Simsville shuts down

Maxis have announced that they have suspended work on Simsville, the latest entry in their long running Sim franchise. Due for release as early as February 2002, the game was intended to bridge the gap between Sim City and The Sims. The first screenshots which emerged from publisher Electronic Arts last month were looking quite promising, but apparently Maxis weren't entirely happy with the outcome. The team has now been moved to other projects including the forthcoming cash cow Sims Online, a multiplayer spin-off of the multi-million selling soap opera style game The Sims.

Maxis have had mixed fortunes over the years, producing smash hits like SimCity alongside a string of commercial and critical flops such as SimAnt, SimIsle, SimFarm, SimTower and pretty much anything else you can imagine with the prefix Sim. Which is why we are somewhat sceptical about claims from Maxis that Simsville was cancelled because it didn't meet their high standards. Future releases cashing in on the Sim name include Sid Meier's Sim Golf, which puts you in charge of developing a golf course. Oh joy.