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Fascinating!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: March 10, 2000
Author: Amazon User

When SC3K first came out, it seemed as if many people were disappointed because it did not look much different from SC2K. It certainly is not the technological leap that we saw from the original to SC2K. However this is NOT merely an expansion of SC2K. I'm not sure exactly how, but the game feels, at once, familiar yet different.

This game is truly fun to play; much more so than SC2K. Simply the amount of information given to you and the things that you can do, increase the enjoyment of this game. The changes from SC2K are subtle, but have huge consequences the further you build a city. SC3K may not look that different from its predecessor but Maxis has actually gotten much closer to what the actual experience of city planning and building must be like. I'm curious what Maxis will throw at us in the next installment.

Come on people!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 10 / 14
Date: December 29, 1999
Author: Amazon User

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but come on! Is the game play similar to SC2K? Yes. Is the game as 3-D as Tomb Raider is or what the Internet previews of SC3K led us to believe? No. Very few things are as good as they look advertised. The game works well and has several improvements. First, the buildings have "backs". SC2K had the buildings looking the same from all angles. Second, the ticker is more pleasing and more humrous than the newspaper. Third, the disasters are more realistic, especially the earthquakes. Fourth, Nuke Power doesn't blow up every time you build one like in SC2K. Fifth, you have more responsibilities than closely resemble real-life cities. Two quibbles: One, the manual has abandoned its "city as a living thing" and eliminated its bibliography. The SC2K manual was one the best manuals for strategy (which the new manual lacks) and thought-provoking essays. Two, I understand that the arcologies annoyed many people, especially at the end. They were cumbersome, expensive, and in the end, well...you have to see for yourself. I know I was angry. That doesn't mean that the arcology concept should be eliminated. It was interesting building form that looked really nice as part of the skyline.

In the previews, I was led to believe that one could walk SimCity streets and ask people directly what was wrong. You would see real-looking cars and crimes occur. You would see graffiti being spraypainted as you looked on. You could change the price of hamnburgers and gasoline, etc. etc. etc. Does anyone know how much memory that would take? How much processing speed? These games are HUGE in the fact they take a long time to program and debug and test, etc. MAXIS needs to make a living, so deal with it. If you are that picky, wait until SC4K. Get a gripe, and stop whining about "what could have been".

Does NOT work quite right on modern hardware/XP

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: January 21, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game was extremely frustrating. On either of my PCs (both fairly modern and running XP), graphic elements in the game just randomly wouldn't get drawn. It's possible the game got patched at some point (and it's possible some versions of the game sold in stores already ARE patched and would work), but EA hasn't bothered to archive their patches for older games. In any event, I found it was very difficult to play in its current condition on modern hardware.

Inexcusable considering 99% of games run just fine on XP, and Simcity 3000 isn't even doing anything special from a technological standpoint.

Avoid. Besides, you know EA will just crank out another one within a few years...

Another example of a fine series with unrealized promise.

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 13 / 21
Date: November 10, 1999
Author: Amazon User

SimCity 3000 had every opportunity in the world to be a correction on the mostly misguided SimCity 2000. Unfortunately, it succeeds mostly at making one want to play that earlier game again. Better designed overall, the simulation model has grown so complex that the game is nearly unplayable. It is extremely difficult to effectively get your city underway, and the available help functions in the game are not sufficient to explain the complex theories of economics that the game requires you to understand in order to effectively govern your city. When SimCity was still about being the mayor of a city instead of showing you just what feats of computing are possible, it was a much stronger game. Until Maxis gets that idea back, SimCity 3000--for all of its good points--is just simply not worth playing.

Sim City 3000 a good bet, If your old enough.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 14 / 25
Date: November 13, 1999
Author: Amazon User

If you are under 16, don't even think about getting this game. The amount of money that you are given at the start of the game is just enough to build the town and then you will lose money for at least the first 20 years. Then if you make it after that the game is a lot of fun. If you get the game, make sure you get a strategy guide. It will save you a lot of time and effort.

