[YouTube] SimCity

https://youtu.be/JbX2OwG9FzQ

Above is a "Let's Play" video for SimCity on the Commodore 64 (C64) that includes an intro with an unboxing. I decided to do a blog post to go with the video since it is a significant game and this way I can also include magazine reviews. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any reviews of the C64 version. While the review from Video Games & Computer Entertainment (VG&CE) doesn't actually state the platform being reviewed, it clearly is not for the C64 version. That review mentions adjusting taxes, building police and fire stations, constructing a sports stadium, starting funds that vary by difficulty level, and multiple windows with graphs onscreen while playing. In the Amiga review from Commodore Magazine, the writer also mentions flooding, air, and nuclear meltdown disasters, multiple game speeds, a traffic helicopter, ships, railways, and how the zones change, such as houses transforming into apartment buildings. None of these things are in the C64 version. It's normal for games available on multiple computers to be of the lowest quality on the C64 but typically that is in regards to graphics. With SimCity there is a lot missing in the C64 release, though it does include a terrain editor which is a separate purchase on other platforms. At least it also retailed for $20 less than the others (the VG&CE review states the Amiga version was $44.95 but the Maxis newsletter I posted earlier has it at $49.95).

              VG & CE - November 1989                 Commodore Magazine - October 1989

The box and its contents are scanned below. I only included a few pages of the 44-page manual.

Commodore Magazine's Buyer's Guide to the Best of 1988 (December 1988)

With the 2018 holiday season upon us here is a look back 30 years to the December 1988 issue of Commodore Magazine. Of course, being a Commodore Magazine all of the products in the "Buyer's Guide to the Best of 1988" are software and hardware for Commodore computers, though many of the games were released on other platforms too. I do own eight of the games and I'll probably make videos of most of them in the future. Unfortunately, Impossible Mission II no longer works because of Cinemaware's Warp Speed fast load cartridge which appears twice in the article, though I'm not too sure why it is under software in one instance. Epyx games require a different mode for fast loading when using that and I messed up when loading Impossible Mission II but at least I had already completed the game. It looks like the Amiga had some very expensive hardware add-ons, such as the $595 FlickerFixer, $999.99 PRD-44, and $1795(!) PC-Elevator 386.

I'm going to list the first and last pages to start so that the opposite pages from the article remain next to one another below.

October Update

Here's another monthly update when I should be making videos! I'm set up for my next toy video but I like natural light and lately it's been overcast and rainy where I am, and today is no exception. If the sun pops out I'll try to get that filmed though I probably can't complete everything today as I still need to take photographs and this time I'll be recording audio separately which means I'll need to spend more time editing. That seems like the way to do it because even after recently acquiring the microphone made for my camera there is still too much white noise. The reason I did not acquire that microphone earlier is that it was discontinued years ago and typically sells for $100+ despite it being a rather standard stereo microphone. Fortunately, I found one in an eBay auction and since nobody else bid I got it for about $34. My thought was the adapters I was trying for the microphones with the 3.5 mm connection were the problem but it turns out my camera doesn't record good audio even with a 2.5 mm microphone.

While I don't have this item, I do have a Batman
RPG book from Mayfair Games that I plan on
sharing in a Batman video.

For the remainder of this month I'm aiming for some game magazine review scans in relation to Wolfenstein and Bubsy since both have new game releases at the end of the month. Actually, I have those written and ready to go so they'll definitely happen. I'd like to have some videos that tie into them as well which is up in the air still. With the Justice League movie releasing next month I'm also hoping to do one or two toy videos on some DC Comics stuff I've got in early November. Looking farther ahead I have one idea for a December holiday video that ties into Star Wars and maybe I can begin Star Wars toy videos too though I'm sure there are tens of thousands of those out there already.

I've been trying to repair my Game Boy screen for a while though I'm having a hard time getting about 20% of the left hand side back. My goal was to have that fixed by now and do a little unboxing video with that and some accessories. After I complete or give up on getting the full screen back I'll attempt to replace a fuse on the Sega CD which will hopefully get it to power on again. Other than that, I'll work on getting some "Let's Play" videos recorded of retro games when I can. For modern games I'll definitely be playing the next Assassin's Creed and Wolfenstein games but since those are M-rated I won't be uploading footage of them. Recently I completed Inside and Raiden V: Director's Cut. Raiden V has unlimited continues which is the only reason I succeeded in finishing it and it wasn't too long either at around 45 minutes.

One thing I forgot to mention last month is that I saw the documentary Viva Amiga. Going in I really didn't know a lot about the Amiga outside of what I wrote for the Commodore ads post. As a Commodore 64 owner the Amiga was always the Commodore computer with amazing screenshots that appeared on the back of the game boxes; computer games didn't always show screens of the version you were buying, or they'd show a screen from each computer the game was available for, such as C64, Amiga, Apple II, IBM, etc. The movie shows some gaming but it's predominantly about the computer's multimedia functions; for the time it was a great computer for making videos and making music. In fact, people still use Amiga computers to make music as the documentary shows people performing at what are essentially MIDI music concerts. However, the Amiga never caught on like IBM PC compatible machines did since it wasn't marketed properly and many businesses saw no reason to not use computers from IBM.

A scan of the Viva Amiga DVD back and cover. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'd have family visiting this month and was hoping to make a video with my nephew. He was here and then the whole family went to visit more family in another state and then they'll be back here for about a day before flying home. I had ideas that fell through and I re-shoot so often that it is rather difficult to complete a video with him since he is six and doesn't sit still or listen too well. Now I've got one more video idea for something that could be simple so perhaps a video will still get made with him. It's likely nobody cares but he does seem to want to make one and I thought it couldn't hurt. Once again, thanks for reading the blog and watching my YouTube videos, it's very much appreciated!

-Jonathan