SimCity: Regions

[PeterWeaver 2]

I noticed someone saying that the regions have pre-installed road and rail links

 

Our remit is City Mayor. These links are National not regional. God mode

 

So they make sense ingame, Government pays for them, swings and roundabouts. Ooh swings and roundabouts they'll be good. And a travelling circus please. What do you mean this is it

 

[nats 99]

I doubt they will change to contiguous tiles because their philosophy is to allow multiplayers taking on tiles as neighbours. Continguous tiles would make this very awkward - haiving a terrible player right next to you would not be great.

 

No the fact is this is the way the game is made, if you dont like it dont buy it. Its obvious which clientel this game is being aimed at and it isnt the big experienced city builder fans of the SimCity series who want a serious game. Its a quick, immediate, dumbed down Sim City game for kids who want to play with their mates online, much like every other game coming out these days.

 

Maybe it will be modded at some point but I cant see Maxis ever changing it themselves. This is why we have Kickstarter - to enable developers to really make the games they want to away from the damaging influence of publishers like EA. The old Maxis employers should have gone their own way on Kickstarter with this title, then it would have been great.

[CaptCity 4,752]

Another Region tiles topic merged here. Some mixing of posts may have occurred. 

[nafeasonto 18]

I doubt they will change to contiguous tiles because their philosophy is to allow multiplayers taking on tiles as neighbours. Continguous tiles would make this very awkward - haiving a terrible player right next to you would not be great.

 

No the fact is this is the way the game is made, if you dont like it dont buy it. Its obvious which clientel this game is being aimed at and it isnt the big experienced city builder fans of the SimCity series who want a serious game. Its a quick, immediate, dumbed down Sim City game for kids who want to play with their mates online, much like every other game coming out these days.

 

A little harsh dude don't you think?

[Hellken 1,658]

What, specifically, is dumbed down about the new game compared to SimCity 4? No, really. I'd like to know...

100% control of all the space.

A picture says a thousand words....

I want to build something that looks like this (From Packersfan's District of Wenzel):

Not this:

Actually, the 

[Ma8thew 77]

As far as the gaps between cities go, it has nothing to do with 'dumbing down'. It's because it's complicated for the game engine to resolve touching borders with a multiplayer game.

[Hellken 1,658]

You miss the point. The main difference between Sim City 4 and this was that you had 100% responsibility with the region space. You could edit the space in your region in various configurations. There was no need for all these pre - set connections and pre - set regions without terraforming. The devs have had technical issues with resolving these problems, but, I find the initial design decisions they made to be questionable in the first place. Something is definitely not right if you market the game as a city - builder when you are unable to build a normal looking metropolis. It is a big compromise and I would even welcome a simulation that was toned down without sacrificing the scope of the game.

 

As far as the gaps between cities go, it has nothing to do with 'dumbing down'. It's because it's complicated for the game engine to resolve touching borders with a multiplayer game.

[Dewm 177]

If they offered a single-player, totally isolated offline mode, there would be no server constraints!

Most of the shortcomings of this game stem from the fact SimCity was intended to be a multiplayer game - that was a poor decision.

 

And this sums up the whole argument here.

 

/thread

[nhgriffith 179]

So because there's a visual gap between the cities, the game is dumbed down? I don't understand.

If the region play is better in every aspect EXCEPT the visual appearance of gaps between the cities, a purely cosmetic difference, then how is the game dumbed down?

[AkemiAzula 280]

I like making cities like that sc4 one in the screenshot. Hell, I'd love to build something on the scale of London or Sydney. But computers, unless your a gazillionaire computer enthusiast, simply can't deal with large cities with this much detail.

 

As to the issue of contiguous cities being replaced by separated cities, this makes sense given the multiplayer aspect of the game. And while I'd have preferred an 'expanding border' system, I am sure the decision for static borders was made for a reason.

[Hellken 1,658]

So because there's a visual gap between the cities, the game is dumbed down? I don't understand.

If the region play is better in every aspect EXCEPT the visual appearance of gaps between the cities, a purely cosmetic difference, then how is the game dumbed down?

 

I am not just talking about the visual appearance. I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region. Please remember that all those empty spaces are uneditable. The region terrain is pre - set. You cannot even edit the connections between cities in a region.

[Spatzimaus 77]

I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region.

