If You Build It, They Will Come

A Review of SimTown

Rich Cunningham

Schools, over the past few years, have increased the use of computers in the classroom to enhance basic and advanced learning concepts. One game that my son has enjoyed during his stay in 2nd grade this past year was SimTown, by Maxis Software (Sim City, Sim Life, Sim Ant, etc.). Unfortunately, it has only been available for the Macintosh platform since it's initial release. Almost daily, I was bombarded by my son asking "Is SimTown out for our computer yet?".

To my surprise, and my son's joy, SimTown for Windows hit our local software retailer 2 weeks ago. Since it's arrival, not only has my son spent hours playing it, but my two daughters, aged 7 and 10, have taken to it like a general contractor takes to a new subdivision. It is "an incredibly rad game", according to my oldest daughter.

The mechanics of the game are very similar to Sim City: you start with a piece of land, add buildings, streets, sidewalks, businesses, and homes. If these items are arranged in the proper order, then you will be able to watch your town grow and increase in population. The object is to teach the game player the relationships of managing and building a town, from planning the city, to managing the natural resources to keep it running (including garbage, trees and water), and maintaining the balance and how to restore it once it is lost. This all accomplished in an air of fun and excitement.

The manual is very well written, easily understood by both adults and children ( younger children may have some problems with the actual reading, but parental help can overcome this). The first section is divided into 18 parts, each presenting in easily understood concepts a portion of the game. For example, in one section you are taken step by step on how to create a park, including how to plant the grass, how to plant trees (and to choose from cherry, walnut and pine trees), add a pond, flowers, sand box and shrubbery. This is all presented in easy to understand language with lots of pictures.

The second part of the manual includes a more in-depth look at the games features, including the menu bar structure and how to utilize them to the best advantage. Some of these "really cool things" (again, my oldest's comment) include : Starter Towns, Fixer-upper Towns, Eco-villians, Natural Resources and Credits, and Awards. Starter towns are towns that are already set up to a certain extent, with a certain theme for each one. These include: Road Town, Park Town, Bike Town, and Mixed Town. These towns allow an inexperienced player a head start in getting his town going. In Fixer-Upper Towns, there is a specific problem with a town, and it is the players' job to correct the problem. These include: Bad Air, No Trees, No Crops, and No Water. These scenarios are for the experienced player who understands the basic concepts of the game, and are looking for a challenge to improve his skills.

In Sim City, there were natural disasters that always kept the players on their toes. Well, they exist in Sim Town also. But they are in two categories. These categories are Disasters Menu and Eco-Villian Menu. In the Disasters menu, you are faced with these natural problems: drought, earthquakes, and fire. The Eco-Villian menu includes Food Pig (eats crops), Water Hog (drinks up your water), Litterbug (produces lots of garbage), and Air Polluter (makes the air dirty). These problems can be turned off for the initial learning of the game, and activated when the player wants a little action.

A key element to keeping your city running is keeping you Sim Citizens happy. This is accomplished by ensuring that the city is kept clean and well run. This is done by keeping a good water supply, lots of water, and a good recycling program. In order to manage these items, the player gains credits every month to manage them ( including a certain amount at the start). The amount of credits also vary with the difficulty of the game, which can be played as an easy game or a difficult game.

Sim Town, in its basic form, is a juvenile version of Sim City. But it has enough charm to be an entertaining game in it's own right. There are enough unique features that will make this game appeal to kids of all ages. One feature that my children love is the ability to create specific characters that wander around town. These characters have their personalities created by the player (including their clothes, favorite food, and even their favorite saying), and as many can be created as desired. Some of my favorite items in the game (yes, I enjoy playing it, also) are the buildings themselves. For example, the video store is built out of....what else.....video tapes! The roof of the police station is handcuffs. You can also visit a building to explore it's inhabitants by name, and the type of building it is makes for some very interesting exploring.

All in all, Sim Town for Windows if a very enjoyable game for kids of all ages. It has much more to offer than is covered in this review, and that is one of the enjoyable aspects of this game...it offers enough variety to keep one entertained for many hours, yet has enough educational aspects to not be a waste of ones time. It has found a place in my children's software library, and will be enjoyed for years to come.

Screen Shots

386-25 or faster:
8 MB of Ram:
Hard Drive with 1 MB of free space, 20 MB for full installation:
Windows 3.1 and above (will work with Windows 95) :
Supports all Windows compatible video modes (including 16 color) :
(VLB SVGA is recommended) :
Supports all Windows compatible sound cards:

Overall Score:

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