Forgotten City

When I first set foot in Forgotten City back in February 2011 I couldn't quite believe my eyes: a stupendous city, astonishing in its complexity and exceedingly beautiful. In fact on seeing that one could rent a house in the city I did so immediately, even though I really had no need for it—I just wanted to be part of this place. (But I eventually came to my senses—I already had more than one home!)

The story goes that it's a city long ago deserted by its original builders, whoever they might have been, and although it's in a state of some decay its mechanical keepers do their best to maintain it. As Jenne Dibou and Mandy Marseille, the sim's designers, put it, Forgotten City is "a once great city where the prosperous residents were served by the miraculous mechanical automatons. The people have long since disappeared, but the automatons remained and still take care of the crumbling stone walls, abandoned halls and rusty fences."

The main entry point is on the citadel at the museum (the top left structure in these first two photos), from which you can fly around to see the city or use a teleport board. But I find it far more satisfying to walk (uncharacteristically for me), soaking in the beauty and little details everywhere. There are ways to get around: elevators, walkways, lifts, row boats and larger boat rides. There are hidden places here and there—for example, if you find the right walkway you can head underground to see what seems to be a huge power plant under the citadel.

You'll also encounter, everywhere, the mechanical automatons. They're harmless, I assure you, but dedicated to their tasks, and some will talk to you. (You may have seen the incredible installation at SL8B featuring some similar characters.)

If you are interested in renting a house or apartment here (and that includes cool places like the windmill, although I bet that's rarely if ever available), walk through the museum to the back side. Forgotten City is not an inexpensive place to live, but what a place!

Not all of the Forgotten City destinations are visible at first glance. To see some locations, such as the Post Office, you need to head down to the Harbor and take a boat. (The Post Office is quite different in appearance, a decaying tropical island.) You have to exercise some patience waiting for the boats, which come by only so often, and there's a schedule (to which the boats don't see to quite adhere) posted at the Harbor. Most of the boats head to the Post Office, but there are special boats called Cat-a-marans that arrive rarely, and they toss fish onto the dock. A circle of cats appears, waiting to eat them, but if you're quick you can grab them first, earning some points in the Gold Fish contest. (There's also supposedly Lord Barracuda's Submarine that comes by, but I've not seen it yet!)

Some external locations are reachable by teleport: the Race Track, Winter Park (which includes a Dance Hall, a Ski Lift and the Forgotten City Saloon), and the MW-537 Space Station, which has been overtaken by aliens.

Now, if the name Jenne Dibou rings a bell but you haven't been to Forgotten City, that's probably because you've purchased something from the "JD" Mechanical Toy Factory. Located overhead the city is the factory, and this place is worth a visit all by itself. (There are teleports throughout the city.) Filled with toys, games, avatars, curios, buildings, vehicles and all sorts of amazing little items, the factory is "where oddity meets quality." I want to buy one of everything here, although then I'd then have to purchase a sim just to rez all the Mechanical Toy Factory items in my inventory. I still remember playing the Shooting Gallery for long hours at the second Flashmans incarnation, where Martin Ren had rezzed a copy.

So become an explorer and head to Forgotten City. You won't be disappointed, I promise! If you get really addicted, you can even join the Forgotten City Explorers group. :)