Press

1UP Network

Posted their review of CL:WE, giving the game an 8.5 overall.

"City Life: World Edition is a curious product -- an expanded re-release of 2006's City Life, a critically acclaimed city simulator that showed great promise but lacked a certain je ne sais quoi. World Edition's changes to the original game are -- relative to your average expansion pack -- minor...but their effect on the game is magical, transforming it into the kind of mesmerizing lever-pulling life-suck that sim junkies crave. Turns out, more variety is just what City Life needed. The game's fit-and-finish is still marred by a litany of bush-league typos (the gaming equivalent of the boom mic in the frame), but these nitpicks shouldn't keep city-game lovers from paying this City a visit."
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Next Level Gaming

Posted their review of City Life: World Edition, giving the game a 75% overall and saying -

"Now the big question, should you get this game or not? Well I will tell you the same thing I said about the original game. If you are a fan of City Building Sims, than this is a great title for you. Just be warned that the extra need to balance your different social groups will make this one harder to master than some of the other City Building Sims out there. Now here is the problem, if you have the original title then this expansion does little to add on to the experience and is not worth your money. If you do not have the original and are interested in the game, then go ahead and pick yourself up a copy of World Edition."
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Cinemablend

Popular film and games site Cinemablend has reviewed City Life: World Edition, scoring the game 4 out of 5 stars and saying -

"The only downside to the game is the learning curve – especially for the building editor. But if you've already played City Life then you'll easily enjoy World Edition. For gamers who never quite understood the whole strategic, city management simulator, you might not find any familiar ground with City Life: World Edition, but that doesn't stop it from being a good game."

Other comments -

"What's more, though, is that City Life: World Edition isn't just about in-depth aspects of city management, the game is actually amazing to look at. Whether it's the Statue of Liberty or the citizens and vehicles that populate the streets, everything in the game is very well modeled. And unlike some games that focus the graphics simply on being pointless eye-candy, Monte Cristo has managed to incorporate a visual appeal that reflects the aesthetics needed to bring a city to life. Added to this, the visuals are paired up with a soundtrack and ambient, atmospheric sounds that really helps bring any of the cities to life."

"The game is very deep. And players who want to get a closer look at their own city creations can zoom right on in and "walk" amongst the people. In some situations getting right down into the midst of the population can allow players to see conflicts and problems first-hand. It definitely adds extra scope to the game's already massive depth."
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GameZone

Their review of City Life: World Edition, giving the game an 8.2 overall and saying -

"And a good game it is. Even though City Life doesn't blow the competition out of the water, it is a very fun and satisfying sim experience. Who could complain about taking all the best and proven features of past sims and giving them a pretty facelift? If you are addicted to Sim City, definitely consider giving City Life a chance. Besides, it's not every day you get a opportunity to play mayor…"
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Digital Entertainment News

Online Gaming Site and Newsletter Takes a First Look at City Life: World Edition

"City Life: World Edition may prove to be more of the same city building gameplay you played back in the summer, but with some new features it deserves a fresh look. Over 100 new buildings, a pack-in editor, and new custom tracks could offer enough to warrant purchase this January."
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DigitalTrends

City Life: World Edition in Don't-Miss-List for Getting Past Winter

"OK, in fairness, the upgrades found here aren’t all that massive over the last version of this well-received urban planning simulator, essentially SimCity for the Core 2 Duo and high-end graphics card-packing generation. Still, the first expansion pack (sold in a standalone, value-priced package) does add new scenarios; international landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty; as well in-game MP3 support. Given that it remains a blast to build neighborhoods and watch inhabitants’ virtual lives unfold, the package proves plenty compelling however you slice it."
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Computer Games Magazine

Print Magazine Awards 4 out of 5 Stars

"It turns out this is easily the best city builder - and certainly the best contemporary city builder - since SimCity 2004."

PC Gamer

Print Publication Rates City Life as an 83% and "Excellent"

"This game may sound like a knockoff, but it sure doesn't play like one... a great, slightly offbeat take on an old-fashioned formula."

Playboy.com

Posted a very positive preview of City Life: World Edition, saying -

"By no means a mandatory purchase for casual shoppers (a shame considering the program's catchy theme), diehard City Life: World Edition enthusiasts will find the unparalleled depth and near-infinite replay value a welcome choice. Longtime fans can't help but appreciate the subtle tweaks, enhancements and bonus content, even as neophytes marvel at their newfound ability to shape a living, breathing and internationally diverse digital metropolis. Call it cutting-edge "edutainment," or simply the modern urban planning major's consummate tax write-off."
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Yahoo! Games

Leading Website Rates City Life 4 out of 5

"Although City Life isn't exactly a high-budget offering, you wouldn't know that from the graphics. It isn't crammed with fancy special effects, but the buildings really look the part, and help underline the differences between each social class... City Life embraces the satisfaction of city-building and the power of governing millions of people in an abstract and entertaining way."
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Amped IGO

U.S. Gaming Site Praises Solid City Life Gameplay

"Despite the familiarity of City Life's gameplay, the social element is fresh enough to make it an easy recommendation, despite any political overtones it may carry. If you are a city building fan or just have time to kill until Sim City 5 is released, City Life is a good choice, thanks to its easygoing nature and appealing structure."
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DailyGame

