The city reminds me of the Caves of Steel from Isaac Asimov. There are no roads in Magnasanti, only hyper efficient subways. The population density is extreme, nearly seven million people piled into such a small area, every building is like a sky scraper from Manhattan. And did anybody else notice how every building is a historical landmark? All utilities are shipped in from neighbors.
This city is precariously hanging on the edge of destruction. I feel something as simple as a Sim moving to a dinner on the other side of town could upset the careful balance of food supply, but yet the city is 'perfect'.
And that is exactly what the game creator wanted. :D
(EDIT: I didn't mean to make the above sound mean or anything—your description is both precise and accurate.
"Decadence", in the sociopolitical usage, is simply the word which also refers exactly to the concept you have described—perfection that "is precariously hanging on the edge of destruction": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decadence, and specifically http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decadence#Leninism, for the sense in which this city was created while striving to "win" a game like SimCity, which keeps score through profit from taxes.)
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The city reminds me of the Caves of Steel from Isaac Asimov. There are no roads in Magnasanti, only hyper efficient subways. The population density is extreme, nearly seven million people piled into such a small area, every building is like a sky scraper from Manhattan. And did anybody else notice how every building is a historical landmark? All utilities are shipped in from neighbors.
This city is precariously hanging on the edge of destruction. I feel something as simple as a Sim moving to a dinner on the other side of town could upset the careful balance of food supply, but yet the city is 'perfect'.
And that is exactly what the game creator wanted. :D
Try "The Concentration City" by J.G. Ballard. Fire and brimstone may be a lesser hell.
That will be next on my list, I don't read enough anymore.
The word is "decadence."
(EDIT: I didn't mean to make the above sound mean or anything—your description is both precise and accurate.
"Decadence", in the sociopolitical usage, is simply the word which also refers exactly to the concept you have described—perfection that "is precariously hanging on the edge of destruction": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decadence, and specifically http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decadence#Leninism, for the sense in which this city was created while striving to "win" a game like SimCity, which keeps score through profit from taxes.)
Heh. I like it. It's a new word for me, actually.
I think SimCity is exactly what Lenin thought of when he thought of the west.