Maxis, the company behind the best selling franchise The Sims, have released the first in a series of SimCity Gameplay videos. This is the first time proper gameplay has been released for the game – and it’s looking great!

In this video Lead Designer Stone Librande walks us through starting up a new city in within a region and how the player would go about starting their city from the ground up. He shows off many of the features in the new SimCity such as the return of zoning, data layers, and stresses how every Sim matters in this game. This is crucial on the new SimCity as everything you see on your screen is simulated and is important, thanks to the Maxis Glassbox Simulation Engine.

The latest installment of this SimCity will be online, which has triggered a lot of debate in the community. Questions such as “What if I want to play without internet?” and “What happens when EA close the servers?”. However, putting them aside, this video also shows how SimCity can still feel like a single player experience if the player wishes to keep their region private. Personally, I like the idea of sharing a region with my friends, however not everyone does and it’s good to know that they can still play independently without taking part in social features etc.

This game looks great visually, and the gameplay feels solid. From what we’ve seen so far, Maxis have taken the essential things from SimCity and added solid new features on top to make this SimCity retain what makes it SimCity while exposing it to simplified features and multiplayer.

If you are a fan of Maxis, SimCity, or The Sims then be sure to check Zero1Gaming regularly for the latest news. Be sure to keep an eye out for my Sims 3 Supernatural review coming soon!