Virtual City
Robust building sim doesn't get bogged down in details.
Kids say
Based on 2 reviews
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Virtual City
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A Lot or a Little?
The parents' guide to what's in this app.
What Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that Virtual City is a city-building simulation game that mixes management with construction, and includes the possibility of in-app purchases. The game features 50 missions that are loaded with goals players must meet -- sometimes within a certain time limit. Successfully finishing a level requires players to work simultaneously on several of those tasks, all the while keeping an eye on the income levels of their company. The app also offers a "sandbox" mode for players to unlock that lets them create whatever sort of city they'd like with no time limits. The danger of this mode (beyond its ability to distract you for hours) is the ability to buy additional in-game money using real world cash. One option to buy $1 million in in-game currency costs $100, though lower amounts are available. The options menu, however, does let parents disable in-app purchases. A nearly identical version of the app is available for the iPhone and iPod Touch.
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What’s It About?
A stranded motorist is informed she has inherited a trucking company. She must manage her company well to help the city thrive. Kids tap on the garage to buy trucks and determine routes. Each level includes goals like transporting pies to a neighboring city or improving the environment with a recycling plant. Kids must repair and maintain resources as well as create new ones.
Is It Any Good?
VIRTUAL CITY manages to take the best aspects of the Sim City franchise and strip those out for a portable gaming audience. The game is challenging, but not impossible -- and gives players the choice between playing a task-driven game or building a city in any manner they choose. The game looks great, and developers have clearly taken pains to optimize the app for the iPad's larger screen in the HD version of the app. The larger screen makes it easier to control the game, particularly when there's a lot happening at once -- but it comes at a higher cost than the phone version, which is virtually the same.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Take kids to tour a local trucking company.
Help kids plant a tree in your neighborhood.
Encourage kids to plan and budget for gift giving or personal expenses.
App Details
- Devices: iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, Kindle Fire, Nook HD
- Subjects: Hobbies: building, Language & Reading: following directions, reading comprehension, Social Studies: the economy, Math: money, statistics, subtraction
- Skills: Thinking & Reasoning: analyzing evidence, decision-making, Self-Direction: achieving goals, effort, time management, working efficiently, Creativity: combining knowledge
- Release date: December 13, 2011
- Category: Simulation Games
- Publisher: G5 Entertainment
- Version: 1.1
- Minimum software requirements: iOS 3.2 or later; Android 2.1 and up
- Last updated: July 13, 2020
Our Editors Recommend
-
SimCity Deluxe
Updated classic urban-building sim shines as an app.
-
Civilization Revolution
A deeply immersive history sim with some war play.
For kids who love sims
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