, 2013
    0
    Well... This is not even worth pirating. I recommend that everyone get a refund, you can as the game is BROKEN, and BROKEN goods can be returned, I did it.

    What else can be said, other than... always online DRM, tiny plots of land to build on, EPIC wait times for the servers (my 'best' was 3 hours and 47 minutes), lost many saves due to my Scottish internet being bad as always, day 1    Well... This is not even worth pirating. I recommend that everyone get a refund, you can as the game is BROKEN, and BROKEN goods can be returned, I did it.

    What else can be said, other than... always online DRM, tiny plots of land to build on, EPIC wait times for the servers (my 'best' was 3 hours and 47 minutes), lost many saves due to my Scottish internet being bad as always, day 1 DLC, idiots on the forced multiplayer making anti-progressive moves on neighbour plots, overly simplified gameplay that rivals facebook games, etc etc

    To elaborate on the simplified gameplay, this makes the Super Nintendo version seem far more innovating, infact I'm going to play that right after this review, I don't need Origin or an internet connection to play that.

    I guess this adds to the list of franchises EA has utterly destroyed.

    I give the servers and few months before they are shut down, might do the world a favour.    … Expand
  75. IrumOx
    Mar 7, 2013
    1
    I am usually on the side of those giving good scores saying most low score reviews are based on bitterness from some gamers who live in an unrealistic world. I am fine with DRM and all that crap, but BEING ABLE TO PLAY a game is, I think 90% of a score. It's like having a Ferrari in your garage and not being able to ride it because the keys are being kept in a lock by Ferrari, even ifI am usually on the side of those giving good scores saying most low score reviews are based on bitterness from some gamers who live in an unrealistic world. I am fine with DRM and all that crap, but BEING ABLE TO PLAY a game is, I think 90% of a score. It's like having a Ferrari in your garage and not being able to ride it because the keys are being kept in a lock by Ferrari, even if you paid for it in full. I hope they see this "overwhelming dislike" as a sign to work towards balancing between user benefit and company benefit, right now EA is like any other company, they do not give a damn about the customer, they just want your money. SHAME ON YOU EA!!!!, S H A M E ON Y O U … Expand
  76. FiammaTheGreat
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    I just want my money back.
    Well, if i buy myself a game, i want it to work. Im not interested in waiting ~5 hours to log in somehow and then get a disconnect.
    Yes, you heard me right: disconnect. Single player game. Logging in for five hours. This is wrong in so many ways that i dont even think that i will try buying something from EA anymore. And if ill get lucky enough to get my money    I just want my money back.
    Well, if i buy myself a game, i want it to work. Im not interested in waiting ~5 hours to log in somehow and then get a disconnect.
    Yes, you heard me right: disconnect. Single player game. Logging in for five hours. This is wrong in so many ways that i dont even think that i will try buying something from EA anymore. And if ill get lucky enough to get my money back i will just pirate it from some tracker instead of paying for this unworking crap.    … Expand
  77. oldbrokenlink
    Jun 21, 2013
    0
    i'm giving this game a 0 not because it deserves a zero if they fix it, but because it it currently stands it does deserve a zero.

    where should i begin. well for one thing this is the first game that i've paid $85 for preorder! and i cant begin to say how upset i am with maxis/ea for taking my money and giving me in return a broken unfinished game. that they admit will never be    i'm giving this game a 0 not because it deserves a zero if they fix it, but because it it currently stands it does deserve a zero.

    where should i begin. well for one thing this is the first game that i've paid $85 for preorder!

    and i cant begin to say how upset i am with maxis/ea for taking my money and giving me in return a broken unfinished game.

    that they admit will never be fixed because of their business decisions to have it this way.

    if you love cities builders this is not the game for you. its a game for the mindless masses who want to casually play a game for a short bit and then throw it all away.

    first its all online all the time with no ability to save locally or to play offline

    that may not sound so bad until you begin to run into problems where hours, days or more of gameplay gets rolled back or lost or is just inaccessible.!

    then there is the fact that the cities are tiny and i mean its a pure fiction to call them cities since they are little more than tiny towns.

    and the game play and game logic is more akin and in common with simtown than simcity franchise. its all fixed and fudged from the population to the game logic. there is no rci, things are just event driven to keep you entertained. and that is why traffic is always broken sim have no home or work address and other agents are as mindless and worthless and running around aimlessly. notifications are faked you can have the town covered with police stations and the sims are unhappy because there are not enough police because the game logic says when population hits some arbitrary point require them to build one more police station and it goes on and one and one. just look at the game logic source code that was released and you see how pointless and bad it is.

