Friday 21 December 2007

Sims2: Welcome to Micropolis!

Welcome to the Near Future. The economic climate has worsened... and so has the physical. After hurricane Rudolph devastated yet another coastal community, many families relocated further inland. The government established places like this, complete with roads and underground power & broadband cables, for families that had lost all they owned and some of their loved ones. This is the story of six of those families. Broke, bereaved, with only a small suitcase of clothes, they moved into Gravel Road, Micropolis.

Unfortunately, house prices remain high: Even a small prefab home costs §50,000 plus furniture. And there are no more §20,000 handouts. A government-backed credit institution lets you borrow what you need, but the interests are fairly high. The job market has also worsened, so that you need a college degree for all but the most basic jobs. For good measure, the age of free college education is over as well: It now costs §40,000 to get a college degree, whether online or on campus.

This is the harsh reality into which our survivors are thrown. Unemployed, mired in debt just to have a roof over their heads, surrounded by a few strangers on the edge of the wilderness. Welcome to Micropolis!

(When I chose this name, I was not aware that the game engine for the original Sim City games was recently released under the name Micropolis. Hopefully it won't cause any confusion. In my game, Micropolis is a name given in scorn and adopted in pride. It plays a central role in the thought of the people there.)