 

You're a city mayor, and you do the things city mayors do.  You don't control the highways that lead to or from your city (federal government and maybe governors do that).  You don't control the development of whatever suburbs spring up between the major cities (those towns' own mayors do that).  You don't decide where in the region your city gets founded (the settlers centuries ago did that).  And you definitely don't create mountains, lay down rivers, or dig canyons (God does that).

 

Would I like to see the addition of a map editor that lets us play God and create our own custom maps?  Maybe in the long term, but I don't consider that to be part of the core game experience, and I can understand why it'd be a low priority for release.  And even with that you won't get contiguous tiles, because the agent system simply isn't built for that.  Basically, if you value those things so highly, you should just go back to playing SC4, because this game won't be what you want.

[Hellken 1,658]

You're a city mayor, and you do the things city mayors do.  You don't control the highways that lead to or from your city (federal government and maybe governors do that).  You don't control the development of whatever suburbs spring up between the major cities (those towns' own mayors do that).  You don't decide where in the region your city gets founded (the settlers centuries ago did that).  And you definitely don't create mountains, lay down rivers, or dig canyons (God does that).

 

Which is why I don't expect the next SC game to be a serious successor to the series. "Bubble Towns" with lines.

 

A lot of the beauty from previous games came from the fact that you are allowed to express your imagination. The game served as a canvas. I have seen people create anything and everything from regions with just mountains and trees, to suburbs, farms, beaches, etc. I have seen people make 100 km X 80 km regions and fill them with trees, farms, mountains, towns, cities, etc. Some spend years just working on one region. But that was what was nice about SC4. You are in control and responsible for every inch of space. More freedom and less restrictions.  

 

SC4 is flawed and very dated. It deserves a successor. It was somewhere in the right direction and I expect any game that wants to called the "next SimCity" to at least build on the stuff it did right. ...not,....um... fix what isn't broken and break what's already fixed.  

[nhgriffith 179]

I am not just talking about the visual appearance. I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region. Please remember that all those empty spaces are uneditable. The region terrain is pre - set. You cannot even edit the connections between cities in a region.

So you want to be a governor--not a mayor. You want to play SimRegion, not SimCity.

[cirugo 1,889]

I am not just talking about the visual appearance. I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region. Please remember that all those empty spaces are uneditable. The region terrain is pre - set. You cannot even edit the connections between cities in a region.

So you want to be a governor--not a mayor. You want to play SimRegion, not SimCity.

well, since they're hyping regional play (which, by the way, isn't new) is that not reasonable?

[nhgriffith 179]

They're hyping inter-city play. They're hyping the ability to connect and cooperate (or work against) your regional neighbors far and above what's ever been done before.

[Hoipus 292]

Mayors don't construct power plants. Mayors don't determine road placement. Real mayors don't have anywhere near the power a mayor has in simcity. By talking about what mayors can/can't do, you're opening up another can of worms.

[mapboy 106]

I actually think a lot of the criticism could be subdued just from better placement of cities within the regions. If anyone watched the live stream this morning (or whenever it was in your time), they showed I region, which I thought had very little gaps between the cities. While there were gaps, this were usually either containing waterways or steep cliffs which wouldn't be built on anyway. I think that smart ways like this of setting up a region removes this 'wasted space' idea. I do think the random cities amongst the plains isn't that great though.

 

And I also think that things will be better when they release a region creator/editor. I will be shocked if this isn't released in the next two years.

[JayLJohnston 9]

It's a good think that SimCity 4 still exists for all you who want to play that type of game. 

[AkemiAzula 280]

The only real problem I have with the small tile size is that there isn't much space for hinterland for farms. Which means your regions either have to be connected to the SimWorld economy or consist of small towns

[Hellken 1,658]

It's a good think that SimCity 4 still exists for all you who want to play that type of game.

 

 

No. It isn't so much the city size per se. I play 1x1 and 2x2 cities in SimCity 4.

 

You have all these bubble towns with pre - set region connections. The irony of course, is that this is a SimCity game where you cannot construct a believable looking city.

Mandelsoft and I explained this in another thread:

 

Another downside many have cited is the city-tile size, such a restriction prevents slower computers from bogging down, furthermore, no SimCity game has ever been to realistic scale, EVER.

