Today Electronic Arts announced that they are reviving their enormously popular city simulation game, SimCity.  This is by far the biggest announcement to come out of GDC 2012 so far, and one that makes me giddy just typing it.  SimCity 5 is being developed by Maxis Emeryville, naturally, and will feature inspirational speeches from real world icons like David Guggenheim, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone and philanthropist Scott Harrison.

“We’d like to thank the millions of fans who have helped make SimCity synonymous with the city-building genre. This is a franchise that means the world to us at Maxis and we’re happy to be bringing it back home where we are reimagining it for an entirely new generation of players,” said Lucy Bradshaw, Senior Vice President of EA’s Maxis Label. “Using our proprietary GlassBox Engine,SimCity for PC will equip players with the tools to play the most sophisticated simulation of its kind. We are dedicated to making sure the experience – no matter the platform – has the fun, flavour and playability that has been intrinsic to the franchise since its birth." 

The announcement further goes on to explain that they've rebuilt SimCity from the citizen level up, since now the people who live in your city will have jobs (and can lose them), homes, and routines.  For the first time you'll be able to tackle larger global issues by interacting with other players, and the decisions you make in the game will affect the world beyond the city limits.  City building, EA says, is also vastly improved, and your building choices will shape a city with a unique character and style.

SimCity 5 will be out sometime in 2013.  Preorders are available starting today at the Origin SimCity 5 page.