Player Finds Playable Cancelled/Lost SimCopter 64 Build

Player bought the playable development cartridge from somebody "who used to be in the industry."

SimCopter is the long-lost cousin of the Sims series that is buried deep down in the necropolis of video games. The innovative series is still held in high regard due to its innovations in the industry. SimCopter places the player in the cockpit of a police helicopter, the player had to do all the police-related tasks such as resolving traffic jams, riots, overturned boats, and the fan-favorite, chasing down criminal scums.

SimCopter is a flight simulator that was ingenious for the olden times of video games. The title was given a new go at life with the untried idea of players being able to soar around their own SimCity 2000 maps. SimCopter could be connected with Sim City and it could load up maps to be explored in a 3D flight simulator. 

The title featured a bundle of weird details, from GTA-like radios to taking down UFOs. After soaring the charts, the series eventually went downhill. The title was exclusive to PC, but there was initially a port for the Nintendo 64DD titled “SimCopter 64” that was in the works. However, the title never made it out of the furnace and it was shelved away.

Recently, a working copy was seemingly bought by a player off of Craigslist. u/a707northbayer shared on r/n64 that they swapped a few developer cartridges with somebody “who used to be in the industry” and has stumbled upon a working development build of SimCopter64 that was assumed to be wholly lost in the flow of time. 

SimCopter64 was initially molded to utilize the Nintendo 64DDs rewritable disc functionality to link with SimCity 64 to allow players to fly around their cities in the game, the same as the PC version. According to The Lost Media Wiki, the critics and onlookers did not show any interest in SimCopter64. The title caught no attention in the Tokyo Game Show preview back in 1998 or 1999. 

SimCopter64 mostly featured first-generation graphics and a plenitude of hazy reveal in its preview. The event caused the wariness of developers to grow further who were already out of creative ideas for the game. The United States version of the port was shelved away soon after the event and it did not take long for the Japanese-only release to be canceled as well.

Players still reminisce about the game and now it sits as a part of an antique game collection on the shelves of classical game enthusiasts. SimCopter64 gameplay reveals what the title could have been if it was never canceled and may have led to a bundle of installments being developed.

Similar Reads: Team Fortress 2 Players Plan Peaceful Protest To Save The Game

Did you find this article helpful?

Thanks! Do share your feedback with us. ⚡

How can we make this post better? Your help would be appreciated. ✍

Get up-to-speed gaming updates delivered right to your inbox.

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy.


Shameer Sarfaraz is a Senior News Writer on eXputer who loves to keep up with the gaming and entertainment industries devoutly. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science and several years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.

Experience: 4+ Years || Education: Bachelor in Computer Science.

Related Articles