BBPS: What inspired you to recreate NYC in SimCity 4?

Elliot Hanson: I’ve always been interested in cities and architecture since I was young. I was mainly inspired by the projects of other SimCity players who shared their creations at various fansites. I was specifically inspired by the SCURK New York project made years ago by Steve McGlenn, Tom Brendhart, Justin Smith and other SC2000 players. I was also inspired by the 3D models of world cities created by architectural and urban design firms.

BBPS: Why NYC?

EH: I’ve always wanted to build a true to life New York map ever since I started playing SimCity. New York is also my favorite city. I absolutely love the city. There’s something unique about New York that captivates me. The mixture of architectural styles, the diversity of people, the fact that it is always buzzing with movement at all hours of the day… I could go on and on about New York.

BBPS: Why SimCity 4?

EH: SimCity has been one of my favorite games to play ever since I came across it; I'm more interested in the creating the city and the aesthetics of my creation rather than micro managing it. The game allows me to express my two main interests: New York and creating things.

BBPS: What other projects have you participated in? Have you created any other game mods?

EH: My main focus has been on my New York recreation project since it is requires so much work but when I’m not working on recreating New York I work on my other cities: San Francisco, Washington D.C., Chicago and Boston. I haven’t created any other game mods so far but I love games which allow the community to mod and create custom content.

BBPS: You've recreated a number of significant NYC events - The Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, The Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, 9/11 - what other events would you like to include?

EH: One thing I miss from SC3000 are the seasonal events and the parades so I’m including all the major seasonal events that would normally take place in New York. Currently, I’m working on my Christmas and New Year’s update.

BBPS: Will this project eventually be available to the public?

EH: Unfortunately no. The reason for this is because I have downloaded hundreds, if not thousands of items of custom made content for this project. There are also custom creations I have made so the dependencies would need to be included in a very large file separate from the region if I were to put this up for download. The region itself is currently 39.7 MB and growing, so it would be a nightmare to download for people who have a slow Internet connection or slow systems. Although, if player’s of SimCity 4 would like to download creations from my project they can do so at my site. There are also excellent maps and models of New York at Simtropolis.com also.

BBPS: What's the main goal of this project? What would you like to see become of it when it's done?

EH: The main goal of my project is to create an accurate true to life model of New York using SimCity. When it’s done (if it ever will be) it could be used for practical, real world applications such as urban planning or even civil defense. I’ve already had a number of individuals contact me inquiring how this can be done.

BBPS: How long have you been working on this? How much of it do you have completed?

EH: I’ve been working on the project now for about three years. So far I have the entire layout of Manhattan done and am slowly filling it in with buildings. I have some neighborhoods in the outer-boroughs laid out, but these neighborhoods still need to be developed.

BBPS: How long do you assume it will take to complete?

EH: Maybe a couple of years more. It will be some time to say the least. I’m currently in the process of making custom buildings all by myself so it’s very tedious work for one person to do. To leverage my efforts I’ve been asking for New York building contributions from 3D modelers. Some member’s of Simtropolis have graciously donated their finished or unfinished 3D models. I’m slowly working my way through getting the buildings done. It’s hard work, but it’s a labor of love.

BBPS: Is there a specific piece you're most proud of?

EH: It’s hard to pick a specific piece of the project but I’m most proud with how Manhattan is turning out.

BBPS: Have you heard from anyone official regarding this project (i.e. EA, Will Wright, etc.)?

EH: Not yet. Though, I did see visits from EA, Microsoft, and even NASA and several other major corporations in my site logs. I’m hoping to hear from Will Wright or EA since SimCity 5 is in the works, but I understand they’re very busy.

BBPS: You're working on a very similar project using Google Maps. Can you tell us a bit about that?

EH: I’m actually using Google Earth. It’s a program similar to Google Maps only it has more features. Basically it involves the same premise as my SimCity project but only using Google Earth. I’m simply downloading buildings from the 3D Warehouse made by other users and place them on the map in Google Earth. It’s very easy to make buildings for Google Earth, as the modeling software involved is Sketchup, which is much simpler to use than the industry standard 3dsmax. Though, unlike SimCity the model is static and cannot be simulated. I don’t have much time to work on my Google New York project because most of my free time goes toward working on my SimCity project.

BBPS: Thanks for spending some time with us today Elliot.

If you'd like to find out more about Elliot Hanson's New York City in SimCity you should check out his blog, The New York City Journals.

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