The Official City Journal Critics Thread Archive

[Craig-Abcvs 1,595]

Archive for the City Journal Critics Thread.

The new thread can be found here.

[choco1 4]

Thanks for the review. It was very flattering. Its nice to know you appreciate my journal, and I appreciate the words SpecialEddie!

Oh, and I edited the first post because the text was too much.

[SpecialEddie 3]

Patriots_1228: A good suggestion is to lower the font size...we're no blind you know *stumbles into lamp*

I guess I'll be posting the first review in this thread...after obtaining permission from chocolatemax285, I am proud to present my review of

Gold Depra - An Empire of Greed

LINK

Gold Depra by chocolatemax285 is a stunning example of city journaling. Focusing on the largest nation of the "Depra Circle," Gold Depra is a powerful nation, greedy in its economic choices, and a bully to the smaller nations to which it believes is inferior. 

Chocolatemax has truly captured the feel of a country so powerful and decrepit that the whenever a photograph is taken of the city, only half the color shows up on film. The color schemes of Gold Depra are pure creativity and genius. Completely the opposite of its green counterpart, the images from Gold Depra are bland and colorless (though not completely black and white). The colors, as I have said before in the journal, remind me not of gold, but of dirt and dust. 

It is incredibly hard to find something wrong with this CJ, but there has been one thought that has been nagging me: the complete lack of overviews. In the journal we only see close-ups of the city/country, and hardly and overviews. However, this might be a good thing altogether, as the viewer gets to see more detail in the pictures.

Detail! So much detail in the CJ! Chocolatemax focuses on the little un-noticed parts that other CJ's seem to leave out. The people can be seen at the steps of the Gold Depra's Capitol. The seal of the nation can be seen on most of the country's imposing government buildings--and imposing they are! The massive size of the structures mirror how powerful this country has gotten through getting richer. Now, back to detail. Quite possibly one of the most impressive updates in this CJ has to be on this page. On page 2 of Gold Depra we see another example of choco's genius. He makes a wonderful transition between the in-game Alcatraz and the rock-mod, giving the feel of a realistic island prison with numerous souls trapped within--unable to escape. 

This is Gold Depra. 

[patriots_1228 51]

NEW RULES!!!!

DO NOT POST REQUEST'S FOR A REVEIW IN THIS THREAD. IF YOU DO, WE WILL NOT REVEIW YOUR JOURNAL. (THIS RULE WILL START NOV.1)

FRIDAY IS NO LONGER REVIEW DAY AS NOONE FOLLOWS THIS RULE


To post a review you must be a critic

Rule #1: Never Ever Flame
Rule #2: Stick to facts try not to give opinions
Rule #3: Do not rate, review



Bold Black indicates new reveiw. This TOC is of the first thirty reviews. Table of Contents no longer used.

Table of Contents reviews 30-60(excluding 2 follow ups)

Astoria by MayorTim - A review by SpecialEddie

Atlantica-Nation of Dreams by crushedcar - A review by ccecill 

El Pariso by Raul39 - a reveiw by patriots_1228

Elytheria by KRAM4346 - A review by Patriots_1228

Ensenada by Shadow_Assassin a reveiw by Patriots_1228

Fort Folley Metro Area  by 1dera3 a reveiw by RushHourFreak

Glen Harbor by MasterPlanMan a reveiw by specialEddie

Gold Depra - An Empire of Greed by chocolatemax285 - A review by SpecialEddie

Greater Columbia River by GMT- A review by Connor_V

Hausburg, Opusland by opuspup722- A reveiw by Connor_V

Little Italy by Rayden - A reveiw by Discreet

Lloyd, Ontario, Canada by asturianu - A review by Patriots_1228

Nation of Teri by jrhnemo - A review by Patriots_1228

New Area by Sim City Freak - A reveiw by Connor_V

Nyhaven: An Engineer's View by woodb3kmaster - A review by Patriots_1228

Rhodesia Newydd Dinas/ City Of New Rhodesia by 6underground - A review by ccecill 

Rochelle County by natuurzoon a review by Connor_V

Rolling Down the Railroad by Fairlane500 a review by Patriots_1228

Run for Your Life! by HamsterTK a review by  
Special Eddie

Smoggy Fields by SanAntonio a review by Patriots_1228

Simtropia by Jerronij a review by Discreet

South Ahmerst by Patriots_1228 a review by Connor_V

The City Of Ocenca by mulefisk a review by Discreet

The New Carpathia Confederation of Planets by Zeldagis a review by Patriots_1228

The Socialist Republic of Roxanya by Cancerspam88 - A review by KRAM4346

The United States of Danka by dahawk - A review by -M-

The United Republic of Ankara by Yoman3 - A review by SpecialEddie

Trinity River Valley - TRV by crazychickensc12 - A review by RushHourFreak



Want your CJ Reviewed?  PM any Critic

Patriots_1228(unactive)

