Cheats-Area.com

   There's no more need to wait for those GFW cover-story scans we were looking forward to last week, because Electronic Arts has now officially announced SimCity Societies as the next instalment in Will Wright's classic city-building franchise. And we already have a big surprise, in that the game will no longer be developed by Maxis, as widely expected, but by Tilted Mill. Not to worry, though, because they also know a thing or two about this kind of games - having created Children of the Nile and Caesar IV (not to mention the old Caesar, Pharaoh, Zeus and Lords of the Realm series that Chris Beatrice worked on at Sierra's Impressions studio, before establishing Tilted Mill).

   But enough history lessons. Now that we know the game is in good hands, let's see what EA has to say - and show - about it. For starters, make sure to visit our SimCity Societies gallery to see the first screenshots. They don't look too mindblowing yet, but it should be a real delight to see the game in action. And certainly a whole lot of addictive fun to play it!

   As predicted before, SimCity Societies will bring a change of direction to the series, by shifting the focus to the overall society "generated" by your city - whether it's a futuristic metropolis, a fantastical haunted city, an obedient Orwellian state, a devout contemplative town, a "green city", or even a "fun city" filled with ferris wheels, gingerbread houses and chocolate factories. Or anything in between, thanks to more than 350 building types available, each of which allowing players to combine, connect and re-arrange structures freely.

   Directly linked to this idea of structural combinations are the so-called "social energies": industry, wealth, obedience, knowledge, devotion and creativity were mentioned in the announcement. Think of them as a new kind of resource produced (or consumed) by your city's different buildings, and the way you mix them will basically determine the kind of city - nay, society! - you build.

   Well, all that's left to say for now is that SimCity Societies should be released in November 2007.