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SimCity sits among a select group of iconic PC games. The mention of its name brings an immediate impression to the minds of even the uninitiated. But, like many an urban area, the time's come for a renewal project. Just like in the real world, the idea isn't to wipe the slate clean and start over but to take all the best parts of what's there and build on them with the innovations developed since the original's creation.

It's with that spirit that EA sets out to reinvigorate the SimCity line with its upcoming SimCity Societies. Yes, there are many changes, and some of them will initially shock longtime fans. The mere fact that you can now select and place all the buildings (rather than watching them spring forth from your zoning) sets the stage for a major metamorphosis. But before panic sets in, know that despite the game's new direction, the heart of SimCity still beats beneath it. While it may avoid some of the stricter city-planner roles, they're replaced with a wide variety of social-engineering experiments that present would-be mayors plenty to play with.

Here are a few quick points to help get a handle on where SimCity Societies is headed:

#1 -- For the first time in the franchise's history, an in-house team at Maxis/EA isn't developing the game. At the helm of SimCity Societies is Tilted Mill, the folks behind Caesar IV and the sleeper society-builder Immortal Cities: Children of the Nile. Why isn't Maxis working on it? The answer's simple: Will Wright and his team are busy with Spore. But Rod Humble, the head of EA's Sims division, handpicked the Tilted Mill guys, and its previous city-building successes makes the developer an inspired choice.

#2 -- By SimCity creator Will Wright's own admission, previous SimCity games had become too complex for most. Tilted Mill is focusing on scaling back the complexity and micromanagement of latter entries like SimCity 4 -- no pipes to lay, no power grids, no manual emergency-response funds to disperse, no individual building-funding. The series' hardcore fans shouldn't worry that the game will no longer be recognizable or too easy. "We are not out to fix something that's broken," promises lead designer Chris Beatrice.

#3 -- As the working title implies, Societies adds a new layer of emphasis on the city's citizens. The game introduces six "social energies" (such as Wealth or Obedience) that influence your city's look and feel. Buildings and aesthetics change depending on how these six values develop. Focus on Obedience, for example, and your buildings will start automatically adding security cameras to monitor your citizens' movements, Orwellian-style. Different energy balances unlock different building types, too.

#4 -- The standard SimCity "adviser" system is gone. Societies aims to communicate your city's well-being through goals and the city's overall atmosphere -- and your citizens' behavior. Sims (yes, they're using that term) will skip work if they're in a bad mood or start engaging in criminal activity (such as vandalization). Your actions in the game -- what you choose to build -- will also influence the kinds of goals the game presents. Head down an Obedience path, for example, and the game will start giving you goals to usher your progress in that direction.

#5 -- Goal-oriented sandbox gameplay: Instead of giving you a handful of typical scenarios, this SimCity awards new buildings and bonuses for meeting certain goals during the course of normal gameplay. With only about 15 percent of the buildings unlocked from the get-go, that's a lot of game to wade through.

And that's just part of what we picked up while visiting with the development team. For all the details on SimCity Societies, check out the July 2007 issue of Games for Windows: The Official Magazine in stores soon. In it you'll find more exclusive screens and in-depth information.