Blue Mars: New Venice and Arcadia

New Venice by VSE is easily the most striking and beautiful of the demo cities currently available in Blue Mars Open Beta. Unfortunately, it's a work in progress. Still.

So I was surprised to find VSE have apparently built another city, Arcadia, in conjunction with EdGE@TERC.

Arcadia shows the same lovingly created builds and textures that has earned New Venice so much fame, but it is again another work in progress, albeit one with a launch date somewhere in May. Unlike New Venice, however, Arcadia also appears designed with "science games" in mind. Can't wait to pick up my pickaxe and go fossicking for some Martian fossils.

When you check out Arcadia for yourself, here's a tip: turn the sound off. It has an irritating gag SFX - your footfalls on the ground sound like a drum machine - which I imagine is supposed to deter you from exploring the world before it officially launches.