Connor_V

rushhourfreak 

SpecialEddie

-M- 

Ilikehotdogsalot (unactive)

jhrnemo

Shinguire

Sim_Air (inactive)

[patriots_1228 51]

Elytheria, a CJ by KRAM4346


Elytheria is a Journal about a new country Elytheria, built upon the basic laws of human rights. The Journal starts of with a wonderful opening telling the tale of the Elytherian movement. After talking about how the nation comes to be, KRAM starts to show the development of the region.
The Pics, many of which are stunning, can sometimes be too small, not allowing readers to see the details of the City.Also, close up pics are nonexistent in the journal, as every pic is an ariel. Towards the end of the journal, KRAM provides links to enlarge the pics, solving the problem. The journal is practically brand new, but already readers are able to understand the nation of Elytheria, thanks to wonderful descriptions from KRAM.
Using many features from other flags, KRAM has made flags for the nation, which is just one detail in the recurring theme of government.  Also coming up alot in the updates is the UN or United Nations, which plays a major role in this journal. KRAM does a great job designing canals and making masterful farmlands. Industrial/Farms and Canals are what i would call his strengths.
Another thing he does well is using MBears meditterean stuff. Another thing done well is the road layout, not to griddy yet not so confusing that someone would have a hard time with it.

could Elytheria follow the footsteps of the many other classic Government/Military Journals on simtropolis? Only time(or page 3) can tell.

-Patriots_1228

[patriots_1228 51]

wow for now on im making all my posts humungous because it looks so much nicer when you edited it. It was so big because thats really important stuff.

Excellent review eddie.

[asturianu 4]

Hey, i would love someone critic my city(cj) Lloyd, Ontario, Canada. Hello, patriots, great idea you have. This is interesting.

[crazychickensc12 84]

I suggest that a Table Of Contest be created on the first post also so we dont have to go hunting for reviews...example below and make sure you link directly to a specific post that way it can be found really easily...i can make links if needed..

--Reviews--

Gold Depra An Empire of Greed by Chocolatemax285 Review by SpecialEddie

Great reviews feel free to do mine if you wish keep it up!!

[SpecialEddie 3]

So far I have gotten requests to have these CJ's reviewed. As patriots is assigning CJ's to review, I'm wondering what I should do...I am a lost soul amidst the requests to review these great journals...if anyone is willing to take the challenge...

Zanapolis 2ch.net simplayer

Astoria by Mayortim 

Smoggy Fields by sanantonio

[cityhawk 12]

I think that the critics should provide the link to the CJ that they are reviewing, like Eddie did, because I know I don't want to go searching through pages to find these CJs. Just my 2 cents.

[KRAM4346 1]

Thank you so much for the review! I truly appreciate it, and will be taking your 'advice' into consideration. I will definitely be providing more close-ups.

Thank you for a very constructive and helpful review.

-M-

link

[Zelgadis 638]

Agreed, MayorTim.  I was very skeptical.  But this is much better. 

In the past, I would have been horrified if my CJ was reviewed, but I think these folks here are balanced enough for it.  Rather than ask for mine to be reviewed, I will simply give my permission should anyone want to do it.  You may proceed how you like with that. 

Keep it up.  This is fun!

ISF

[MayorTim 16]

I completely agree with cityhawk.

I would also like to say that you guys have truly surprised me. I origionally had many doubts about this new critic team, as every "critic" in the past (and I have seen untold numbers of them over the years here) has given incomplete, biased, and skimpy reviews, often with little more than a "4 stars out of 5."

These, of course, all failed miserably.

I origionally thought that this would be something similar, but after reading the reviews on this page, you have made a believer of me. You are all doing an excellent job, and so far everything has been extremely professional and well thought out.

So much so, that I would like to request that someone review my journal, Astoria, whenever you get the chance.

I look forward to reading more reviews from you guys, and I'm definately bookmarking this. Please continue!

[Cancerspam88 0]

Wow, I'm very amazed on how nice that was. A big THANK YOU goes out to you KRAM4346. It was very flattering!

[emilin 2]

Wow! This is actually working. You guys really must have put an effort into your reviews. This is useful stuff!

[patriots_1228 51]

wow this is going amazingly well. better than i thought. Critics great reviews.

