SimCity DS 2 is a city-building game

City-building game

City-building games are a genre of strategy computer game where players act as the overall planner and leader of a city, looking down on it from above, and being responsible for its growth and management...

 for the Nintendo DS

Nintendo DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

 video game console. The follow-up to SimCity DS

SimCity DS

SimCity DS is a city building and management computer game and the first Nintendo DS installment in the SimCity series. It was published by Electronic Arts and developed by the AKI Corporation and EA Japan.-Gameplay:...

, it was released in Japan on March 19, 2008. It was released in Europe, North America, and Australia under the name SimCity Creator in September 2008.

Gameplay

Building on the traditional SimCity

SimCity (series)

SimCity is an open-ended city-building computer and console video game series and the brainchild of developer Will Wright. It is published by Maxis . The game was first published in 1989 as SimCity, and it has spawned several different editions sold worldwide...

formula, SimCity DS 2 offers a new Challenge Mode that sees players guide their city through different historical periods such as the Renaissance

Renaissance

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...

 and Industrial Revolution

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...

in addition to the open-ended free play mode. Because of this, it is now possible to create cities with a historical theme. For instance, the player can create a Renaissance themed city, a pre-historic themed city or a futuristic city, and unlock famous landmarks as they progress through time.

Players are also able to take pictures of their city and share them with friends through Local Wireless.

Zones

There are three types of construction zones. The first is the residential zone. Houses and some skyscrapers will be created here. It shows up as three different shades of yellow (depending on density type). The next zone is the commerce zone. Stores and even more skyscrapers will be created here. Its has three shades of purple (which depend on the density type). The last zone is the industrial zone. Factories will be created here. Once again, its shade of red depends on density type. There are three densities for each zone: low density, medium density, and high density. Each density creates somewhat different buildings when grouped together with the same density. Low density creates small buildings which can develop into larger buildings, depending on the land value. Medium density starts off with small buildings, which with the right land values, develop into skyscrapers. High density starts off, once again, with small buildings which can develop into massive skyscrapers, depending on the land value.

External links

• Official Japanese website
• Official SimCity Creator website
• GameSpot Review