    worse its pay to win, since all the dlc are meant to give you an advantage over the base game and are not purely cosmetic. yeap they have us buying crest toothpaste to get dlcs to keep our sims happy.

    finally the multiplayer the whole reason they say for all our troubles is broken, unreliable. i mean i dare not share resources because i dont want my firetrucks, police force, ambulances, garbage trucks, students, ect leaving town and never coming back! or worse if anyone in the whole region puts a vu tower all the towns in the reason are constantly overrun by crime! finally its not like you can share resources or send someone money or a gift realtime, it can take hours before they get it. so if you are playing with someone and they need firetrucks what is the point by the time they get them they are offline and no longer need them.

    worse in a couple years when the player count and sales are low and/or when they release a new version guess what like with the sims you have to buy it all over again and you lose access to all your cities! so much for years of effort to build your cities. no local saves and no ability to continue to play the game offline!

    finally, other than new dlcs and fix after fix or cosmetics meant to hide the problems the game is and will always be online only no local save and broken and faked and fudged because it's all ea/maxis business decision to have it this way.

    so there is no point in spending your hard earned money on this game and no point in even playing.

    get simcity 4, cities xl platinum even tropico 4 instead and save your money on this overpriced turd    … Expand
  78. scuba2121
    Mar 8, 2013
    1
    This game was fun when I could play it. I take back everything I said about DRM not mattering. It absolutely does matter and needs to go away forever.
  79. nekarik
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    "Amazon has pulled simcity from sale, noting the servers issues" "EA refuses refunds as simcity server fiasco enter day 4" Ea help center chat log suggested EA would ban people for seeking refunds"
  80. DavidCaron
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    Just absolutely terrible! You can't play at all. When you do get into a server, the city is so small, you can never have enough zones. And when you try to import workers from other cities in the region. The servers never recognize any other city in your region. Just absolutely crap!!

    I give a 0 because I can't play the game that I paid for.
  81. IcyParks
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Servers constantly failing. Map size is smaller than the small in Sim City 4. This game feels like a watered/dumbed down version of SimCity 4. I think I will restart simcity 4 instead of playing this crap I payed 60$ for.
  82. noneverno
    Mar 8, 2013
    2
    Had high hopes for the game, but it's now nearly day 4 after release and the game remains, for the most part, unplayable. Even in the few hours I was able to get on, I was discouraged by the prohibitively small city size. From the lack of refunds, to the full servers, to the 2+ hour waits for customer service via phone/chat, I am sorely disappointed with this release.
  83. Woodszilla
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    I've been trying to play this game for 5 hours and still have yet to be able to log on to the server. The only thing that appealed to me about this game was the multiplayer aspect. If I wanted to play single-player SimCity, I would play SimCity 4, which has way more features and a huge modding community pumping out awesome content.

    I played the beta, so I know the game isn't horrible,    I've been trying to play this game for 5 hours and still have yet to be able to log on to the server. The only thing that appealed to me about this game was the multiplayer aspect. If I wanted to play single-player SimCity, I would play SimCity 4, which has way more features and a huge modding community pumping out awesome content.

    I played the beta, so I know the game isn't horrible, or I wouldn't have bought it. But I haven't been able to play since I gave them my money. Selling me a game and not letting me play it? That deserves a zero.    … Expand
  84. azaxasawaq
    Mar 5, 2013
    0
    Downloaded the game last night, haven't been able to even play the tutorial yet... this DRM is absurd. I'm sure the game is great once you can play, but not worth this garbage... don't waste your money
  85. wikchi
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    Cant buy it because Amazon took it off, dont want to use origin crapware.

