SimCity Released for the iPhone and iPod Touch

Electronic Arts (EA) has released SimCity (iTunes link) for the iPhone/iPod Touch. The app is priced at $9.99 and is being well received by iTunes customers earning an average rating of four stars.

Movement in the game is accomplished via finger flicks, while zooming in and out is accomplished with the pinching gestures. Helpful tutorials are available to guide you if you are new to SimCity. However even veteran SimCity players will probably need to consult these tutorials due to the iPhone unique interface. Like the regular SimCity you have to decide what you want to do with your city - build it up or tear it down.

Among the game features EA is touting:

• Starter Cities start you indifferent types of cities.
• Manage all aspects of a thriving city, including the budget
• Destroy it all with 5 Disasters - UFO, Fire, Tornado, Earthquake, Toxic Cloud
• Place Parks, Landmarks, public works and various different special buildings
• Public and private transportation with roads and rail
• Public works management: Water, Power, Garbage and Recycling
• Place 6 Zone types
• Enact Ordinances to satisfy petitioners
• Never play the same game twice
• 3 Difficulty Settings
• Small, Medium and Large Cities
• Customizable Procedural Terrain Generation
• Complex simulations that adapt to your every move

Definitely worth a look if you are a fan of this genre of gaming. However, the $10 price point might give some buyers pause. We are hoping that a reduced feature free version might be released since there is no way to try it before you buy it otherwise in Apple's less than perfect iTunes App Store.