On a second note: If you see a request to be reviewed in this thread, please review it(thats to the critics)

right now we have



Just go down the list, i will do my best to do at least one or two a day

CrazyChickens12- Yea that would be very helpful if you could make a table of contents as i've never been able to do that

Now for a review

 

Nation of Teri

a CJ by jrhnemo

https://www.simtropolis.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=36&threadid=82501&highlight_key=y&keyword1=Onodaga%20County

NOTE:  Nation of Teri had four updates when journalist jrhnemo decided to start over. This is a review of the first update only, since this is only one update. Later, i will come back to this review and add a review on the rest of the updates.

The OLD  Nation of Teri started off not so well. It was a sub-par journal that was going anywhere fast. But to my shock, at update four, this journal took a turn in the right direction, and left me begging for more. Heres what i thought:

 This new CJ by jrhnemo, starts off on a bright note, with a long essay on what to expect. While the beginning paragraph is full of promises, that most readers probably will skim over, paragraph two does my job, telling you what the journal will be like, what style the author uses, and what the journal is about. A nice touch added is that each cities mayor and city council members are named after us, the readers. The first four updates weren't anything special, and did nothing to seperate this journal from the pack.  However, four updates into the journal, jrhnemo decides to start over, initially p***ing me off because i wrote my own five paragraph essay on the begining of the journal. But to my suprise, this new journal was amazingly better. It started of with a wonderfully written story about a refugee seeking shelter from war. the Pictures are stunning and the downtown of the first new update looked stunning and realistic.it had great usage of FMPlayas beaches, wonderful zone layout, and most of all, it was realistic.The cities are a extreme improvment over the old journals pics.For the first couple of pics, the word in your head is potential, meaning this  CJ is gonna be a good one.Then the goods are delivered with a awesome cliff hanger that will make me come back to this journal. The word changes to Wow. There is no need to wait on this journal untill the author reaches a point that the journal could be called great. Thanks to a stunning turnaround, this journal is great.

The Bottom Line: The Pics are improving each day, the Story is a level up from most, and the journalist has survived tons of things trying to stop him(such as a HALOholic brother). The ending to update one is going to keep readers in the thread for a while. This is a CJ that started off on its left foot, but the author reset his feet, and started off on the right foot(HAHA IM A COMEDIAN) Anyone seeking a great story driven CJ should check this out.

[Abc987 3]

I submitted my CJ to be reviewed yesterday, and it isn't here yet. How long will I (and everyone else who submits) have to wait? Thx for help

Jason

[KRAM4346 1]

The Socialist Republic of Roxanya

A Review By -M-

In an era proclaimed by Francis Fukuyama to be "the end of history," the victory of Western liberal democracy over Communism, it is not only surprising but welcoming to see another socialist themed City Journal.

First time CJer, Cancerspam88, has successfully merged SimCity 4 with the characteristic look of typical Eastern European nations under communist rule, and the CJ has had an overwhelming positive response - with CJ regular Connor_V labeling it as one of the best CJs.

Cancerspam provides the CJ Reader with a detailed (and picture-filled) "history lesson" right at the beginning of his CJ, a history lesson that is, contrary to expectations, not as boring as one would expect and sets the atmosphere for future updates from the Republic.

The typical Eastern European architecture of the Republic is well represented by a lot of custom content (mostly from the STEX) and grants a certain level of authenticity and aesthetic value to the CJ. Porkie's Parisian buildings are successfully used, among others.

As we reach page two of the CJ we're introduced to more agrarian and rural settings in the Republic, which in my opinion, successfully conveys the landscape and general ambience of an Eastern European nation (as is brought about by terrain, water and tree mods).

From a technical point of view the journal provides a lot of photos - of varying sizes and zoom levels - and is rather easy on the eye of the reader.

Cancerspam is also a very friendly, approachable and interactive CJer, quick to respond to comments, making the CJ more of a pleasure to monitor and keep up to date with.

Over-all I would say that the CJ is interesting - although not necessarily a new concept or approach to CJing - and adds to the variety we have in CJs at Simtropolis. It is definitely well worth it to keep track of the Socialist Republic of Roxanya, and I am personally interested to see what the future in Roxanya holds.

-M-

a.k.a KRAM4346

---

Link to this Review

Link to The Socialist Republic of Roxanya

[dedgren 830]

patriots_1228:

EDIT:  The following is here for historical purposes only- p_1228 and the rest of the critic team have asked that we not post requests in the thread, and that should be honored.

Don't forget mine on that little listie you have going there.

