The original SimCity game was released in October 1989*, making this its 25th anniversary. Birthdays and anniversaries are always good times to reflect on the subject at hand.
My introduction to SimCity was on my Super Nintendo Entertainment System in or around 1993. At the ripe age of six years old, I had learned to read well enough that I no longer struggled with stairs in Dragon Warrior, but most of the terminology used in SimCity was brand new to me. The concepts of Industrial, Commercial (try getting a six year old to pronounce that with no coaching), and Residential zones - not to mention the special buildings like power plants, seaports, and stadiums - opened my young eyes to the real world via this city simulation. Not only was it (and still is) fun, but SimCity has always been a highly educational experience. Consider the systemic growth of the player's mind as he discovers more of the simulation's rules and how they interact to form highly dynamic emergent systems. This game design concept is way beyond most entertainment titles of the time.
To this day I credit SimCity and its creator, Will Wright, for helping develop so much of my early understanding of the world around me.
*Alas, SimCity for Mac was actually released in February 1989 so this post is several months late. But the ubiquitous IBM/PC version was released in October of the same year, at least.
P. S. For those interested, the SNES version is possibly the best of the original SimCity. It boasts the strongest (redesigned) graphics and most memorable music (I can still hear it in my mind - so peaceful!) of the original SimCity ports. I believe there is a Wii Virtual Console version of the title available, if it hasn't been taken down (I hate it when download-only software is pulled from the store).
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