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Gaming Thursday, March 14th 2013 at 5:20 pm

Hack Shows Offline SimCity Play’s Possible, Questions Always-Online Requirement

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Electronic Arts has done a terrible job with the launch of the newest SimCity, and things have just gotten worse since someone hacked the game to show that it can run offline, calling into question EA’s claims that forcing players to be online in order to play is required for the game to run properly, and not just sneaky digital rights management.

SimCity now features a limit on the time players can continue the game without an Internet connection. After around 20 minutes, the game boots you off if you’re not connected. EA and Maxis have said that this is because the servers players connect to are actually doing the bulk of the work to compute what’s happening in your virtual city. This mod by Reddit user UKAzzer calls that into question by showing us a SimCity world without the required connect:

The mod works by exploiting the debugging mode of the game, and shows UKAzzer manipulating the highway layout.

Besides the evidence at hand of a modded version of the game running without a connection to the Internet, Rock, Paper, Shotgun is reporting that a source close to the SimCity project revealed that the servers are not crucial to gameplay, and are only being used for things like in-game communication and saving data.

By the look of it, not only aren’t the servers for SimCity working, they’re also not necessary. EA has announced they’ll be offering customers who purchased SimCity a free game to apologize for the debacle. That will be available on March 18th, so you have a few days to pick up SimCity, be frustrated, and then get offered a free game as compensation.

(via Eurogamer and Rock, Paper, Shotgun, image via YouTube)

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  • Pirate

    lol, I’ll just wait for the crack…

  • Fast

    I have been playing this game for a solid week now, ONLINE. Its typical to be disappointed with server performance on the first day of launch. You left out the part that this is a great freaking game, hacked or not.

  • Faster

    Keep drinking EA’s coolaid Fast. Its like calling a meal “Still good” after someone takes a huge crap all over it.

  • Faster

    Keep drinking EA’s coolaid Fast. Its like calling a meal “Still good” after someone takes a huge crap all over it

  • Fast

    Im not really a fan of one brand name or another. But after playing this game for 80hrs + I have barely scratched the surface. I can connect to the game just fine, invite friends to my regions, chat about what were building (city goals ect), and build my city according. Its a multiplayer city builder people have been asking for. Good luck playing this game solo you have about a 0% chance at building a great works : )

  • annon

    “they’ll be offering customers who purchased SimCity a free game to apologize so you have a few days to pick up SimCity, be frustrated, and then get offered a free game as compensation.”
    For the price they are charging for this game and the problems with totally not worth it

  • Hector Serrano

    It’s shenanigans like this that makes people steal software. Let me know when the single player crack is available.

  • damnyoumaxis

    why it is a sh*te game: can’t get online; ‘cities’ are too f**king small – my local village is probably bigger; the pathing of the ‘agents’ is utterly stupid; OH MY GOD THE TRAFFIC; it would help if the game remembered my progress; the progress on my great works seems to go BACKWARDS; there are NEVER enough workers. I hope the maxis team are crying over their morning cheerios for this…

  • Suckit

    I will still play this despite all you kiddies out there crying ermergerd therz drmzzzzz!

  • Psycho

    lol, 0% chance… 80hrs of sim city didn’t even start to teach you how sim city works… I’ve build in less a region (3 cities) totally working, all alone, so start learning… This game has a few bad sides:

    - Maps too small

    - Always online is a shit and will be cracked, as I want to be able to play on my laptop even when I’m in a train direction Germany.

    - Lot of bugs in the traffic

    - Nice or not, bug that gives you a shit lot of money when you reconnect to your shitty, or can just zero your bank account, without any reasons

  • Colin

    I bought the game and had no issues with it… also got a free game as compensation (FTW)

  • dethlovesme

    any one have an eta on when a crack will be available? lol

  • Gimmle

    1. small city area
    2. the algorithm for sewage system sucks (you can’t really think 1 sewage recycling center isn’t enough for such a small area).
    3.crime algorithm sucks…always complaining about crime when there is non.
    4.people always protesting in front of town hall even if nothing is wrong.
    5.recycling center not working correctly
    6.traffic – will go to the shortest way but won’t take a longer rout if there is a traffic jam, (hell if you can mark it as red at least make the algorithm to drive the other way).
    7.population increases even if you don’t have tall buildings in the city (which makes no sense…where do they live in the other guys kitchen?).
    8. if friend’s internet connection falls and you are receiving water/sewage/electricity/police/fire fighters/ambulances from that friend in the region you will not get any of these which means…well it means you’re screwed until your friend is back.

    but yea it’s still a good game…..

  • SK

    If you really ou got no issues (you always play online) got a free game (EA offered a free game as an apology for screwing the SimCity launch). Anyways hope you had (or still have) a great gaming experience, for me it wasn’t that good. I share Gimmles’ experience and if a next SimCity comes out I don’t see myself spending a dime on their next release, if any.