SimCity 4: Rush Hour

"More Options and more Simulating than ever before!"

When I first played Sim City, I realized the potential the game had. I watched the game evolve into one of the best Simulation games ever in Sim City 2000, and I also watched the game dumb down in Sim City 3000, but now Maxis has really appealed to the masses with Sim City 4, and its update: Rush Hour. Rush Hour is much more fun and has many more options than Sim City 4, and makes for a pretty much, never-ending game.

Gameplay

The gameplay is broken down into several parts. For those of you who have played Sim City before, you should know about the Zoning system. Well its back, and with a vengeance. The zoning system now features 3 levels of building type in each sector: Industry, Residential, and Commercial. These are your main basis of play.
Another key component is the utilities. You can control power lines, water lines, and garbage flow using this menu.
The Road symbol on the menu is your main transportation tool. It has been updated a lot since Sim City 4, and now sports different Highway options, new offramp styles, different bridge designs, and several new mass transit options, such as the monorail, or elevated rail.
Another interesting concept introduced in Sim City 4 is the Region. In your region you can make multiple cities and can connect them all. You can also negotiate deals for trash, water, and power with your own cities. An addition made to this in Rush Hour is the addition of the Transportation map that shows how and where all the cities are connected.
The Gameplay is structured so that nothing really interferes with what you are doing. It is definitely a great experience playing Rush Hour, especially since your options are basically doubled (especially in the Transport area) from the original Sim City 4.

Graphics

The graphical level in Sim City 4 is superb. Definitely ten steps forward from Sim City 3000. Everything that a real city has, the game does too. For instance, if you go to any downtown area in the world, you should find that it is very dark because of the shadows of the buildings, well in Sim City 4 you get all that and more. Buildings in the game look like real buildings, people almost look like real people, water almost looks like real water. But this is where some problems arise. If your graphics card is somewhat outdated, or your PC is at least not at 1.5 GHZ speed, then the game may lag when you have a large city. You should be fine if you have better than 1.5 GHZ, and a good graphics card. I have a 1.3 GHZ processor, and I experienced lagging. I did update my graphics card and the lagging was greatly reduced. It is only a minor set-back.

Sound

Everything sounds fine in the game. Lighting strikes sound great, and so do earthquakes and robot attacks. The Sound is what you would expect from a great developer like Maxis, but that isn't best area. The Music is the best area in the game. With the addition of Rush Hour, there are more songs (I think about 7 more), and they all create the perfect mood for city creating. Do you remember those jazz tunes from Sim City 2000, and 3000? Well, they are back, just slightly modified, along with tons of new tunes that make the game absolutely excellent.

Re-playability

Rush Hour can basically last forever. You can create slum cities, garbage dump cities, and/or sprawling urban centers. Its all up to you. The game's possibilities are endless, since you can never have the same city twice! You will end up playing the game for hours on end, until the world stops turning. Yes! It is that addicting.

Final Judgement

If you loved Sim City, 2000, 3000, or 4, you must get this expansion pack! If you have never played Sim City in your life, you need to get Sim City 4 and Rush Hour immediately!
Great Score for a Great Game: 9/10

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 05/20/04