SimTower: The Vertical Empire

Download SimTower: The Vertical Empire for free and play on Windows. Build and manage a skyscraper floor by floor in Maxis' unique 1994 vertical city-builder. Safe download, no registration.

Version available for download: Windows 3.x

Year	1995
Genre	Simulation - city building
Rating	72/100 based on 5 Editorial reviews. Add your vote
Publisher	Maxis Software
Developer	OPeNBooK
OS supported	Win7-8 64bit, Windows 10+, MacOS 10.6+

Game Review

SimTower: The Vertical Empire is a simulation game developed by Japanese company OpenBook and published by Maxis in 1994 for Windows 3.x and Macintosh.

The game was initially developed by a young Japanese programmer, Yoot Saito, who released it in Japan under the title "The Tower". Will Wright (creator of SimCity) discovered this innovative simulation and convinced Maxis to contact Saito to release the game outside Japan. Will Wright didn't have a role in the development of the game, but he is the reason why The Tower became Sim Tower.

Like the other open-ended "sims" by Maxis, the goal is to build and make a profit; in this case, to build a skyscraper. You can add apartments, restaurants, offices, elevators, and more. As the tower advances in levels, additional facilities become available. As usual, random events can ruin your plans. In Sim Tower, you can receive a phone call from terrorists who have placed a bomb in the tower. Who knew Die Hard was popular in Japan, too?

Users Reviews

I remember this game! It was back when Maxis was releasing a bunch of games with the “Sim” brand. SimTower, SimTown, SimEarth, SimSafari and even SimAnt! I had no idea it was created outside Maxis before reading this site’s review.
This game has a lot of nuances. For example, if you make living apartments right above the commercial floor, the residents are going to complain about the noise. There’s also rush-hour lines when people try to access the elevators, so you can either put more elevators or come up with other creative ways around it. It is an interesting game, simpler than the original SimCity, but not without its challenges.

Review by: Sinmenon
Published: 26 January 2019 7:22 am