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USA 1997
SimCopter (1996)
SimCopter
"When SimCity 2000 calls 911." (Computer Gaming World #148, Nov. 1996)
Simcopter is a unique game from an era of gaming history when Maxis was in their creative prime and bringing out quite a range of difference experiences
That isn't to say Maxis always made great games and I would go as far to say that many of their games are more curiosities and experiences or simulators than classical games, but that doesn't detract from the joy that can be found in them
I was impressed by the low system requirements of the game needing only a 75MHz Pentium and 16MB of RAM to run.
So it was a safe install on my mighty 200MHz Pentium system, even if the Voodoo 2 3D accelerator had to sit out this game.
It came out when 3D in gaming was still a novelty rather than a mainstream given, which was reflected in the difficult development of the title due to it's use of 3D. From memory I believe they had to hire in somebody with the experience as no-one at Maxis at the time had the knowledge.
Playing the game now is a quite clunky and confusing! I'm not sure how I managed to work it all out when I was a kid, but I needed to lookup some guides online this time to learn the ropes
There's a big nostalgic kick playing it again after 20 or so years. It reminds me of a time when big studios could afford to make such quirky titles. This creativity is what gave birth to The Sims, which did quite well on balance
SimCopter 64 - Unreleased E3 1997 Demo Gameplay
SimCopter 64 - E3 1997 Demo Gameplay
Gameplay from the E3 1997 build of SimCopter 64, produced by Maxis. This demo cartridge was gifted to the Video Game History Foundation by an anonymous donor.
SimCopter 64 was very early in development at this stage, so early that the helicopter can't even collide with buildings yet. This version of the game is a direct adaptation of the original SimCopter, but over the next year, the game would change significantly.
Read more here:
https://gamehistory.org/simcopter-64/
This video was captured from a Nintendo 64 using the RetroTINK-5X video upscaler. Thanks to Kevin Bunch for capturing this footage.
SimCopter
‘SimCopter - “If You Want to Ensure Order, Just Lift the Joystick’’
[PC] [GERMANY] [MAGAZINE, SPREAD] [1996]
PC Games, February 1997
Scanned by Jason Scott, via The Internet Archive