Spawling

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: February 09, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Perhaps SC3K's main problem is that it is far too detailed. Even on a speedy top-end machine the screen will fill with portions of white if you try to scroll at one of higher resolutions. Perhaps this is also SC3K's main virtue - the fact that you can see down to the last person in your metropolis. Whatever you say, despite the game's vast graphical and not-so-vast strategic advances, it failed to do what the fans of the series held closest to their hearts - personalization. The city develops completely at random within your zonal confines - you cannot make a candleshop district, a Downtown, or anything of the sort. You cannot name streets, despite the fact that you place them yourself. The papers mention you rarely and glancingly, at best, preferring to metion senseless rock bands (whose names you cannot supply either) or some other uneventful thing. The advisors are as helpful as ever - specifically, useless. They either take no notice of the trouble befalling your city, or they take notice of something very minor and blow it up to the size of a scandal. THE 1% COMMERCIAL TAX IS KILLING THE CITY! REMOVE THE PARKING FINES! All the while industry fails to develop and a major power outage goes unnoticed.

This game is a cleaner, crisper version of SimCity 2000, perhaps an update, but in no way a new game in the series.

sim city 3k (3000)

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 8 / 12
Date: December 11, 1999
Author: Amazon User

I think that this game is a very good game. I like the way that you are in control of the city. this game can also be an educational game. you have to deal with money and keeping your people happy. If your people are not happy they will leave the city and it will become a gost town with. The thing that I like as oppose to SimCity 2000 is that you can put world monuments in your city. I think that this game is good for kids and it is a good educational experiance.

A great game.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: December 07, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I really think this is a very into game.You can start off by playing a game thats already saved on the game,or starting your own city.I prefer starting my own city.I also like starting with the biggest city thats already on the game.Then blast it to pieces with tornados,fires,UFOs and earthquakes.There are three types of zones.residential,industrial and commercial.The controls can be confusing at first.Like when I had to figure out that you have to wait a little before your power plants generate power.It is also confusing to know when to and when not to take out a loan.In all its a great game.I recommend it for good stradegy players.

Probably The Best Sim Game (Besides "The Sims")

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: February 15, 2002
Author: Amazon User

This is a pretty cool game. But the loading is slooooow. It's neat how you can create and control your own urban empire. You can put in resedential zones, commercial areas, indusrtrial zones, trees, water, electricity (powerlines), water pipes, roads, highways, buildings from all around the world (including the World Trade Center), parks, ponds, schools, churches, libraries, fire stations, jails, police squads, and much, much more! It's enjoyable and fun. You must watch out for disasters that can happen by themselves. Which reminds me, you can start your own disasters! There's riots, fires, tornados, earthquakes, and UFO's (which is a little phsyco, but hey, it's the Sims!). Don't forget to warn your Sims with the siren! There's also humorous phrases on the simulator bar at the bottom of the screen! You can speed time up from a lalma to a cheetah. Like all real cities, you have money. You gotta use your money carefully of course. Of course you can always get loans if your city is sagging and getting kinda "destroyed". Also, there are like, city "reporters" that inform you about your city needs. There is an environmentalist, policeman, and a few more. You may also 'reject' and 'accept' some of the other city "reporters" questions and needs (perhaps). Well, I forgot what I was going to say for the rest of this review, and I'll make another one if I remember it-- sorry. Well, I guess that's enough to get you interested!

Fun, but for a price

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 9
Date: January 22, 2000
Author: Amazon User

The next SimCity game was long awaited by Mac users, but I'm glad that it finally came. However, It's makes me wonder why it took so long considering the draw backs of the game. The graphics are EXCELLENT and the actual game itself is impressive. On the other hand, my first impression, Software MacKiev (the company that made the Mac version) let alot of things that make the interface feel like a PC stay in the game. The system requirements are VERY steep. I have a 266 Mhz iMac with 160 MB built in (normal 32 plus 128) and 160 MB virtual memory, and it still is very slugish in loading.

I would DEFINATELY buy this game, IF you have a good system: A higher end iMac or a newer PowerMac G3 or G4.

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