Customer Reviews:
  Well-balanced, works on a modest computer September 4, 2006
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is a good, well-balanced game. Start building your city little by little. Build a power plant, small-density residential, commercial and industrial zone, water pipes, that's it. Use the cheapest streets. Every other square in a residential and commercial are should have a bus stop. Of course, bus stops cost money, but it will save you from traffic congestions, and you won't need to invest in expensive roads and motorways. Click on the bus stops and watch the number of passengers, if it's low, demolish it.
Watch your cash flow and the other maps gradually. As soon as you have small but solid cash flow, expand your city gradually. Only add money-eating facilities like fire station, police, education and health care when there is absolute need in it. Expand extensively: cover large areas with low-quality low-density zones.
When you have enough money, move to high-tech industry which have no pollution. To do that, you need highly-educated workforce. Build schools, colleges, museums, and libraries. But watch carefully the number of attendees: only build a schools when the old are overwhelmed. So with health care.
Sooner or later you will be offered federal objects like a mega-market, military base or waste disposal. Accept them all, it will bring you mega-cash-flow that will allow you to significantly improve your city facilities.
Also don't forget to make money by selling power to the neighbors: make connections to them with roads and power lines.
This game is very well-balanced, unlike SimCity 4 Rush Hour. I highly recommend SimCity 3000, be it Jewel Case or other edition.
 Does NOT work quite right on modern hardware/XP January 21, 2006
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
This game was extremely frustrating. On either of my PCs (both fairly modern and running XP), graphic elements in the game just randomly wouldn't get drawn. It's possible the game got patched at some point (and it's possible some versions of the game sold in stores already ARE patched and would work), but EA hasn't bothered to archive their patches for older games. In any event, I found it was very difficult to play in its current condition on modern hardware.
Inexcusable considering 99% of games run just fine on XP, and Simcity 3000 isn't even doing anything special from a technological standpoint.
Avoid. Besides, you know EA will just crank out another one within a few years...
 Good, but Beware February 14, 2005
6 out of 11 found this review helpful
Don't--I repeat, DO NOT--buy this game if you have a Gateway computer, for when you play it on there it not only blocks out all the words, but when you turn it off you have to reinstall it.
Otherwise, go ahead.
 Fun game, but a MAJOR drawback October 25, 2004
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
Simcity, no matter what any one says, is going to be one of the most classic games ever made. It inspired and still influences simulators to this day, and obviously so many sequals wouldn't have been made if there wasn't a wide interest in it.
SimCity 3000 is everything you've come to know and love about SimCity. You build commercial, resident, and industrial buildings while maintaining transportation for your people. This of course requires you to maintain funds through taxes, while being careful not to go over to stunt popular, commercial, and industrial growth. In addition to that, you can enact ordinances that will either give you money or take some away, though it's worth the price since many of them will make your people happy.
But there has always been a problem with me and the SimCity games. Here's the thing: you build a city, get it up and running...and then what? OK, I have a huge city, and I'm making money. What now? Once you get your city to work, there's almost no interest in continuing. I tried one of the scenarios they supply but that didn't help much either. Every time I load my city I feel like I've already done all I can do.
Like I said, these games are popular, so this is probably just my personal opinion (in fact, it is). It's a fun game, but I don't see too much replay value. I wouldn't spend too much money on it, just in case.
A great game. December 7, 2003
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
I really think this is a very into game.You can start off by playing a game thats already saved on the game,or starting your own city.I prefer starting my own city.I also like starting with the biggest city thats already on the game.Then blast it to pieces with tornados,fires,UFOs and earthquakes.There are three types of zones.residential,industrial and commercial.The controls can be confusing at first.Like when I had to figure out that you have to wait a little before your power plants generate power.It is also confusing to know when to and when not to take out a loan.In all its a great game.I recommend it for good stradegy players.
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