A SimCity veteran player has constructed a sprawling metropolis that puts MegaCity One to shame.
Peter Richie, who has played SimCity 4 for ten years, spent eight months designing and building a settlement that 107.7 million digital residents call home. The feat was accomplished without any mods or cheats, with initial planning having begun last December before construction started in March of this year.
“Traffic is a nightmare, both above ground and under,” Richie said. “The massive amount of subway lines and subway stations are still congested during all times of the day in all neighborhoods of each and every mega-city in the region. The roadways are clogged at all times, but people still persist in trying to use them.”
The entire city is made up of 81 large city tiles- making one Mega-Region. There are 26,542 km (16,492 miles) of paved road and 8,626 km (5,360 miles) of subway lines. Energy comes from an astonishing 324 hydrogen power plants that produce 6,000,000 megawatts of energy, with an additional 486 waste-to-energy plants. For education, there are 81 universities, 162 colleges, and over 2,000 elementary and high schools.
“Pollution is managed,” said Richie. “Heavy polluting structures are clumped between groups of four mega-cities, as are airports, and energy infrastructure. This reduces the impact of the worst pollution to the residents.”
Settlements similar to this one might be much closer to reality than some realize. A report from the United Nations published in July stated that, as of 2014, 54% of the world’s population lived in urban centers. By 2050, it is estimated the number will increase to 60%- with close to 90% of the increase concentrated in Asia and Africa. India’s capital city Delhi (with a current population of 25 million) is expected to see 11 million more take up residence inside its limited in the next 16 years, raising concern regarding its already taxed infrastructure.
Richie, however, has an optimistic outlook regarding the future of urban cities. “I think we are on the verge of building very large, but very sustainable cities, likely where the pollution of today will be nearly non-existent.”
Excited about the future? Read up on Google’s Project Wing and robots riding hoverbikes here on The Escapist!
Source: Motherboard
