SimCity DS - new screens

Balancing budgets, reducing pollution, and addressing traffic congestion sounds about as exciting as watching grass grow. But Will Wright's SimCity proved that building and managing your own city could be both fun and addictive when it released in 1989.

The new version - scheduled to release in June 2007 - injects an assortment of DS-centric gameplay features, adding some flare to this pocket-sized iteration of the PC classic. You'll blow in your microphone to put out fires and kill rampaging monsters by tapping on them with your stylus. We also saw a special event where Santa Claus came to town. Tapping him with the stylus will force the jolly St. Nick to drop gifts for your sim-citizens.

But despite the new bells and whistles, SimCity DS is still the same classic city-builder at heart, and looks like it'll be the perfect distraction to keep you occupied during long commutes. For a sneak peak at some of the game's new special events click on the Movies and Images tabs above.

GamesRadarTylerNagata