SimAnt

"Ever wonder what it's like to be an ant? It's definitely fun!"

Introduction-
Recently my local Babbages got in shipment of Super Nintendo games, and they were selling them to people who had the Super Nintendo at cheap prices. As soon as I heard about it I hopped into my car and ran down there. I bought about 20 different games, but while I was looking, I saw a game called Sim Ant. Being the huge fan of Maxis’s Sim Whatever series I thought I’d get this game. I read the back of the box and it looked cool even though it was made in 1991. Making my several trips to the counter and attracting many wandering eyes I bought my new games. When I first turned on Sim Ant I thought it would be a decent Sim game. I was sooooo wrong though. Within 15 minutes I was hooked, and that holds true for 3 of my friends who made fun of me for playing an “old” system. Now I’ll tell you why it’s so great in the important stuff.

Graphics- 10 out of 10
For a game made 10 years ago this has excellent graphics. In fact, if they weren’t so cartoon like they’d look real. It’s simple to identify things, and the graphics just look plain great. Some of the cut scenes actually do look real.

Sound- 8 out of 10
Not that the sound is bad or anything, it’s pretty good, but the music has this bad habit of getting stuck in your head. I really do think that it is something about the music that makes it stick in your head, and that is the only flaw here. Wherever you are though the music seems to fit in well, and the sound effects are great too.

Play Control- 10 out of 10
Nothing wrong here in this category. Everything is perfect; it’s just point somewhere and push a button. It’s hard to find out the controls though if you don’t use the instructions, but there’s an excellent tutorial in the game to get you started out. It tells you what buttons to hit and shows you all of your abilities as an ant colony leader.

Game Design- 10 out of 10
Another brilliant Sim game from Maxis. If you’re used to Simcity then this is a big new twist. Sim Ant doesn’t focus on building things; in fact the only two things you can build are tunnels in your nest, and protective walls for your nest. That might sound bad but building is not what Sim Ant is about. The object of the game is to gather food, expand your ant colony, and then find and destroy the red ants and their queen.

Story- N/A

Replay Value- 10 out of 10
Like all good Sim games from Maxis, Sim Ant has excellent replay value. The first time you play you’ll be completely addicted to it and won’t be able to stop playing. Even after you beat the scenario mode you’ll want to play it again and again. If you ever get tired of the scenario mode there is always the huge, addictive, time-consuming full game mode where you try to take over multiple sections of a family’s yard, house, etc. while facing many ant-type dangers such as spiders, lawn mowers, and humans.

Overall- 10 out of 10
Overall Sim Ant is a magnificent simulation of what it’s like to be an ant. It took me about 15 hours to beat the scenario mode and about 45 to beat the Full Game mode (I have way too much time on my hands don’t I?). I really enjoyed this game but hey, maybe I’m just weird. After all: One man’s treasure is another man’s piece of crap. Or something like that. Also it’s rated “E” for Everyone by the ESRB rating board.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 05/27/01, Updated 01/18/02