Sydney, Australia

[jorday 0]

Hey Guys!

I've decided to remake Sydney, Australia. Its where I live, and there are always things I think could make it better. However my first goal is to recreate it as much as possible. I plan to use google earth along side to guide me with an accurate recreation of as much as possible.

I'm yet to *actually* start, but I will post as soon as I can (prob edit this post). Just wanted to get peoples quick opinions on weather I should start with a blank map or go for the Sydney map on the stex? I'm thinking scratch as I can just mimic the satellite photos for the water outline.

Post more soon!!

[HabLeUrG 32]

wow, looking foward to see your recreation of Sydney...

[raul39 0]

Good luck on this project! I'm looking foward to see more of this.

[DarkEldar 6]

Im hoping to see this ive been to sydney twice and i thought it was a very nice city hope you make it the same

[owenluby 1]

Oooh, another Australian recreation! I can't wait for the start! I think also that Melbourne is a bit bigger in the spread out factor... sorry mate, there will always be a rivalry and I have to get behind my hometown... what am I saying, this isn't the right place to talk about it...

I think you can enlarge your region if you need more space. You just need to change the config.bmp file. There is heaps of information in the Mapping Community Board Room. Go check it out!

Take all the time you need, I want to see the best you can do!

wen

[magpieshooter 1]

Ah the harbour city. Well I'm looking forwrd to seeing what you can do with Sydney.

[jacqulina 162]

hi my friend if you feel confident enough to start with a blank map go for it you will have look and say i terraformed that myself,but if not then i am sure you will do just as good at your recreation from using a map on the stex,good intro and cant wait to see your work.

[cammo2003 20]

Good luck with this. I'll watch with interest, as I'm also in Sydney.

[xena99 12]

I can't wait for it. Travelled to Australia a few years back and love to see a Sim City of it....Good luck

xena99

[RushHourFreak 1]

Great idea!! I'm watching forward to looking your work. I'm sure it'll be good. And waiting to see pics.! good luck!

[Skram 4]

sounds coool can't wait for pics

[Schulmanator 5,787]

Sounds like a cool city to do. I would like to visit sometime myself. Maybe go see the Wiggles in concert! (again!)

[infinitum19 0]

let's see the updates.......... Interesting.... an exact recreation........ intriguing........... watch for it...... soon

[jorday 0]

Hey guys,

Sorry, no in-game pics yet! Hopefully tomorrow... But i've got some others below.

I've been playing around with a few things, trying to work out scale and such. I've decided I'll make the map as I go, it'll be easier and hopefully more accurate!

I won't be making the CBD first, I want to get some practice in with the outer lying areas before I jump into that. I'm going to start with manly and work my way down to North Sydney Then the CBD. Manly is probably the most far right/east part of sydney, so I'm going to work my way from there to the west.

I just want to say I'm in love with google maps. Not only am I using google earth (more updated sat pics than google maps!) I can use google maps street directory mode thing to cross reference and see what buildings are... e.g. see what are schools, hospitals, etc.

Here as you can see, manly is up on the right, then sydney city cbd in the lower middle.

=)

[ccecill 52]

Looks like this will be good!

[jacqulina 162]

looking forward to some of your work

[Giligone 10]

Haha, looking sweet. Sydney is one city I reeeally like. Just something about it I guess. I'd love to go there when my bank account lets me, haha. So, I'm excited about this CJ. Can't wait to see the in game pics.

Also, I too am obsessed with google maps. I actually prefer it to Earth because if you zoom out just enough in Maps it converts to uniform land-sat images which look really nice. All the blockiness in Earth from the different pics gets a bit annoying at far zooms.

[owenluby 1]

I love Google Maps too! Isn't Sydney Harbour just amazing?

[DarkEldar 6]

i had to post again your getting a great start i can't wait to see this your taking it nice and slow great that you started with manly thats a really nice area well most of it is i can't wait to see the beaches and harbour in manly that you re-create

[connor_v 3]

Wow, this will be great. It will be a challenge though, with all those twisting roads and such. Good luck!

