[ih] POLIS Simulations on ARPANET? -- Micropolis => SimCity

[Don Hopkins]

The original name that Will Wright used for SimCity was “Micropolis”, but he changed it to “SimCity" before releasing it, because “Micropolis" was the name of a disk drive manufacturer at the time. 

When we talked Maxis/EA into releasing the original SimCity source code under GPLv3 (thanks to John Gilmore and Eban Moglen and SJ Klein), the licensing agreement stipulated that modified versions couldn’t use the name SimCity unless the code had undergone and passed QA testing and was approved by EA. So we went through that long arduous process once, to make a release of GPL SimCity for the OLPC, and we then did all further development under the original name, “Micropolis”. 

https://github.com/SimHacker/micropolis <https://github.com/SimHacker/micropolis>

Press release: EA DONATES ORIGINAL CITY-BUILDING GAME, SIMCITY, TO “ONE LAPTOP PER CHILD” INITIATIVE
https://donhopkins.com/home/micropolis/EA%20Gifts%20SimCity_11_5.pdf <https://donhopkins.com/home/micropolis/EA%20Gifts%20SimCity_11_5.pdf>

SimCity EA/OLPC Contract:
https://donhopkins.com/home/micropolis/olpc-ea-contract.pdf <https://donhopkins.com/home/micropolis/olpc-ea-contract.pdf>

-Don

From: Don Hopkins
To: Will Wright
Date: November 7, 2007

Hi, Will!

The contract between EA and OLPC says EA QA has to approve the version
that goes on the OLPC and uses the name SimCity, which is fine and going
well. And it also says that the GPL source code release should not use
the trademarked term SimCity.

So we need a new name to call it, that's not hopelessly taken or goofy
sounding or gimicky, and reflects the purpose of releasing it under the
GPL for the benefit of education, but is still close enough to SimCity
to remind people it's based on the same code and not just a third party
knock-off.

Do you have any ideas or suggestions, please?

The best thing I've come up with is "ScriptCity", which sounds similar
but is different enough, and implies two important things: 1) the fact
that the current version is scriptable in TCL, the next version will be
scriptable in Python, and later versions will be scriptable with visual
programming languages (so kids can learn to program, plug in extensions,
use the code as a starting point for their own games, etc). 2) scripting
as in writing stories: the goal of applying ideas from The Sims Exchange
for taking pictures of the game, writing text about what's happening in
the city, and publishing a newspaper / blog / geocoded timestamped
articles / save file snapshots that you can share like the Sims stories
and families on The Sims Exchange.

I like ScriptCity because it fits in will with two of the major goals of
the OLPC project: 1) programming and 2) literacy. And "scripting" is
nicely ambiguous in the way it refers to both.

What do you think? John's already registered the host name, which was
not yet taken, and it satisfies one of the other more difficult
constraints, that the name not be used for a game yet and the address be
available.

-Don

From: Will Wright
To: Don Hopkins
Date: November 7, 2007

Don,

That sounds good. Here's another idea. How about the first name I used
for SimCity; Micropolis?

We didn't use it at the time because there was a hard drive company with
that name but now I don't think there's any risk of market confusion
over it.

-Will

From: Don Hopkins
To: Will Wright
Date: November 7, 2007

Wow, that is a great name! That could be just the thing. I'll suggest it
to John and SJ.

The name reminds me of a spoof game I threw together as a joke years ago:https://web.archive.org/web/20020125210914/http://www.micropoly.com/ <https://web.archive.org/web/20020125210914/http://www.micropoly.com/>

-Don

Micropoly: Microsoft Monopoly Game Web Site
https://web.archive.org/web/20020125210914/http://www.micropoly.com/ <https://web.archive.org/web/20020125210914/http://www.micropoly.com/>
Micropoly is the Microsoft Monopoly Game! It's a parody of Microsoft
that's fun to play, a free board game based the rules of Anti-Monopoly,
and a political statement protected under the First Amendment.

From Samuel Klein

Micropolis is a pretty cool name... down to the root.  which something
truly derivative such as 'scriptcity' (which wouldnt' make sense on its
own if simcity hadn't come about, perhaps) isn't.  though I like the focus
on scripting :-)

we've been discussing in the office what this name should be as well;
it would be awesome to have the name ready so that as soon as we launch
the public source code tree that tree can have a suitable name without
worrying EA.  Chris Ball, our cleverest generalist, is especially keen
on getting the gpl project off to a good start.

SJ

From: Don Hopkins

Micropolis has a great ring to it, and a nice back story.

Here are some references:


Will Wright Chat Transcript
http://simcity.ea.com/community/events/will_wright_01_08_04.php

SimsStash (Jan 8, 2004 6:45:07 PM)
Were there any other names that were considered before you came up with
"SimCity"?

MaxisWill (Jan 8, 2004 6:45:07 PM)
Yes, first it was City Planner 1.0, then later it was Micropolis (but a
HD company already had that name)

Sim City - HOL Amiga database
http://hol.abime.net/1928

TRIVIA: The pre-release title, MICROPOLIS, had to be discarded because
of the existence of a HD manufacturer at the time that went by the same
name.

SimCity - Moby Games
http://www.mobygames.com/game/simcity

Alternate Titles

* "模擬城市" -- Chinese Title (traditional)
* "模拟城市" -- Chinese Title (Simplified)
* "Micropolis" -- Working title
* "シムシティ" -- Japanese Spelling

Closer Look: The Sims
http://www.allcube.com/gamewatcher/closerlook/sims.asp

In 1984, a brilliant young designer named Will Wright had his first game
published, Raid on Bungeling Bay. While the Terminator-esque game wasn't
quite a classic, it did set Wright on the path to creating a game he
originally called Micropolis.

You might know it better as SimCity.

-Don