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EA Launches Free to Play 'SimCity BuildIt' for iOS

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macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
63,481
30,712



Electronic Arts today launched SimCity BuildIt for iOS devices, which is a new mobile iteration of its popular city-building franchise. The game features a variety of fully-detailed buildings found in the PC iterations of SimCity with touch-optimized controls for pinching, zooming, and rotating, as the game works online and offline.

simcity1.jpeg
Like the PC version, gameplay is centered around keeping citizens happy by solving challenges like traffic and pollution while expanding a city with new resources and buildings. Players can also trade resources with friends and unlock exclusive buildings, natural disasters, and other content. The game was originally announced in September, and follows the release of the latest SimCity title on the Mac last August.

simcity2.jpeg
SimCity BuildIt is a free download for the iPhone and iPad on the App Store. [Direct Link]

Article Link: EA Launches Free to Play 'SimCity BuildIt' for iOS
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/12/16/ea-launches-simcity-buildit-ios/
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PhiLLoW

macrumors 6502
May 31, 2014
324
184
Without even looking at it I know this is freemium ******** and you have to spend more than 50$ in app purchases to actually play the game.

Why is stuff from EA even featured?
 
2

2457282

Suspended
Dec 6, 2012
3,327
3,015
i remember playing the original simcity when it came out. have not gone back to it in years. with all the problems the title has had since being purchaced by EA, not sure if it's worth it any more. The same happened to command and conquer, which was one of my favorite titles. EA bought them and now its dead.
 
M

Mcdevidr

macrumors 6502a
Nov 27, 2013
793
368
I just spent a couple of minutes playing. Who are they designing these games for five year olds? I remember spending so much time as a child on sim city 2000. It was fun, engaging, and had some strategic elements.

This game has you design about 8 city blocks. It's like sim city for anyone with an iq under 80. I think the old sim city that came out a while back that was a port is much nicer.
 
Steve121178

Steve121178

macrumors 603
Apr 13, 2010
6,400
6,950
Bedfordshire, UK
Mcdevidr said:
I just spent a couple of minutes playing. Who are they designing these games for five year olds? I remember spending so much time as a child on sim city 2000. It was fun, engaging, and had some strategic elements.

This game has you design about 8 city blocks. It's like sim city for anyone with an iq under 80. I think the old sim city that came out a while back that was a port is much nicer.
Click to expand...

The Sim City you and I loved doesn't exist any more apart from the name only. EA destroyed everything that was great about Sim City, likewise with Command & Conquer.

EA don't even design most of their games to be fun. It's about trying to extract as much money as they can from people.

You can actually play a free web-based version of the original Sim City which is a trillion times better than this ****.
 
guzhogi

guzhogi

macrumors 68040
Aug 31, 2003
3,735
1,824
Wherever my feet take me…
Mcdevidr said:
Hey guys. A huge vault of sim cash is only $99. That's pretty reasonable.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm looking at the in-app purchases. It goes from $4.99 for some cash, to $9.99 for some more SimCash straight to $99.99.

e31.jpg


With that, I hope you get a Scrooge McDuck style building and get to see him swim through his money.
 
Chad-VI

Chad-VI

macrumors 6502
Mar 31, 2014
255
48
At least the graphics on this app are better than "the sims freeplay". They should do a proper Sims mobile version with better 3d graphics and effects like the PC version instead of the mediocre sims freeplay app they made.
 
I

iosiseasy

macrumors member
Oct 21, 2014
58
209
Love the Game

I have been playing the game in Canada (where it was launched months ago) before the global launch and I'm a little addicted. It is definitely a Freemium game BUT I haven't spent a dime. They have a marketplace where you can buy and sell goods that you make and I find that with that element it allows you to not get stuck. I did play old SimCity games and with my attention span I used to find that as I played longer and my city got bigger, it would get harder and I would rather just build a new city. With this game I'm still playing the city I started with.

(I do not work for EA :))
 
C

Crzyrio

macrumors 68000
Jul 6, 2010
1,587
1,110
RaggieSoft said:
There were two previous (paid) versions of SimCity for iOS and you were probably playing one of those
Click to expand...

Canada was the test market for this game. We got it about a month ago!

It is actually a pretty decent game, yeah if you wanted you could spend money but that's the equivalent of using cheats. Just because you can buy coins doesn't mean you should.

I have gotten through a month without spending a dime, this game is actually fun and does require some strategy with respects to planning inventory and controlling your supply
 
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R

RaggieSoft

macrumors member
Nov 17, 2010
74
5
In the Land of the Evil Empire(TM)
Crzyrio said:
Canada with you that the test market for this game. We got it about a month ago!

It is actually a pretty decent game, yeah if you wanted you could spend money but that's the equivalent of using cheats. Just because you can buy coins doesn't mean you should.

I have gotten through a month without spending a dim, this game is actually fun and does require some strategy with respects to planning inventory and controlling your supply
Click to expand...

Ah ok.
 
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campyguy

macrumors 68040
Mar 21, 2014
3,413
957
From my experience, EA will add "features" like "IAP - remove the thousands of ads you'll see", "IAP - add time to your now-limited play time", but more likely this game will morph into a poker game like Bejeweled did :mad::mad::mad:. Or, SIMs playing poker...
 
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