Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ The Games, Movies, TV & Comics You Love
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
flag of UK
UK
flag of US
US
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of Australia
Australia
  • Games
  • TV
  • Movies
  • Hardware
  • Video
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Guides
  • Deals
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • SFX
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Total Film
Gaming Magazines
Gaming Magazines
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe from just £3
  • Takes you closer to the games, movies and TV you love
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$12
View
Trending
  • Summer Game Fest
  • New games for 2025
  • Upcoming Switch 2 games
  • Switch 2 stock

Recommended reading

MindsEye
Third Person Shooters Sponsored streams for former GTA dev's new game MindsEye aren't going to plan - sponsor apparently cancels one stream and another creator actually laughs while promoting it
The Elder Scrolls 4 Oblivion screenshot
The Elder Scrolls As the Oblivion remaster looms, fans hope the original RPG's viral goofiness makes it through unscathed
MindsEye
Action Games MindsEye dev says new performance hotfix is "the first in a series of patches," but with 40% positive reviews and just over 500 players on Steam, it would take a miracle to turn this train around
Dune: Awakening
Survival Games Dune: Awakening launched to "Mostly Negative" reviews thanks to server frustrations, but it seems fans of the survival MMO are content now: "I don't hate it"
Mindseye
Action Games After a rocky launch, MindsEye is officially this year's worst-rated game according to Metacritic, ranking below 183 other games
Mindseye
Action Games "MindsEye definitely needed a delay": GTA 5 veteran's new action game is here with 'Mixed' Steam reviews and "bugs galore," as players share spaghettified NPCs and cars with lives of their own
Mindseye
Action Games MindsEye is getting 3 hotfixes this month to remedy its rough launch as devs explain those viral bugs "were caused by a memory leak" that "impacted roughly 1 in 10 of our players"
  1. Games
  2. City Builder
  3. Sim City

SimCity's botched launch: The best jokes and memes we've seen so far

Features
By Matt Bradford published 9 March 2013

Finding humor in SimCity's DRM distaster

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Failure to launch

Failure to launch

111 best gaming memes

about the problems

We can't solve your SimCity woes, but we can help you kill some time while you wait for that server to connect. Introducing our gallery of SimCity jokes, memes, and other images from the botched launch (as recruited from the likes of memegenerator, Reddit (r/SimCity), quickmeme, etc...).

Page 1 of 37
Page 1 of 37

Page 2 of 37
Page 2 of 37

Page 3 of 37
Page 3 of 37

Page 4 of 37
Page 4 of 37

Page 5 of 37
Page 5 of 37

Page 6 of 37
Page 6 of 37

Page 7 of 37
Page 7 of 37

Page 8 of 37
Page 8 of 37

Page 9 of 37
Page 9 of 37

Page 10 of 37
Page 10 of 37

Page 11 of 37
Page 11 of 37

Page 12 of 37
Page 12 of 37

Page 13 of 37
Page 13 of 37

Page 14 of 37
Page 14 of 37

Page 15 of 37
Page 15 of 37

Page 16 of 37
Page 16 of 37

Page 17 of 37
Page 17 of 37

Page 18 of 37
Page 18 of 37

Page 19 of 37
Page 19 of 37

Page 20 of 37
Page 20 of 37

Page 21 of 37
Page 21 of 37

Page 22 of 37
Page 22 of 37

Page 23 of 37
Page 23 of 37

Page 24 of 37
Page 24 of 37

Page 25 of 37
Page 25 of 37

Page 26 of 37
Page 26 of 37

Page 27 of 37
Page 27 of 37

Page 28 of 37
Page 28 of 37

Page 29 of 37
Page 29 of 37

Page 30 of 37
Page 30 of 37

Page 31 of 37
Page 31 of 37

Page 32 of 37
Page 32 of 37

Page 33 of 37
Page 33 of 37

Page 34 of 37
Page 34 of 37

Page 35 of 37
Page 35 of 37

Page 36 of 37
Page 36 of 37
...reticulating splines...

...reticulating splines...

refund denials

Angry? Amused? Ready to give up on gaming? Let us know in the comments...

For more SimCity launch news and opinions, read EA, your SimCity is broke, SimCity marketing campaigns suspended, and our SimCity review in-progress.

Page 37 of 37
Page 37 of 37
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming Platforms
PRODUCTS
Sim City SimCity
Matt Bradford
Social Links Navigation

Matt Bradford wrote news and features here at GamesRadar+ until 2016. Since then he's gone on to work with the Guinness World Records, acting as writer and researcher for the annual Gamer's Edition series of books, and has worked as an editor, technical writer, and voice actor. Matt is now a freelance journalist and editor, generating copy across a multitude of industries. 

