Producer Blogs: SimCity Cities of Tomorrow: OmegaCo

What is Omega? Well, as a gameplay scripter working on the brand new SimCity Cities of Tomorrow expansion pack, I can tell you: I haven’t got a clue.

I do know that this mysterious, state-of-the-art, super-strong, super-conducting, lightweight, fruit-flavored, and all-around amazing substance is somehow created by combining tons of Oil and Ore in a very secretive, elaborate, and sometimes smelly process. I also know that Sims of the future will be chomping at the bit to get their hands on it, and that’s where OmegaCo comes in.

OmegaCo is your very own futuristic mega-corporation. Your goal is to take the technological wonder that is Omega and make tons of Simoleons off of it by building OmegaCo factories in key strategic locations across your city. Each factory comes with a production facility that will produce and deliver Omega to nearby industrial buildings. At first, Omega is distributed for free, but after a certain amount of deliveries, those industries become “Omegized” into OmegaCo-owned franchises. At that point, they’ll start paying you on the hour while producing quality Omega-infused goods! Sure, Omega pollutes, smells funny and puts odd, magenta-colored smoke vapors into the air, but your industrial businesses will learn to live with it.

Those same industrial buildings, now part of the OmegaCo family, will start shipping Omega to commercial shops and offices. Again, after a certain number of shipments, those buildings become Omegized as well, and your growing profits reach even higher. You can see how Omega spreads across your city almost like a virus… but a good virus… that makes you rich. And, yes, Omega has been known to be quite toxic, but that’s only if it’s stored improperly!

The next step, of course, is converting residential buildings to OmegaCo subscribers. That’s where drone technology shines. With the vast amounts of simoleons you've made from Omega, you can now invest in shelling out new OmegaCo BuyDrones to every man, woman, and child in the city. As with Omega, the first few drones are free, but at a certain point those residences start paying you hourly subscription fees.

As BuyDrones arrive in houses and apartments across the city, they take over the arduous task of shopping for that Sim, allowing them to stay home and surf the web in super-3D-HD-virtual-augmented living rooms. Imagine the amount of cars being taken off the road! Traffic will be a problem of the past!! OmegaCo has always cared very much about the environment... *muffled laughing*

Think you're done yet? Ha! Not even close. Drones that are programmed by users to bring back Omega from OmegaCo-owned commercial buildings will instantly double the profits from that house. Is that still not enough cash flow? What if I said you can take over Megatowers? Oh that's nothing... What if I said you can take over the entire region? Hey... Did you just hear a cash register go cha-ching in your brain?

So I hope you are starting to get why OmegaCo is so awesome. I mean, who doesn't want a swimming pool filled with diamonds? But, of course, being the CEO of a giant mega-corporation is not all fun and games. Omega creation can be a very difficult and demanding process that requires lots of workers, water, and power. Most notably, Omega requires an unyielding, ever-flowing supply of Oil and Ore amassed in factories. Thankfully, the latest in OmegaCo Extraction technology allows users to extract both Ore and Oil at the same time and send the molten mess down highly pressurized pipelines! That’s not all! You are now allowed to build custom OmegaCo VTOL Pads that will have all your required resources flown directly to factories in a matter of hours. No more global market trucks waiting in freeway traffic.

That’s right! Sims love Omega! But once they get a taste of it they’ll be breaking down doors for more and more of it. If you slip on Omega shipments, or the Omega runs dry… watch out— those Sims are going to be fuming! Do you have what it takes to keep up with the exponential growth in demand? Trust us; a pack of grumpy, Omega-dependent Sims, whining constantly about dwindling Omega deliveries is not a pleasant thing to deal with!

Well as long as you’ve got the guts of a chief executive in you, and you can keep the Omega flowing like water, you’re going to be okay. OmegaCo is a wonderful opportunity for the future, and I can’t wait to see what magnificent, treasury-busting, OmegaCo-owned cities you guys are going to make!

Warning: studies have shown that Omega is highly flammable and poisonous. Omega may cause sickness, injuries, unhealthy ground and air pollution, spontaneous combustion, increased garbage production, death, and dry mouth. OmegaCo is not responsible for any side effects. Do not taunt Omega. Please use Omega at your own risk.

- John Giordano, Gameplay Scripter