Play SimCity Classic online — the original 1989 DOS game Works — the full original game runs via DOSBox in your browser
Guide updated October 2026 · Runs via DOSBox + WebAssembly
SimCity Classic — Maxis' 1989 city simulator in its DOS release. Lay down residential, commercial and industrial zones, wire them to a power plant, connect them with roads and rail, and keep taxes, crime, pollution and traffic in balance as the Sims move in. Click Play and choose Start New City or a scenario.
Tap the screen to click · ENTER: confirm · ESC: menu
⌨ Keyboard — for menus & name entry
Controls — what does what
| Action | Keyboard | Mouse / touch |
|---|---|---|
| Pick a tool | — | Click the icon |
| Build / zone | — | Click or drag on the map |
| Menus | Alt+letter | Click the menu bar |
| Scroll the map | Arrow keys | Drag |
Runs in your browser tab with DOSBox + WebAssembly — nothing is uploaded. Click the screen to capture input; press Ctrl+F10 to release mouse.
SimCity Classic is no longer sold anywhere, and its publisher is gone or has left it unsold for decades. It is hosted here on the same footing as the Internet Archive's software collections. That is a practical position, not a legal claim. This page carries no advertising. Provenance: /apps/simcity-classic/NOTICE.md. Rights holders: it comes down within 48 hours on request.
About SimCity Classic
Will Wright started SimCity after realising he enjoyed building the maps in his first game more than playing it. The result had no score and no way to win, which publishers doubted until it sold over a million copies. The scenarios set you a task with a deadline: rebuild San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake, fix Detroit's crime, or survive a monster in Tokyo. This page also links the open-source Micropolis, the GPL release of the same engine that EA made in 2008.
Tips for getting started
Start with a coal plant, a block of residential zones next to commercial and industrial ones, and roads between them. Watch the R/C/I demand bars in the corner to see what the city wants next.
How it runs here
This is the original DOS release of SimCity Classic, unmodified, running in DOSBox compiled to WebAssembly. The whole game is about 6 MB, so it starts within seconds on a normal connection. Sound and music play once you click into the game.
Frequently asked questions
Can I play SimCity Classic online for free?
Yes. Click Play and the original 1989 DOS version starts in your browser, running in a WebAssembly build of DOSBox. Nothing to install and no account.
Why is SimCity Classic hosted here?
SimCity Classic is not sold anywhere today; we checked the stores listed in its provenance note. It is preserved here the way the Internet Archive preserves old software. That is a practical position, not a legal claim. If the rights holder (Electronic Arts (Maxis)) asks, it comes down within 48 hours.
Does my progress save?
Saved games persist in this browser between visits, best-effort. Clearing site data removes them.
Can I play on a phone or tablet?
Yes. Touch buttons for the keys SimCity Classic uses appear under the game on touch devices.
More you can play in your browser
Related guides
Want a game like this on your own site?
SimCity Classic isn't ours to give away — we host it, we didn't write it. But eleven of the games here we did write from scratch, and those are free for anyone to put on their own page: one line of HTML, no account, no permission, no attribution beyond a credit line.