See more PC Gaming Features
Read more
MindsEye
Sponsored streams for former GTA dev's new game MindsEye aren't going to plan - sponsor apparently cancels one stream and another creator actually laughs while promoting it
The Elder Scrolls 4 Oblivion screenshot
As the Oblivion remaster looms, fans hope the original RPG's viral goofiness makes it through unscathed
MindsEye
MindsEye dev says new performance hotfix is "the first in a series of patches," but with 40% positive reviews and just over 500 players on Steam, it would take a miracle to turn this train around
Dune: Awakening
Dune: Awakening launched to "Mostly Negative" reviews thanks to server frustrations, but it seems fans of the survival MMO are content now: "I don't hate it"
Mindseye
After a rocky launch, MindsEye is officially this year's worst-rated game according to Metacritic, ranking below 183 other games
Mindseye
"MindsEye definitely needed a delay": GTA 5 veteran's new action game is here with 'Mixed' Steam reviews and "bugs galore," as players share spaghettified NPCs and cars with lives of their own
Latest in Sim City
SimCopter
Unreleased SimCopter 64 build turns up over 25 years later
EA's shutting down Maxis Emeryville, home of SimCity and Spore
SimCity owners getting the offline mode they (thought they) want(ed)
SimCitys Cities of Tomorrow expansion is part Demolition Man, part Judge Dredd
Maxis is 'exploring' offline mode for SimCity
SimCity: Cities of Tomorrow expansion pack coming in November
Latest in Features
One-Punch Man season 3: Saitama punching while in mid-air during the anime One-Punch Man.
Anime Expo 2025: dates, announcements, and why One-Punch Man fans should be excited
The Shrouds
It may feature corpses, missing limbs, and AI, but with The Shrouds, legendary director David Cronenberg has made the ultimate meditation on grief: "To me, there is no afterlife"
A full setup for Fate of the Fellowship with cards, tokens, and pieces all laid out
Legendary board game designer says his upcoming Lord of the Rings project is "definitely the most thematically and mechanically rich game I’ve worked on"
Promotional artwork for the Steam Summer Sale 2025 which runs from June 26th - July 10th at 10am PT
I've spent six hours exploring the Steam Summer Sale with our Games Editor, and these are the 10 best games on discount I'd recommend so far
The Outer Worlds 2 screenshot of Aza, a cultist companion with short pink hair who holds a dagger
The Outer Worlds 2 is "going deeper and more complex" with its companions, and I'm already making grabby hands at this RPG
Ruffy runs across the ocean on wooden crates in Ruffy and the Riverside, with the GamesRadar+ Indie Spotlight logo
Banjo-Kazooie and Paper Mario mix together in this delightful puzzle platformer that has me swapping textures to solve puzzles by changing the world
  1. Sam fires at the ghost mech squid boss in Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
    1
    Death Stranding 2: On the Beach review: "This tarpunk delivery epic is more Metal Gear Solid than ever, for better and worse"
  2. 2
    Rematch review: "As with Rocket League, the just-one-more-game pull is magnetic"
  3. 3
    Tron: Catalyst review: "Disc slinging is a thrill in this gorgeous rendition of the series, but I'm let down by a time-loop story that falls flat"
  4. 4
    FBC: Firebreak review: "A disappointingly bland multiplayer FPS that's missing far too much of what made Control special"
  5. 5
    Dune: Awakening review: "Both extremely compelling and extraordinarily boring, sometimes at the same time – yet still a true Dune love letter"
  1. M3GAN doll in M3GAN 2.0
    1
    M3GAN 2.0 review: "A bold sequel with a slightly underwhelming conclusion"
  2. 2
    28 Years Later Review: "Enough terror, splatter and suspense to satisfy”
  3. 3
    Predator: Killer of Killers review: "Great characters, thrilling action, and gorgeous Arcane-esque animation"
  4. 4
    From the World of John Wick: Ballerina review: "Brilliant action, even if the plot gives you a sense of déjà vu"
  5. 5
    Karate Kid: Legends review: "Better than Karate Kid (2010), nothing on Karate Kid (1984)"
  1. Lee Jung-jae as Gi-hun in Squid Game season 3
    1
    Squid Game season 3 review: "A staggeringly excellent final season wraps up one of the greatest Netflix shows ever"
  2. 2
    Ironheart review: "A relic of Marvel's content-at-all-costs era"
  3. 3
    Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 review: "The show's most assured run of episodes to date"
  4. 4
    Doctor Who season 2, episode 8 spoiler review: 'The Reality War' is "a mix of the good, the bad, and the truly baffling"
  5. 5
    Doctor Who season 2, episode 7 spoiler review: 'Wish World' is "an exciting and ambitious" start to the season finale, with hints of WandaVision

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...