City Life (Windows)

CITY LIFE gives players a chance to build, grow, and run a city. They manage the city's finances and services, keep an eye on pollution and traffic, and assign plots of land for development. But City Life players must do more than grow the city and keep it in the green. What makes this game different from others of the genre is its focus on social hierarchies.

Players must work hard to keep the peace among the different classes -- which range from the poor "Have Nots," who do the city's dirty work (like cleaning up parks and running the town dump) to the "Elites," who can put serious cash to the city's coffers but also require a multitude of city services to stay happy. Players who let tensions rise too high may experience riots and acts of arson -- or even an infestation of organized crime, requiring the skills of an expensive SWAT team to root out.

Players will find this game challenging and fun. And it's beautiful, too. The 3-D graphics allow players to look at the city from almost any angle; they can even go into a first-person mode to take a stroll through their streets. It's also possible to view the city at a variety of times of day, from the twinkling lights of night to the hustle and bustle of daytime.

The game can grow formulaic, which may reduce its long-term play appeal. Also, in contrast to the design, the text and dialogue boxes are sloppy. Overall, though, this game is structurally sound. Kids and adults looking for new challenges in playing mayor will find it with City Life.