SimCity 2000

シムシティ2000 (Shimu Shiti Nisen)MS-DOS, Mac, Amiga, Other +91993

  1. JP1994
  2. NA1995
  3. EU1994
  4. RU—

SimCity 2000 kept the same name everywhere, from the 1993 Macintosh original to the Japan-only Nintendo 64 version; later PC editions were called Special Edition and Network Edition. The simplest legal way to play it today is SimCity 2000 Special Edition on GOG.

SimCity 2000 is a city-building simulation designed by Will Wright and Fred Haslam at Maxis. It first came out for the Macintosh in December 1993, followed by MS-DOS in 1994 and Windows on 28 February 1995. Compared with the original SimCity it switched to an isometric view and added terrain elevation, underground layers for pipes and subways, and a newspaper system. A Special Edition with remade music, bonus scenarios and 'WillTV' videos arrived on 7 February 1995.

In Japan the game ran on PC-98 and FM Towns before console versions for Super Famicom (Imagineer, developed by HAL Laboratory), Saturn, PlayStation (Artdink) and the Japan-only Nintendo 64. Each console port changed the game in its own way. By January 2002 SimCity 2000 had sold 3.4 million units across all platforms.12

Names and releases

RegionTitle on the boxPlatformDatePublisherSrc
NA SimCity 2000 Saturn Oct 11, 1995 — 1
NA SimCity 2000 PlayStation Jul 9, 1996 — 1
NA SimCity 2000 SNES Oct 11, 1996 — 1
NA SimCity 2000Not released in Japan. Game Boy Advance Nov 13, 2003 — 1
WW SimCity 2000 Mac December 1993 Maxis 1
EU SimCity 2000 Amiga November 1994 — 1
JP シムシティ2000FM Towns. Other December 1994 Maxis 1
JP シムシティ2000 PC-98 1994 Maxis 1
WW SimCity 2000English Wikipedia gives February 1994, TCRF January 1994 (US). MS-DOS 1994 Maxis 1
WW SimCity 2000 Windows Feb 28, 1995 — 1
JP シムシティ2000Developed by HAL Laboratory. SNES May 26, 1995 Imagineer 2
JP シムシティ2000 Saturn Sep 29, 1995 Sega 2
JP シムシティ2000 PlayStation Dec 20, 1996 Artdink 2
JP シムシティ2000Japan only. Japanese Wikipedia and the English article body give 30 January 1998, the English infobox 3 February 1998. Nintendo 64 1998 Imagineer 2
EU SimCity 2000PlayStation version on PlayStation Network for PS3 and PSP; North America 28 August 2009. PlayStation 3 Nov 20, 2008 — 1

Also known as: SimCity 2000 Special Edition WW1SimCity 2000 Network Edition WW1Shimu Shiti Nisen JP2

Box art by region

  • SimCity 2000 box art, North America release
    NA SimCity 2000

Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: Wikipedia.

Version differences

  • GraphicsSaturn

    The Saturn version adds 3D building animations, buildings that change look between 1950, 2000 and 2050, CD audio and video clips, but drops some disasters, runs slower and has no mouse support.1

  • ContentSaturn (Japan)

    In the Japanese Saturn version, the mayor's statue awarded at 30,000 citizens becomes a Sonic the Hedgehog statue.1

  • GameplayPlayStation

    The PlayStation version adds a ride-through mode for driving around your city in 3D, a volcano scenario and mouse support, at a lower frame rate.1

All differences (6)

Where to play legally today

  • GOG Purchase

    SimCity 2000 Special Edition

    DOS Special Edition, DOSBox, English only

    Checked: 2026-10-133gog.com

How to run it today

Buy SimCity 2000 Special Edition on GOG. It runs in DOSBox, GOG lists it as verified on Windows 10 and 11, and there is a macOS version too.3

Reception

SimCity 2000 sold about 4.23 million copies in total, 1.4 million of them in the US between 1993 and 1999. It won a Codie Award for best simulation (1994) and an Origins Award, PC Gamer UK named it the best computer game of all time in 1994, and the Museum of Modern Art acquired it in December 2012.1

Sources

  1. 1en.wikipedia.org
  2. 2ja.wikipedia.org
  3. 3gog.com
  4. 4tcrf.net

Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13

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