SimCity 4 turns 15!

[Supernia 17]

SimCity 4 was released for PC on January 14, 2003.

 

Happy birthday SC4! 

[CorinaMarie 29,574]

And it still has a loyal following with new peeps discovering it and falling in love. That says so much about how well it was written not only for the game play, but for the things which have been added to it. I don't recall exactly when I got the game, but it was before Rush Hour. My comps at the time just barely met the minimum requirements and turned out to be woefully inadequate once a single large tile city was filling up about half of it. I put it away for some day later knowing all I needed was a better hardware. I picked up RH when it was released and tossed it on the shelf along side the original.

Twas only a couple years ago I finally decided to install it on a good comp (spec-wise for SC4) and only then cutting open the shrink wrapping of RH. I then played a lot and Googled up answers to the typical questions. Finding my answer here on ST about 70% of the time I finally decided to join. So, I have SimCity 4 to thank for all the wonderful peeps I've met and for me finding this community I'm now a part of.

Happy Birthday, SC4!

[Joey Auburn 150]

I first got SimCity 4 somewhere around 2005 at a school book fair and it started my love of city builders. I remember when I was a small child I would get up early in the morning just to play SC4. This game has brought me so many magical memories.

[riiga 233]

Happy Birthday, SC4!

I got the game sometime in February of 2003 if I recall correctly, and had a wonderful 10 years with it before my interest slowly started to fade, but I still hang around both ST and SC4D lurking.

To 15 more years!

[MandelSoft 2,769]

15 years already? Dang...

I may not play it anymore, but I still see people still play the game and custom content is still being churned out. It looks like it's here to stay. We might as well call it ...

... SimCity4ever!

[madhatter106 3,903]

At what point do we have to get off SimCity 4's lawn...?

[Cyclone Boom 16,852]

Games like SimCity 4 don't come along all that often. That is, if this is even fair to accept as just a game. Because I'm sure for many of us, SC4 means a whole lot more. What was originally released after the turn of the millennium, has today transformed into a hobby for many. Whether more into gameplay or aesthetics, I believe this is the constant which has sustained the interest of both veteran and new mayors alike. The devs at Maxis did lots of things right. Adding so much depth and inner details, along with subtle humour, to collectively provide the solid platform.

Speaking of platforms, looking back over the past decade and a half, it wouldn't be complete without mentioning the vast impact of custom content. While gigabytes of plugins aren't required to enjoy SC4, they've been paramount in adding new tool variations at our disposal. Year after year to this very day, checking the exchanges and finding gems of countless shapes and sizes. To all the authors who have shared their creations, we couldn't be more thankful for your efforts. Whether one or one hundred files, irrespective of download counts or ratings, you've each developed tools which are uniquely inspirational in their own right.

In my mind, SimCity 4 is a timeless classic which simply cannot be compared to games of this era. Once in a generation, it's special for what it is, what it's brought, and what it continues to bring 15 years on and counting. Without it, we wouldn't be here to share a common interest.

Thank you Maxis, thank you Simtropolis and a very Happy Birthday SimCity 4!

(And on a minor personal note, I can't wait to get back to the 'game' myself.)

[Scarton 57]

Happy Birthday to SimCity 4, Happy Birthday to SimCity 4... 

[markussaage 762]

Happy Birthday, SimCity 4! May many more years come...

[Indiana Joe 1,750]

It's still the best.  See you dudes and dudettes right back here when it's 20 years old.  

[AsimPika3172 1,129]

Happy birthday SimCity 4!

[Jasoncw 11,840]

Time flies!

The funny thing is that when I started BATing, to me it already felt like an "old" game, and I think that was only a year or two after the game had been released. I don't know what I would have thought if someone had told me I'd still be doing it now!

Imagine what people would think if they saw today's BATs all those years ago! Or the NAM or all of the other mods that have been made. Or all the CJs. I think we've all pushed the game so far beyond what anyone would have thought possible. 

[TekindusT 3,809]

What is more amazing to me is seeing a community that keeps small but strong 15 years after the game's release. I think I'm not exaggerating when saying that the community is the real driving force behind SC4 and pretty much any city-simulator. Without devoted people like us, SC4 would be abandonware since long ago together with the other +/- 99% of games released in 2003, it wouldn't be being featured in GOG.com offers from time to time, for example.

Here's to 15 more years of SC4 and; if these arrive, be sure Simtropolis will be riding along!

[Propfam 2,286]

Happy birthday, SimCity 4! Why we not make a movie for it? Documentary movie is nice, but we need a team for it.

Thanks.

[schokoladeneis 1 193]

The first time I played simcity4 I was not that impressed and stopped playing it after a few days.

Some years later (I guess 2006 or 2007) I found out that there are people who create custom buildings for this game. Not sure if I found Simtropolis or CimCityKurier first. I dowloaded for hours hunderts of lots and bats. I created a plugins folder, copied everything I dowloaded into it and started the game. Just to get the realization that all custom houses that grew were brown boxes. I missed the rush hour / deluxe addon

The next day I went to buy SC4 Deluxe. I remember frequently waking up really early in the morning, hours before I had to go to school to play SC4. I can't believe it. I am not a morning person!

Happy Birthday SC4! And a big thanks for all players enyoing this game and a huge thanks to all creators of this awesome custom content! Without you SC4 would'nt be that great.

[Haljackey 17,260]

I always knew SC4 was a game from 2003. I have just forgotten how early in the year it came out. If it was just a few weeks earlier. it would have been a 2002 release. That's crazy.

Why am I playing a 15 year old game? Because it's fun. That's why we're all here.

[mrbisonm 1,620]

I bought this game on the date it came out....and never stopped playing it. I still play at least once a week with new props and BATs that I and others made......Happy 15th

 

 

Fred

[slickbg56 778]

I've been playing since the spring of 2003. Prior to starting here at Simtrop, I stumbled around the EA site, figuring out how to use the content available there. The games I continue to play to this day are mostly from that era: Rome Total War, Railroad Tycoon 3, Tropico, and Company of Heroes. I feel like this was an era of gaming that just 'got it right', so to speak. At least in my opinion. The community here at Simtrop is largely responsible for keeping the game current. Thanks to all those that have come and gone along the way that made this website, this game, and this community so enjoyable.

[masochist 111]

SimCity 4 is the game of my college life. There wasn't a single other game I played more, lost more nights of sleep over, involved myself in the online community for, or made so many friends from during that time than this one. As far as I'm concerned, it's one of the best things that I've ever gotten into.

[Tristy100 31]

I am new to SimCity 4, but can already tell it's special. It's so much more interactive and moddable than SimCity 2013, and less intensive and (in my opinion) has more charming graphics. 2003 was a good year for gaming. I don't know why I feel like SimCity 4 has superior graphics, but it's the fact it holds you in 2d maybe. You constantly want to explore in 3d, but the game wont let you, and this gives you an effect of "wow I wonder what this would be like." I don't know though, I guess I just find older graphics kind of charming. It's actually a better simulation in my eye than SimCity 2013 and Cities Skylines combined. The menu's are just so innovative. I might prefer it, as I prefer late 90's early 00's music aswell, not sure. Happy Birthday!