> However, it's not like Sim City is expected to include every single aspect of city development and growth as a factor, nor is it expected to be some kind of acceptably accurate depiction of city development.

Agreed, but SimCity was marketed for realism and used for education. The OP writes:

> Over and over, the SimCity series invoked “realism” as a selling point. SimCity 2000’s box playfully warns: “If this game was any more realistic, it’d be illegal to turn it off!”

> SimCity has been used and is being used as educational tool ... shaping the way a lot of people understand or misunderstand city planning.