#Simcity mac how to#
The only way to learn how to plan for and balance all this is trial and error. Getting a handle on such minutiae becomes overwhelming when I try to expand too fast. And because service vehicles like fire trucks have to actually drive to where they're needed, seemingly minor details like whether they're more likely to make right or left turns out of their garages really do matter. Bigger cities also need more water, more power, more sewage treatment, and more garbage trucks, as well as police, fire, and health coverage, public transportation, parks, and schools.īuildings can be upgraded, but even upgrades such as extra water pumps and fire truck garages need space. As houses become towers, too many intersections and not enough high-capacity avenues will cause traffic gridlocks, and density won't increase at all without enough space. The early game is all about anticipating the midgame. Big decisions like this happen at every stage of a city's development, and my choices often influence how I feel about my city more than my city itself. The type of power plant I choose first will influence the whole narrative of my city, not because I can't switch at any time, but because I refuse to be an inconsistent mayor. Clean energy solutions-wind and solar plants-also pump power into the city, but require swaths of valuable land to keep the lights on. In the beginning, demand for services is low, and how you choose to provide power to your city is the most important decision early in the game.Ĭoal and oil plants cough out pollution and require resources from mines or the Global Market, an online feature that functions as a commodities exchange enabling players to buy and sell resources. At the macro scale, beautiful data overlays show me subterranean concentrations of water, as well as resources like ore, coal, and oil, which I can exploit when my city is ready for heavy industry. And, in cases where you make a crucial mistake-such as my purchasing a nuclear power plant without the required environmental filters and accidentally irradiating a third of my city when it failed, thereby decimating my infrastructure and economy and destroying the city of New Llama-you want to go back and do things that much better next time.But back to the quiet town. What would a SimCity game be without giant, fire-breathing monsters, aliens and other horrifying disasters waiting to be unleashed?Įven with these caveats, you still get a good amount of content and replay value for the game’s $30 price tag. Where technical concerns arose, I found myself unable to change the game’s detail levels during gameplay and the animation staggered for several seconds when the giant monster began stomping through my city during my testing of version 1.0.2 of the game. At present, it feels tricky to associate with other cities in your region and a better tutorial for this would be appreciated.
#Simcity mac upgrade#
The maps feel smaller than they should and you’ll find yourself wanting a larger area to expand into, the game pushing you to continuously upgrade your city to house its growing population. Unfortunately, there are some wrinkles to iron out. Make sure you have enough fire stations to deal with inevitable, toasty disasters. And don’t forget the disasters-you can always shake things up with a fire, an earthquake, or an alien or zombie invasion and see how your citizens handle an unexpected catastrophe.
It’s here, when your city might be facing a declining population or is on the brink of financial ruin, that you’ll learn to take risks, build new neighborhoods, and watch your citizens either rejoice or protest in anger. Once you’ve named and founded your city, there’s an irresistible pull to get to the next level, hit the next population marker, upgrade your buildings, and complete missions for bonuses.
Even if you’re new to SimCity or have taken a long hiatus from the series, it’s easy to get drawn in.