Oh, video games. They grow up so fast. It seems like just yesterday SimCity was taking its first awkward steps at age 2.0. Before you know it, it reaches 4 and starts going out to the park and getting new features.

Read more: Early adopters park, new region, and various fixes »

The first expansion pack for SimCity is set to arrive on May 28th, the game's official Facebook page has announced, confirming a leak discovered on digital retailer Green Man Gaming.

The "Amusement Park" add-on will allow you to "build the amusement park of your dreams, right in the middle of your city," according to the leaked copy. "Classic rides, vehicle rides, and thrill rides allow you to make just the theme park you want!"

Read more: Make money for your city »

Despite the well-documented troubles of SimCity when it released, Electronic Arts trumpeted 1.1 million in sales two weeks after launch. Now in its latest earnings report, the publisher said that number rose to 1.6 million when it's fiscal quarter closed at the end of March, more than half through digital sales.

Read more: SimCity mistakes 'will not happen again' »

One month after the release of SimCity 2.0, Maxis is preparing yet another "significant update." The 3.0 patch, which deploys later this week, continues to introduce new content and tweaks to the online city simulator. (Perhaps it will also fix the bugs introduced by the latest patch?)

In terms of new content, additional hotels have been added "to increase hotel variety." However, of particular note is how traffic is handled. Fans have been critical of the way traffic was implemented in the game and 3.0 will "update routing system to improve traffic." The routing system apparently "now understands more information about u-turns, required vehicle stops, and vehicle behavior on certain road types. This should make traffic smarter."

Read more: Tweaks to pollution, transit, roads, and more »

SimCity recently updated with its 2.0 patch, the so-called "first significant update" made to the game since its launch. It brought a few new features alongside a long list of bug fixes, as is prone to happen in these situations, it also apparently introduced some new bugs of its own.

Read more: Reverting to old saves, failing firetrucks, and more »

SimCity is getting its version 2.0 patch on Monday, a major update that will make quite a few changes and fixes. EA calls it the game's "first significant update," and says it will pull the game down for approximately two hours at 1 PM PST to issue the changes.

Read more: Riding in style and colorblind features »

Gosh, wouldn't it be great to have the World's Largest Ball of Twine or a giant dinosaur statue in your SimCity to attract tourists? Yes, wouldn't it just. Unfortunately, these and another three roadside novelties are exclusive to a marketing promotion with Crest and Oral B, through codes in specially-marked packages. Sponsored content is to be something of a thing with SimCity, it seems.

Read more: Alternatively, money off at Origin or Sims Social cash »

Now that SimCity has fixed most of the launch issues and even added Cheetah Speed back into the game, EA and Maxis are expanding onto a second platform. The game will hit Mac on June 11, exclusively as a digital release.

Read more: PC purchasers get Mac version free »

As SimCity's servers crumbled to rubble and dust at launch, Maxis turned the fastest speed 'Cheetah' off as it scrambled to ease their load and let people actually play. While the game has mostly been stable for a few weeks now, Maxis held off on re-enabling Cheetah speed until it was certain it wouldn't bring things tumbling down again. Which it now is. As of yesterday, Cheetah speed is back for all players.

Read more: More information on Update 2.0 coming soon »

SimCity players have had to endure a lot in the game's short lifespan, but things have stabilized a bit, and they got a free game for their trouble. Now, Maxis wants to make you and your sims happier with a free add-on, brought to you by the Nissan Leaf.

Read more: Happiness and Leafs for all »

Maxis is currently testing fixes for big SimCity issues like progress loss and bringing back Cheetah speed, the developer says.It still has smaller patches in the works too, with patch 2.0 set to bring improvements to fire engines, street cars, casinos and more.

Read more: Recycling Center bug squished »

Maxis and Electronic Arts have rightly endured their share of slings and arrows for its botched launch of SimCity, but one developer giving a talk about the game at GDC is trying to make the best of a bad situation.

Read more: An error in presentation »

SimCity was brought crashing down at launch by its always-online requirement, this we know. However, EA Labels president Frank Gibeau has sworn blind that the requirement was a result of the designers' MMO visions, not a DRM mandate handed down to Maxis from EA. He's ragged on DRM a fair bit too, decrying it as "not a viable strategy for the gaming business." Honest.

Read more: "You don't build an MMO because you're thinking of DRM" »

Given the incredibly volatile launch SimCity has experienced, you'd think that Electronic Arts would wait before issuing a press release about the game's sales figures. With EA woefully unprepared for the game's demand, perhaps it would have been best to wait until after players have redeemed their compensatory games before sounding the trumpets.

But, no. Here we go.

Read more: 'The biggest SimCity launch of all time' »

When SimCity's exploded at launch, leaving many unable to play thanks to its always-online requirement, EA promised one free game to every mayor as a peace offering. Today the publisher revealed the list of games, including Dead Space 3, Battlefield 3 and, ah, SimCity 4. Perhaps to spare its servers further stress, ho ho, EA will send the freebies out gradually.

Read more: At least 8 days to redeem freebie »