Social Gaming, SimCity-Style

If you were young in the ‘90s, chances are you or someone you loved had experienced the joy and addiction of SimCity. The PC simulator, which was later ported to PlayStation and other platforms, allowed players to build virtual cities unlike any other. Now, several years later, simple social media games (developed primarily for Facebook) are all the rage, and since many of them already have a SimCity feel, Zynga thought it was time to develop a full-fledged SimCity clone: CityVille. TechCrunch previewed the game, revealing a few screenshots and much of what we expected: that despite its shiny appearance, the game is not on par with Civilization – or SimCity, for that matter. However, TechCrunch believes that CityVille could be Zynga's smartest game yet. Every building and decorative item that you place in the city can affect the value of the surrounding area. Plus, the game will allow you to let a friend run a business located in your city. Supposedly, the business can't be abolished by busy players who don't have the time to keep it up. In fact, CityVille won't punish anyone for not playing often.