    Servers havent been fixed since launch thats 4 days of not been able to play the game... Oh i didnt buy it are you serious? I feel sorry and angry for anyone blind or desperate enough to continue buying crapware from ea
  86. Rothy
    Mar 8, 2013
    0
    There was absolutely no reason... NO reason at all to have contact online DRM for this game. EA was warned prior to launch that there would be issues and they ignored them. This is poor, very very poor.
  87. staglianno
    Mar 7, 2013
    0
    don't even bother to buy this game. In 3 years time (or less) EA will shut down the servers and you will never be able to play this game ever again. Why? EA will probably come out with another simcity game and will force gamers to buy the new one instead. Not to mention this game came out with DAY 1 DLC, city sizes are smaller than an actual small town in the middle of no where. nodon't even bother to buy this game. In 3 years time (or less) EA will shut down the servers and you will never be able to play this game ever again. Why? EA will probably come out with another simcity game and will force gamers to buy the new one instead. Not to mention this game came out with DAY 1 DLC, city sizes are smaller than an actual small town in the middle of no where. no subways, no terraforming, forced mutliplayer, no save games to go back to so that means that if you disaster your city there is no way back. everything bad that you can put in simcity is there. Oh and the city sizes are small because the game connects to the servers constantly and cant handle more data from bigger cities. I hope EA dies in a hole somewhere. SHOW EA THAT THIS DRM and balatant rippoffs are not welcome. vote with your wallet.… Expand
  88. Faery
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    This isn't a 'review bomb', as some hack EA-brown-nosing news sites are claiming. These are legitimate consumer complaints based on their inability to even run the game that they purchased, for absolutely no good reason, for reasons that EA were warned would happen and yet did nothing to prevent it. As it stands I've had to wait unreasonable lengths of time to even play my game. The fewThis isn't a 'review bomb', as some hack EA-brown-nosing news sites are claiming. These are legitimate consumer complaints based on their inability to even run the game that they purchased, for absolutely no good reason, for reasons that EA were warned would happen and yet did nothing to prevent it. As it stands I've had to wait unreasonable lengths of time to even play my game. The few times I could play it, I have been disconnected at random resulting in save corruption, rollbacks or general loss of data. This isn't my problem. This is EA's problem. I will be seeking a refund, otherwise I will be looking into a chargeback for being sold a non-functional product. I advise anyone else with these problems to do the same.… Expand
  89. gonzothegunnut
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Can not access game. Always on DRM. If you want to play this game just download it for "free" the first chance you get. Single player games should not require you to be online, it's as simple as that. I bought this game for my wife, she was super excited.. I bought her lunch and took our son out so she could have some fun alone time that she hasn't gotten in months. So of course sheCan not access game. Always on DRM. If you want to play this game just download it for "free" the first chance you get. Single player games should not require you to be online, it's as simple as that. I bought this game for my wife, she was super excited.. I bought her lunch and took our son out so she could have some fun alone time that she hasn't gotten in months. So of course she was upset when she couldn't play it. If Blizzard can't pull off always-online DRM without screw ups, I don't know what makes EA think they can.… Expand
  90. Aeudian
    Mar 6, 2013
    2
    I have been very excited for this game, in fact this is the first EA game for me in a very long time. Coming from many MMO's I expect server outages, patching, etc. However I do feel that EA/Maxis brought this on themselves with lack luster beta testing. The fact is they only allowed for beta for a total of two days separated by 2 weeks each time and only allowed you the play the gameI have been very excited for this game, in fact this is the first EA game for me in a very long time. Coming from many MMO's I expect server outages, patching, etc. However I do feel that EA/Maxis brought this on themselves with lack luster beta testing. The fact is they only allowed for beta for a total of two days separated by 2 weeks each time and only allowed you the play the game for 1 hour and not all the features worked. So what to do you...servers not properly tested. The whole "you need internet to play this game because real cities need outsides" is BS. This game should of had an option to play online or offline. How is it that I create a city (mark it as private) and don't allow anyone to join but me any different then playing offline? Its not. The fact is the game is 100% online because EA/Maxis wants to make it hard to steal the game.

    Over the past 48 hours I have clocked in a total of 3 hours of actual play time due to server issues and login problems.    … Expand
  91. EAruinedgaming
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    A hard copy of the game SC5 arrived at 10:00. Thanks Amazon. I went home and installed it. And updated it... And updated it.. and updated it. East coast servers down. Put me on west coast Europe. I got into a region. It wouldn't let me choose a city. I was booted. I opened Origin again. This time I was asked to do the tutorial. It loaded. I couldn't do anything but move the camera. ItsA hard copy of the game SC5 arrived at 10:00. Thanks Amazon. I went home and installed it. And updated it... And updated it.. and updated it. East coast servers down. Put me on west coast Europe. I got into a region. It wouldn't let me choose a city. I was booted. I opened Origin again. This time I was asked to do the tutorial. It loaded. I couldn't do anything but move the camera. Its been almost 48hrs since launch. Whats the hold up?
    I Hate EA.    … Expand
  92. el_ganador
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Even the most beautiful diamond is worthless if you smash it with a hammer. I want to believe in the new SimCity, I swear I do. I've been playing this game since the first iteration back when dinosaurs roamed the Internet. SimCity is what MADE me a gamer. And I'm lucky I played the betas, I downloaded instantly Monday night when I got the Origin email, and I played Tuesday morning beforeEven the most beautiful diamond is worthless if you smash it with a hammer. I want to believe in the new SimCity, I swear I do. I've been playing this game since the first iteration back when dinosaurs roamed the Internet. SimCity is what MADE me a gamer. And I'm lucky I played the betas, I downloaded instantly Monday night when I got the Origin email, and I played Tuesday morning before everyone on the East Coast got off of work....

