Get ready for the harsh reality: the first thing you build in SimCity will be terrible.

When playing the game during an extended demo at an EA event, I pretty much blew all my money on roads before laying much else down, spending more on medium-density four-lane roads because in my head I was planning for my future metropolis. I had to get a bond to fund all my utilities, because your Sims get justifiably cranky without things like power.

"Build dirt roads," an EA rep told me. No part of the game tells you this, but the sage advice is pretty useful if you're trying to quickly populate a giant area. Dirt roads cost a pitance, and can be upgraded to support more traffic, but since a fledgling city doesn't have that, it's better to start small.

But just like in business and in life, there is an art to failing. Each failure teaches us something, and what we take away from defeat prepares us better for the next go at it.

Trial By Tornado

In this era of games that race to be accessible to everyone, it's a breath of fresh air to not have your hand held. SimCity is more like receiving a box of LEGO paired with a powerful data mapping tools, compared with some modern games that provide much more guidance. In this sense, it's just like the original, which is what fans want.

There is a great tutorial included which has you tackling the problems of an already built city to understand the game's basic systems, but it doesn't scratch the surface of all the cool ways to explore and build up your city. Most of the helpful information is presented in unobtrusive tool tips in the corners, or by clicking into each city service category. But most everything is learned through trying and messing up.

Players might find some of the construction tools a little unwieldy. Roads don't always want to connect because of proximity to another intersection, or crowded terrain, so you may have to occasionally bulldoze and redraw a few areas. I found placing the largest structures often difficult. Objects can only snap to existing roads, and have arbitrary points where they want to connect. It can mean clearing a larger area than you need to set down late-game objects like a stadium or municipal airport.

The city feels responsive and alive, and is good at telling you what it needs. Once you learn about the detailed metrics available to you in for each city, it's like a whole different game has opened up. Everything from land value to density potential traffic flow is an overlay you can add to your city. Viewing this much data can become addictive, as you try to tweak on each layer to make improvements. There's even the "poop layer" where you can see brown blobs flowing towards your sewage treatment center. I'm sure it's something real city planners would like to have.

Of course, the second you start to solve all your city's problems, SimCity brings out the dirty tricks that are staples to the franchise. Thanks for that giant tornado, jerks! Now I don't have a power plant. It's great to see these again, as well as to always have the option to inflict them on your denizens at will.

Let's Play Together

Of course, these are all elements we expect from a SimCity game, and while it's good to welcome back old features, there's also great new content available now that cities fit into larger regions that can be controlled by friends.

When you create your first city, you'll have to select which region type you want to build it in. Regions can contain slots for anywhere between three to 16 cities, along with "Great Works" — collaborative projects that regions pool their resources on.

Regions increase the depth of SimCity drastically from the previous games. Regions allow players to share city services, like fire trucks and garbage collection, and trade resources like water or power. The most interesting element is that it allows players to specialize; you can become an oil baron, or have a beautiful city that attracts tourists from other cities in the region.

This also means that cities can't just exist on their own; even if a player isn't interested in cooperative play, they'll probably still have to build out more than one city in a region to offer support. I found it hard to cram all the resources possible in one square, instead eventually having to rely on my neighbors for garbage or power.

But for those who love cooperative play, this prospect is exciting. Some regions are big enough to allow a large group of friends to collaborate. While Origin's in-game communication tools aren't too robust, players will be able to work around with all the other communications options that are available. Players can asynchronously build their cities, and let each other know what resources they need. Unfortunately, there isn't a way for players to build the same city at once, but you can watch and see what your friends are working on.

The game gets even broader with its global economy; those sitting on resource-heavy cities can sell their excess coal, oil or ore on the global market, and the price will adjust depending on demand. While there wasn't a way to see lot of fluctuation during the review period, it's nice that players can add extra income to their city this way.

As Charming as Ever

SimCity's powerful engine, called Glassbox, makes your city feel like a moving, breathing thing. It's fun to slow down time and watch houses get built, or follow criminals caught in the act and fleeing from police. Zooming in and looking closely can sometimes be just as helpful for diagnosing problems as your data maps.

SEE ALSO: Every Citizen Has a Life in the New 'SimCity'

The SimCity titles have always had a sense of humor to the small touches, and this is no exception. The flavor text found on building descriptions is clever; the oil refinery is filled with subtle *coughs* in between words, for example, and I saw a restaurant called "StinkyDan's Deodorizer." These small touches show the Maxis team must have had fun making the game.

Fans of the franchise will be thrilled with the newest SimCity, and it has so much heart and charm that new players are bound to get addicted, too. SimCity offers a great challenge to any player, and that's what makes it enjoyable. Even after you scrap your first attempt, you'll be hooked enough to try building more cities, and that's exactly what makes a great game.