Solid U.S. Gaming Site Rates City Life an 8.5 out of 10

"Much more than a clone of SimCity, City Life is a deep, realistic urban planning simulation that is both challenging and entertaining. Ample development options ensure that you can create unique cities in several types of climates; although, a limited number of maps and no terrain editing tools reduce the variety. The inclusion of subcultures does much to broaden gameplay, introducing a sociological twist on a genre in need of innovation. Visually, the game easily sets the standard for the genre with full camera controls and the ability to walk through your city in the first-person. While it isn't perfect, City Life does so much right that it's hard to pass this game up."
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GameSpot (UK)

GameSpot UK rates City Life as "Good"

"Visually, Monte Cristo has done a nice job at re-creating the bustle that a city usually contains. Buildings will change in appearance as different types of residents move in, and roads will change colour depending on which type of citizen class that particular area appeals to the most. These visual cues make it easier for the player to gain an overview of what's happening where, which helps as the city begins to grow. What's more, there's even an option to abandon the traditional top-down view usually associated with games of this type and wander around your creation in first-person mode instead. It's not very useful in terms of governance, but it's a nice touch that lets you see things through the eyes of your citizens."

Note: This review is based on a UK retail version. Read the full article...

Next Generation

Marketing and Business Focused Online Site Picks City Life as "This Week's Biggest Games" Selection

"So far, with a dozen reviews logged City Life is scoring 82 percent on GameRankings."
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Digital Entertainment News

DigNews Predicts City Life Might Dethrone SimCity

"When I played SimCity 2000, I thought there would never be a game made to knock this rather portly King from its throne. Monte Cristo though have created a winner here, more than worthy of challenging SimCity for the title of best city-building game... City Life is an absolutely fantastic game full of juicy goodness."
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GameSpy

Leading Gaming Site Compliments City Life on Depth of Social Layer

"Once the player gets into the game, however, real differences between it and other city-builders start to emerge. Rather than being based on buildings and zones and some abstract version of "citizen happiness," the social model of City Life is based on the collective mood of individualized citizens. Every inhabitant of a City Life city has a name, address, place of work, and places they like to go for fun -- and an attitude. How happy they are is based on what kind of home they live in, whether they're employed, if they have access to their preferred sorts of amenities, and what sort of neighborhoods they have to pass through and the people they meet as they make their daily rounds."
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Gamespot

City Life First Look - SimCity with a Social Conscience

"With the last SimCity game released three years ago, City Life looks like it will bridge the gap to the next SimCity title, whenever that comes out. The game has all the basic building blocks of SimCity, but its emphasis on social awareness is a nice touch."
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GamesRadar

Online Destination from the Publishers of PC Gamer Lauds City Life for Cultural Class Innovation

"Indeed, City Life's main hook is something that SimCity has largely ignored: your town's inhabitants all belong to different social classes. City Life's population is divided among six distinct social and economic classes - Have Nots, Blue Collars, Fringes, Suits, Bobos and Elites (only the first three are present in the demo) - and each has their own distinct wants and needs."
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WorthPlaying

Online Magazine lauds City Life as "strikingly inventive"

"[I]t's a strikingly inventive game concept that brings a degree of reality to the genre. Not only that, but it's a sufficiently challenging and addictive enterprise in which you can lose yourself and many hours of your time trying to design a working metropolis where everyone just gets along... it shows enormous promise, and rivals at Maxis ought to be taking a long and careful look. The inclusion of class conflict adds a dimension of social reality which is rare in other games of this sort. It features a great balance between macro and micro gameplay models and the same kind of addictive interaction that keeps you playing until your eyes are sore and time loses its meaning."
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Armchair General Magazine

Online Component of Military and Strategy Enthusiast Magazine Gives City Life a Thumbs Up

"...this is, of course, a strategy game, pure and simple. Readers familiar with the astonishingly successful Sim City series will already be fully au fait with the daily dilemmas of establishing and building a modern metropolis, but this game handles things a little differently. In City Life (by Monte Cristo), you won't get away with just zoning willy-nilly and hoping you get the mix right, this game actually features several different social "classes", all of whom have different needs and wishes and, more importantly, who must all get on together."
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JustPressPlay

Online Site Praises City Life's Attention to Detail

"The most astonishing thing I found in City Life was the amazing attention to detail. At first, you have a large overhead view of your world. Simply click on the zoom function and you are pulled right into your city! The environments in this game are truly full of life."
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Firing Squad

Online Site Lauds City Life as Potential Heir to the Sim City Lineage

"City Life does an excellent job in its micro-management, giving the player a number of indicators for keeping each of its citizens happy. Is there enough housing? Are there plenty of shopping and schools available for each class of people in your town? What about their health and safety? And of course your city folks have to have some kind of fun activities. Each particular class of citizen has different kinds of expectations for their happiness. The poorer classes may need simple things like schools and shopping while the elite may need more luxury items to keep them fulfilled. The trick is to have a metropolis that keeps all of these classes happy. And no, you can't simply make a city full of just have-nots or elites in order to run a successful city... this could be the successor to the SimCity franchise that lots of people have been waiting for."
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The Armchair Empire

Early City Life Look Raves About Additional Cultural Layer

"Obviously, there'll be a lot of the other red tape that comes with city administration, like taxes, planning public transportation, entertainment, and so forth, but what looks to be City Life's trump card is this balance of the classes. Some games have tried basic approaches to this in the past, but there seems to be a lot more layers to what Monte Cristo has planned for this here."
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About.com

New York Times Online Property Describes City Life as Contender in the City Sim Genre

"From few hours I've played on a preview version (which means not everything is perfect for release), it could be a contender in the city building sim genre. It has goals, is open-ended, has fantastic graphics, and a range of terrains and levels."
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