SimCity 4 Do's & Dont's

[LudwigVanHouser 0]

Hi everyone, I have been an on & off Simcity 4 player for a few years now and was wondering if you guys could help me compile a list of do's and dont's in starting out again. I have been looking at youtube videos and every one I watch everyone starts out different. Any suggestions from starting in a small sector to neighboring cities to what to connect & not connect together. Any knowledge you can impart to helping me succeed even alittle would be fantastic. Thanks a ton.

[Tysons4 68]

Do be creative

Don't think there is only one way to do things

Do try new things

Don't build up before you build out

Do try single zone type cities

Don't forget to save

[arozarker12 51]

Do have fun

Do not take it to seriously!

[T Wrecks 10,209]

Do trial and error to find out stuff - you can always go back to the previous savegame, or even back up your entire region regularly

Don't spend hours asking "what will happen if...?" and waiting for answers. Rather spend minutes finding it out and learning about the game in the process!

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Do mind the running costs of everything you place

Don't be afraid of one-time costs if you can afford the running costs

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Do adjust the budgets of power stations, health & education

Don't cut the funding for water pipes, police, and fire departments

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Do add downloads slowly, after you know what you really want and need, and test them in a sandbox region first

Don't go on a download spree and then moan about chaotic plugins and stuff growing that you cannot even identify

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Do keep your plugins folder tidy so that you find everything

Don't throw everything onto a large heap and expect you will be able to pull out a single piece without anything else collapsing - or even locate anything you're looking for in the first place

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Do accept that poor and medium-wealth citizens belong to a healthy city

Don't try to make a city that's all bling and wealth

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Do play with the ugly and gritty parts of a city and turn it into fun

Don't try to play against the game mechanics, play with them

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Pretty good set. Let me add:

don't run on the highest speed (cheetah). You lose too much of the animation and good graphics that way

do consider starting all cities in default (turtle) as small farming, fishing or rural towns, and slowly building towards a city goal

do try to stay profitable after the initial start up.

don't use money lots. If you want to adjust your treasury use the extra cheats .dll command moolah.

don't overuse moolah. A maximum of 500,000 Simoleans is generally plenty, and often not needed.

do take record shots of your cities when you get something you'd like to remember. Internal command is CTRL+SHIFT+s.

do remember this is a non-realistic game, and have fun with it.

don't knock yourself out trying to make a realistic city. It is truly impossible because there are not enough angles for the network.

And remember that building slowly and carefully will produce the most satisfaction over time.

[lhrob 213]

DON'T assume once you build a section of your city that it will always stay that way.

So DO think ahead - have an idea of how you want your city to look and zone accordingly. Also think ahead about your transit layout.

[Prophet42 1,501]

Don't be afraid to do some ubran renewal.

Do make changes if you don't like something

Do go through some city journals to spark your own imagination

Do be yourself, and make a city you like.

Do build slowly and be patient.

Don't use money cheats.

Definitely, do use the NAM.

Do download a lot of buildings from the STEX to add variety to your cities.