This game is actually decent with the patches. The last update added a strategic mode with the following features:
Buildings carry an ongoing maintenance cost. If maintenance requirements are not met, buildings have a chance of taking damage which will put them out of commission for several days or even result in destruction.
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Recycle gains are reduced, making shrewd planning critical
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Work and visit durations are long. As a result, Sims can go to fewer places in a single day.
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It’s more difficult to keep Sims happy
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Unhappy and Rogue Sims are more likely to act out, produce negative special Sims, or transform into negative special Sims
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Rogue Sims are much less placated by the act of shutting down a workplace, and will remain unhappy or even on the verge of becoming rogue again.
and three new difficulties-basic, hardcore, and nightmare, and added some achievement style things where you would create a city with a "target" to meet, along with another achivement (always available) to move up to the next higher tier difficultly. It made the game a lot more engaging, IMO.
It's still a 6.8 game, but not a bad one by any means IMO.