[Deathtoall 28]

Wow, good luck. it will take you quite a while.  As a Sydneysider it's hard not to love this. I can't wait for the northern beaches to be completed! I love that area. Manly is so nice, what a great place to start from.

[Conorjs 0]

Looking good already. Can't wait to see this get going!

[jorday 0]

Thanks to all your comments and encouragement, its very much appreciated! Yes, this will take a long time, probably be slow going, but with some patience and endurance it should work out.

Well I got a start to it, I was playing around manly area as I said. I probably chose a bad area to start, the "deep end" if you will. Lots of complex roads at all different angles, and its a built up area, so obviously I can't just start with lots of apartments from nothing! While it wasn't as accurate as I hoped, it was going well, until I decided to play around with the config.bmp. I found you can add maps to the right/east. But putting them on the left/west causes existing cities to move over to the left as they obviously have an x,y coordinate based from the top-left... Well after playing around, I someone ended up erasing my manly that I started! Not to worry, it was just streets, some zones, trees and coastline at that point.

However, because of what I've learnt, I think I'm going to change course and start from the west and work my way east as I can easily add new maps that way without any trouble. Now, because *I* live in the north-west, I will make a start from my house and work my way in. This is my "shallow end". I live in a spacious area with lots of land and roads are far apart, also farms around here, so it seems perfect to start with! I hope I don't disappoint those above who were eager to see manly! This also gives me time to suss out the stex some more as I need different things, as in manly I needed a lot more (walk ways, beaches, forest/bush walks, coastline stuff, college buildings, unique buildings, etc.). So as I move through the suburbs, it should be a more "gentle" ride.

The only problem here is its going to take me a LONG time to get to the CBD, so I hope you guys aren't in a rush to see the bridge and opera house anytime soon! I'm going to make a start now, so I will post pictures up in a few hours hopefully! =)

[owenluby 1]

Yay! I like your approach: just taking it slowly and being glad with the end result. The roads are going to be tricky, unlike Melbourne, they are at very random and unique angles and they curve a lot. Most roads in Melbourne follow a casual north-south and east-west (a few exceptions here and there) route. I would love to see how this turns out.

Remember, take as much time as you need. I would rathe wait a year (yes, a year!) than see you rush it in 3 months (although that would probably be impossible due to the size...)

Good luck, I am sure you'll need it!

wen

[jorday 0]

Thanks! Yes, I also like Melbourne's roads, so much more sensible!!

But Okay, here is the beginnings of my home town on north west Sydney... Here is where it is located in Sydney:

This is the google earth map of Pitt Town:

and this is what I have so far in Sim City: (had some stray trees... Anyone know if its possible to knock out individual trees without killing the lot underneath?)

Overall I'm happy with the progress. I don't have too many custom lots, I'm going to need to search around for some nice ploppable houses I think... Area isn't growing the same as you can see the lots are larger in the sat picture. I've had to use farms for some of the houses on larger lots, so its not fantastic, but I think its coming along well!

Next is the centre of Pitt Town which is just below this picture. One issue is trying to find some churches like I want.. There are 2 churches in Pitt Town, right next to each other, both old small sandstone churches. I found 2 on the stex, but one is too big and the other is a reward where I need a larger population :S So I might have to settle for something that is nothing like them. I'll see what I can do.

[seemurray2 21]

Yours looks alot like the google pic, that's cool!  Great work!

[owenluby 1]

Wow! For churches search Simgoober. He has two packs full of them and there's heaps of different varieties!

Also, i would recomend Pegasus' Briganite Water mod. It will fit perfectly into the harbour area...

Keep on a buidin!

[football_fever 6]

That's amazing how the google earth picture looks exactly like your SC4 pic. Great start! If you truely make it to scale, house for house, road for road, it would be the most amazing CJ in history.

That water mod owenluby suggested is the one I use. It looks beautiful in every way. Pegasus has a whole load of awesome water mods. Be sure to check them out.

I can't wait for more.

[jacqulina 162]

hi there,if you are talking about taking the trees of the farm it will destroy the lot underneath,great work so far,i also use pegs brigantine and i think it will be perfect for your city

[magpieshooter 1]

Looking fairly accurate so far!