The Untold Journey of SimCity’s SNES Port
In a fascinating turn of events, the story behind SimCity’s SNES port unveils a meeting that seems straight out of a period drama. The tale comes to life in the book Building SimCity, which delves into the rich history of the renowned simulation series. It all began in the summer of 1989 when Jeff Braun, co-founder of Maxis, received an unexpected call from Nintendo. The legendary designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, expressed his desire to bring SimCity to Nintendo’s console, envisioning a game where players could create their own world.
Promptly, Braun flew to Nintendo’s US headquarters, located in Redmond, Washington, where he was greeted by Nintendo of America chairman Howard Lincoln and president Minoru Arakawa. In this pivotal meeting, Lincoln made a remarkable offer: Nintendo would handle the port, and Maxis would receive a $1 royalty for each SimCity cartridge sold. To sweeten the deal, Lincoln handed Braun a check as a signing bonus, amounting to an astonishing $1 million, the equivalent of over $2.5 million in today’s currency.
Braun didn’t hesitate and accepted the offer, leading to an unforgettable journey. Months later, Braun, accompanied by SimCity designer Will Wright, embarked on a trip to Kyoto, Japan. There, they were warmly welcomed and treated like royalty by Miyamoto and the Nintendo team. Amidst the collaboration, Wright and Miyamoto spent a week exchanging ideas for the console adaptation of SimCity. Each evening, they ventured out, even indulging in a game of pachinko.
Little did they know that this visit would birth the character “Dr Wright,” a green-haired advisor that would accompany players in SimCity’s Nintendo version. Inspired by Wright’s wide-ranging expertise and taste for the absurd, Miyamoto chose to honor him with this manga-style character. Dr Wright would later make cameo appearances in popular titles like Super Smash Bros and two Zelda games.
Author of Building SimCity, Chaim Gingold, shared his thoughts on the impact of Wright and Braun’s experience with Miyamoto and Nintendo. He believes that SimCity 2000, released in 1993, was heavily influenced by this collaboration. Gingold describes Wright’s opportunity to apprentice under Miyamoto as a defining moment—Wright, in his late twenties, was just beginning his journey, while Miyamoto brought his wealth of experience to the table.
Building SimCity: How to Put the World in a Machine, published by MIT Press, has been a labor of love for Gingold, taking over a decade to complete due to the wealth of surprising details and captivating anecdotes. The book also reveals another intriguing fact: Maxis initially canceled The Sims in the 1990s, but it was ultimately saved by an unlikely hero—Electronic Arts.
The legacy of SimCity’s SNES port remains a testament to the fusion of visionary minds from Maxis and Nintendo, a meeting of creative powerhouses that forever changed the landscape of simulation gaming.
Facts not mentioned in the article:
1. SimCity was originally created for personal computers and was first released in 1989 for MS-DOS.
2. The SNES port of SimCity was released in 1991 and was developed by Nintendo with the help of Maxis.
3. SimCity for SNES introduced several new features and improvements compared to the original PC version, including redesigned graphics, a user-friendly interface, and the ability to build cities in various terrains.
4. The success of SimCity’s SNES port paved the way for future console adaptations of simulation games, influencing the genre and inspiring similar titles.
5. SimCity’s SNES version received positive reviews from critics and was praised for its addictive gameplay and innovative features.
Key questions and answers:
1. What were the main challenges faced during the development of SimCity’s SNES port?
– One of the main challenges was translating the complex and detailed gameplay mechanics of the PC version into a more accessible and streamlined experience for console players.
– The limited hardware capabilities of the SNES also posed challenges in terms of graphical and processing limitations.
2. What controversies or controversies were associated with SimCity’s SNES port?
– There were no major controversies associated with the SNES port of SimCity. The collaboration between Maxis and Nintendo was generally well-received and seen as a successful partnership.
Advantages:
– SimCity’s SNES port brought the popular simulation game to a wider audience, introducing console players to the genre.
– The collaboration between Maxis and Nintendo resulted in a high-quality adaptation, with improvements and new features that enhanced the gameplay experience.
– The success of the SNES port helped establish SimCity as a household name and contributed to the game’s continued popularity.
Disadvantages:
– The SNES version of SimCity had limitations compared to the original PC version, such as fewer building options and a smaller scale due to hardware constraints.
– The port may have lacked some of the depth and complexity found in the PC version, as it was designed to be more accessible for console players.
Suggested related links:
– Nintendo Official Website
– Electronic Arts Official Website
