As the name suggests, the objective is to construct and manage a towering skyscraper and keep its occupants happy. Offices, hotels, and condominiums give tenants places to live and work, while shops and restaurants provide commercial balance. Utilities such as hospitals and recycling centers become necessary as the tower grows in size. The player's progress is based on a star system, similar to how hotels are ranked, with new stars awarded for meeting population milestones and other conditions. Population is measured by the number of individuals currently in the tower; many hotel rooms will cause population to soar during the night. As the tower's rating improves, more facilities can be built by the player, such as a cinema. Like other Maxis games, gameplay is not designed linearly, and SimTower does not have a specific end point; however, the primary goal is a population of 15,000, which rewards the player with 'Tower' status. Another goal is to build a cathedral at the top of the tower and have a marriage ceremony take place there. The game itself has 5 levels, which you complete by reaching a certain population level. New levels unlock new options to build such as security stations, but also create more hazards. How you handle these can change your tower drastically. For example, a fire can be dealt with using only security, which is free, but does not always work. On the other hand, a player can call the fire department and have the fire dealt with for a hefty sum..
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