You are certainly welcome, in light of my fun at your expense, to review in whatever form you would choose (to include "Broadway Critic" mode - I know you wouldn't, but I probably deserve it) Three Rivers Region.  Consider that you would have a day pass there- you are welcome to look in any corner or turn over any rock

you would like.

Thanks for being a good sport, patriots_1228.  I'll be watching for your 3RR review.quote>

I was being serious.  I'm happy to look at with an open mind what anyone would have to say.

[Palpatine001 57]

OK then, this looks interesting, I'll give it a shot even though my region is going through massive urban newal and expansion as two foundation stones were laid in 2 neighbouring cities. 

OK here is the link https://www.simtropolis.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=36&threadid=78422  

It is of Solaria, my Imperial Region.

With out further ado, I await the review

[patriots_1228 51]

Add it to the list boys. Sorry but im too kind to go into broadway critic mode.

[crazychickensc12 84]

Where is that table of contents!!!?!?!? Nice reviews but a TOC would really really be nice i can get the links if yah want

[SpecialEddie 3]

If it's OK, I think I'll review Astoria right now.

Astoria by Mayortim

LINK

Though currently undergoing the RL curse that seems to strike the best of CJ's, Astoria by Mayortim is nevertheless a magnificent creation of creativity and city-building.

The city journal starts with some impressive downtown shots. Though many of the buildings in the downtown are more of a brown, uncolorful type of NDEX skyscrapers, the district lights up colorfully at night making for quite an impressive light show. 

Mayortim establishes himself as a veteran city builder, as he has mastered the art of sprawling suburbs and building on coastlines. The region view of Astoria is simply magnificent, with the downtown on the harbor of a massive body of water and the suburbs stretching for as far as the eye can see. The CJ is far from griddy (except downtown), and there is variety in the outskirts of the city. Astoria is a land of contrasts as massive snow-capped mountains stretch out into a plain of urban beauty. 

Another thing that mayortim seems to excel at is making American looking parking lots and shopping centers. However, there seems to be a lack of industrial variety in some parts of the city as much of the high-tech industry is made up of the blue and metallic standard Maxis buildings. Though this may look nice in region view, close-ups aren't a treat for the eyes. Repetition is not a good thing when it comes to industrial landscapes. This can be found on this page

Skipping ahead a couple of pages we see Milan, the capital of Astoria. At first glance, it establishes itself as a wonderful, history-rich capital, complete with fountain-parks, plazas, and large imposing governmental buildings. Though Milan itself is quite a beautiful part of Astoria, repetition again strikes the capital. The Maxis medium density commercial structures make an unwelcome return here. However, that still doesn't take away from the stunning images here. If mayortim was aiming for a historical look, he can't be blamed as there is a complete lack of more historically aimed medium density commercial structures on the STEX and in the game itself. The Washington DC influence can clearly be seen here.

Another update I really enjoyed was of the Echovlad Forest. The addition of the Schloss Nueshaveantstein (are however you damn spell the Cinderella Castle!) really adds a nice touch to the scenic forest. Though it looks eerie and mysterious, it's a nice break from hustle and bustle of crowded Astoria. 

Mayortim is also pretty good at making Chicago-like housing projects such as the appropriately named The Projects. Located near the gritty industrial area (thankfully there's variety here), the low-wealth high-rises are impressive. Mayortim has captured the feel of violence in this area. Quite an accomplishment for a city builder more accustomed to making wealthy and middle-class suburbs. 

Review by Me.

[Yoman3 5]

You can review mine but only if you do it on a page 15 foward basis. I scraped the rest

[Abc987 3]

Wow thx for a really great review of my CJ!!! It was very well written! I'm going to re name it to fit the story line better, so if you could edit that it would be great. Again thx so much for that review!

Jason

P.S. The new name will be the Nation of Teri

[DioAngel 1]

Can someone review mine?  I'll be very happy please.. *crosses her fingers hoping it's a good one*

[Bookworm 1]

These reviews sound very fair, I do like that it's not all positive, but it leaves me with one question...

Can CJ's that are on a different site be reviewed?

[MayorTim 16]

Wow! What an absolutely incredible review! You obviously took a lot of time to do this, and I really appreciate it! What a wonderful review.

You guys are definately the best cj critics to hit Simtropolis, and hopefully this will continue far into the future!

Again, thanks so much!

[Fairlane500 8]

You may find mine, RollIng Down the Railroad, to be an interesting concept to review. However, you may want to just start with my recent return, since it had beena while previous to that, either way is fnethough, there's definitely much more material by doing the whole thing.

[DioAngel 1]

Ok.. My CJ is back up in the ring you guys. :-)