We want believable scales. Sim City (2013) does not even have "urban sprawl". If you have a Central Business District with many skyscrapers, why does it end in all that unused green space? (Oh, Online limitations)

 

Although SimCity 4 may be underscaled, it allowed you to do this, something I call the Metropolis Illusion (create one large city with numerous of smaller ones):

DISCLAIMER: This is not one of my cities by the way. I do have a sprawl, but not this big. But this picture does show that the size of a city can be virtually endless using this method.

The SimCity 4 region were we fell in love with is not some modification: it was something we had back in 2003 at the release of SimCity 4 vanilla, and for me, it's one of the most addictive factors that keep me playing.

[CaptCity 4,752]

This topic is for the Region aspect of the game, not about those who do or don't support the game.

[Hellken 1,658]

I am not just talking about the visual appearance. I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region. Please remember that all those empty spaces are uneditable. The region terrain is pre - set. You cannot even edit the connections between cities in a region.

So you want to be a governor--not a mayor. You want to play SimRegion, not SimCity.

So, if I am in charge of 16 towns in a REGION....

 

.....that makes me a what exactly? 

 

 

 

............. A WIZARD?  

 

 

[Evil_One 119]

I am not just talking about the visual appearance. I want freedom and FULL CONTROL of all the space in the region including the look of the region. Please remember that all those empty spaces are uneditable. The region terrain is pre - set. You cannot even edit the connections between cities in a region.

So you want to be a governor--not a mayor. You want to play SimRegion, not SimCity.

 

I think most want to play SimCITY not SimTOWN.

[nhgriffith 179]

I think most want to play SimCITY not SimTOWN.

If anything, that's a tile-size issue, and has nothing to do with the region. My question is what is wrong with the REGION play and your answer is that the city tiles aren't large enough?

So if everything else were the same, but the tiles were 8x8 instead of 2x2, you'd be fine?

[cirugo 1,889]

I think most want to play SimCITY not SimTOWN.

If anything, that's a tile-size issue, and has nothing to do with the region. My question is what is wrong with the REGION play and your answer is that the city tiles aren't large enough?

So if everything else were the same, but the tiles were 8x8 instead of 2x2, you'd be fine?

that would definitely be an improvement

[Zpike 79]

  I just found these great descriptions for some of the new regions in SC 2013.  The 5th can't come soon enough!

 

"This picturesque chain of islands has several cities on each of its three major islands. These rocky islands sit high in the water, with exposed cliffs dictating interesting city planning choices. Island shores with spectacular ocean views lend themselves well to developing wealthy resorts."

 

Linkage: http://www.ign.com/wikis/simcity/Horizon_Archipelago

 

I do notice that most of these region descriptions seem to center on resources and not tourists, gambling, tech, etc...  Anyone know how long resources last? If I build an oil town am I going to play for a couple of days and then watch my oil drilling sites go down and my town die?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Zukunftstraume 220]

The squared out edges to most of the hills and plains really doesn't do it much justice.

[Sunfighter 186]

Curious about these maps because they seem to demand certain development patterns to avoid being isolated. If you were to select the east most map, and another player or you decide to develop the west most map, would the game treat it as isolated cities since there are technically no connections due to no developed cities on the connection points between the islands? or does the simulator assume a connection even if a map isnt in use?

[nhgriffith 179]

If they're not connected on the map, then they're isolated in the sense that they can't share utilities, civics, commuters, etc.

However, being in the same region, any regional unlock one city gets will apply to the entire region, regardless of connections.

What I noticed looking at a lot of the screen shots of the 16-city regions was that they were in groups of 4 cities. That is, one highway would connect up four cities, and this was repeated 4 times. Each of these groups of four cities also had one great works site. The train lines, on the other hand, were not limited to these groups of four. They would connect perhaps 2 cities from one group to 2 cities of another group.

However, according to the developers, City A being connected to City B and City B being connecting to City C doesn't also mean that City A is connected to City C. (Imagine road connecting A to B, and train connecting B to C.) So commuters, utilities, civics, etc., could only be shared between A and B or between B and C.

However, I imagine that if B were developed as a trade city with the warehouses and such, that B could use its warehouses to say import resources from City C by train then export them over to City A by road. Similarly, City C could sort of help out with a Great Works site it's not actually connected to by shipping resources to City B, then City B putting those resources toward the great work.