SimTower: The Vertical Empire
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Simclusive
(1998)
- MacPack Blitz (1997)
- SimClassics: Maxis Collections 3 (1997)
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SimMania Pack
(2000)
Description official descriptions
Maxis takes their Sim-building line vertical with SimTower, an original concept from Japan (where vertical living is much more commonplace than in many parts of the world).
Your goal is to build a skyscraper that is both tall, aesthetically pleasing, popular, and, most importantly, economically profitable. To be successful, your building cannot just be endless levels of office space or purely an apartment sky-rise, but rather a multi-functional haven for humanity featuring everything from penthouses to theatres, restaurants to shopping malls. The centerpiece of your tower design is your elevators and proper management is key.
You can watch your Sims enter and leave your grand tower, getting impatient waiting for elevators, or having a hectic workday at the office. You can even train in on one or two, to serve as a metering stick for their compatriots, or just to peek into the average workday of the little people living in your building. Or watch the security and rescue crews race as disasters like bomb threats and fires rampage through your well-crafted skyscraper.
The PlayStation version adds an additional bonus map.
Spellings
- ザ・タワー - Japanese spelling
Groups +
Screenshots
Promos
Credits (Macintosh version)
50 People (30 developers, 20 thanks) · View all
| Concept & Game Design |
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| Programming | |
| Artwork | |
| Sounds | |
| Project Management | |
| Producer | |
| Lead Tester | |
| Testing Supervisor | |
| Additional Testing | |
| [ full credits ] | |
Reviews
Critics
Average score: 74% (based on 17 ratings)
Players
Average score: 3.4 out of 5 (based on 59 ratings with 2 reviews)
The Good
The concept of building a tower. The many different things you could build, e.g pubs, fast food places, cinemas. The challenge of the game
The Bad
The damn elevator and stair system. It was confusing
The Bottom Line
A fun game which is probably the best Sim title excluding of course Sim City(also 2000 +3000) and the Sims.
Tower building for all ages
Windows 16-bit · by Big C (56) · 2001
So simple...yet somehow addicting
The Good
I can't quite put a finger on it, but something keeps me playing this game. Perhaps it's Santa flying across the sky on December 25th. Perhaps it's my Security prowling the building for a bomb. Maybe it's even the incessant sound of construction while putting my building up and up. All together, it's a very simple, but amusing game with very simple gameplay.
The Bad
The fact that I can never get my elevators to go above a certain point (which I forget offhand) has been a real puzzler, but that may just be me. I wish the game had a few more 'quirks' and such.
The Bottom Line
A simple hotel empire game as you struggle to make your vertical tenancy a success!
Windows 16-bit · by classicpoki (7) · 2004
Trivia
Inspiration
The game evolved out of a program to test elevator management software.
References
The bell sound at the end of a year is the same ring as a bell in the Charlie Chaplin movie City Lights. There it indicates the beginning of a new day.
WinG
SimTower was one of a scant few commercial games to use WinG, a game library developed by Microsoft during the brief period between the Windows game SDK and DirectX.
Analytics
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Related Sites +
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Mart's SimTower Fan Site
Cheats, Trainers, Saved games and Creations -
McLure's SimTower Stuff
Building Tips, Tower Images, Tower Downloads, Links -
Peter's Place: SimTower
Tower building tips -
Simtower webring list
If you want to see more websites on the matter. Warning: not all are useful! -
Uval And Harel's Unofficial SimTower Page
Tips & Tricks for SimTower -
ZealGames: SimTower
Strategy Guide, Cheats, Downloads, Towers -
ZellGamers SimTower Website
Information on the game, Help Guide, Tower Downloads
Identifiers +
Contribute
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Contributors to this Entry
Game added by Olivier Masse.
SEGA Saturn added by Lance Boyle. PlayStation added by gingerbeardman. 3DO added by Kabushi. Macintosh added by Iggi.
Additional contributors: Ye Olde Infocomme Shoppe, Ray Soderlund, Rebound Boy, Alaka, Iggi, formercontrib, ケヴィン, Indus.
Game added October 16, 1999. Last modified December 11, 2024.