We were able to spend some time in Challenge Mode and expand our city through a variety of historical periods. This mode is a fun new addition because it also gives you targets to meet so that you can continue along and feel like you’re moving forward. The tutorial glosses over the main points, and after that it’s up to you to take the time to expand your city. We began in the ancient world, when life was much simpler. Instead of worrying about pipes, electricity, and traffic, we focused mainly on food. Survival was the key, and to do so we needed to start our village where the food was, by the water or by the hunting grounds. When natural resources started to dwindle, we introduced farming. This set up was a great way of introducing the basic elements for those who may not be familiar with the SimCity series. Once we managed to get our population to 5,000, we moved on to the next era, the medieval times, during which we checked out the open Asia age. When you reach the era’s population goals, you can choose whether you want to move forward with an Asian or European theme. One of SimCity DS’s problems was that there was only one save slot. This time there are two, but there still aren’t enough slots to let you go back and try to play through all of the different ages.