    But....I'm kind of heartbroken. The game is gorgeous. The whole tilt-shift thing for the graphics is genius. Gameplay is the best kind easy to learn, but challenging as the game accelerates. The UI is well laid out (for a game that is about information overload, after all) and the data layers are cool. But in addition to all of the issues with DRM, the botched launch, and ongoing server issues (it's only Day Two, but c'mon. I work in this field and I know EA/Origin could have planned better) the fact is that the game feels.....lacking.

    What do I mean? Well, there's that lovely data interface, and not a lot of actual depth to the data. You can't edit a Plopable (ugh.) once you've already added things to it. There's no real sense for what supply and demand is like in the global market. The maps are small, and the whole forced boundary thing is maddening. All my cities end up looking un-naturally square. There is no terrain editing (one of the longtime favorite sub-categories of the older versions.)

    And most annoying to me there is no ability to save your game mid-play, and then "alternate reality" it which is something I've done in EVERY SimCity, ever. SimCity is the game that taught me to save before key decision points....and now, nothing. Not even an option.

    I want to love this game....but it has a long way to go before it lives up to its promise, and that makes me, and the new gaming computer I built specifically for it.....very, very sad.    … Expand
  93. ragedujoi
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    I remember the days of failure in WOW, it seems like nirvana compared to the complete lack of direction by Origin
    This is a city simulation, let us do that offline!
    I have had 4 cities wiped by them
    2013 and we still cant have persistent server access
    oh wait we can, GW2
    I think i may want my monies back I am also a little pissed i cant have subways
  94. lukejamieson
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    At the time of the Australian release this game is unplayable. If the dedicated Oceanic server isn't full, it's down and crashed. Connecting to an international server does not help either as they will frequently drop out and your city would have been erased. Not even the graphics look like they're from this decade.
    1/10 the loading screen has a nice back drop.
  95. Kalistro
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    Don't be fooled by this game. This is Diablo 3 all over again. Tiny map, not allowed to make big cities. Worst $60 bucks ever wasted. Do some research, watch the game being streamed, even people who love it are about how restrictive the map size is. The game forces multiplayer on you. This game is not like any other sim city ever made.
  96. Langrisser
    Mar 6, 2013
    1
    I play games when i have time to play them, not when the game is able to be played. I would encourage everyone to demand money back, lets stop this always-on nonsense.
  97. Omnizero
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    Installed game, updated drivers, waited 3 hours before i was able to play for 15min before the crash and had to change servers to play for another 20min, repeat most of night. I'm sure they will streamline the server issues, however it's no longer a fun and relaxing game. I want a refund and will be sending emails to the board of directors of EA. They need new executives in that company.
  98. HateDRM
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    i cannot believe the always on DRM. it is absolutely ridiculous, and there is no reason for it. i hate drm, hence my handle. and also its stupid. but we still all gave EA money. i dont know how to solve this problem
  99. Callaginn
    Mar 6, 2013
    3
    The game itself is awesome...if you can even play it. The server load time, however, is unacceptable. Most of the time, it gets stuck on the "Checking for Updates" screen with a status of 0%. I've also encountered numerous times where it gets stuck in a server queue for 30 minutes at a time. When I buy a game, I want to play it...not make it an all day event just waiting for the stupidThe game itself is awesome...if you can even play it. The server load time, however, is unacceptable. Most of the time, it gets stuck on the "Checking for Updates" screen with a status of 0%. I've also encountered numerous times where it gets stuck in a server queue for 30 minutes at a time. When I buy a game, I want to play it...not make it an all day event just waiting for the stupid game to load.… Expand
  100. Putz173
    Mar 6, 2013
    0
    always on DRM, 2 days and ive got to the tutorial screen... not acceptable, online DRM doesn't work, so it gets a 0 since it simply doesnt work..funny my credit card payment did right away even
Page:

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]
See all critic reviews »