SimCity3000, even if it doesn't have amazing graphics as 4, is an excellent game made for the smarter players out there.
SC3000 doesn't have amazing graphics as its successor (SC4) has, but it's by far the best one. The graphics aren't mediocre either, especially if you think that this game was created in 1999 and it must have the square-based design in order to improve the gameplay quality. While it isn't focused in small details such as the small building's shape, the cars, the people, etc; the main things like colors, brightness, or the larger building shapes are really good.
The audio is amazing in this game. The sound special effects are excellent, but the best thing is the background music. Its jazz-inspired music is, for some people, essential. That's not my case, but I spent more than 30 mins. only hearing the music a couple of times. It's relaxing, soft, and there are a lot of different songs so you won't get tired of hearing the same thing over and over. There are a couple of terrible songs, no doubt about it, but all the jazz-inspired songs are cool, and they are the most of them (luckily).
This game can be very fun if you learn to play. If you are starting, creating a new city even in the "easy" mode is a challenge that you'll probably lose. Fortunately, there are basic cities which you can use to start. Obviously, the most experienced players will create a new city. The challenge of creating a new city is hard even for the most experienced players, but it's never boring.
Some people say that playing with the big cities that the game has saved is easy as hell, but you have to play in Metropolis or Island City for a while to find out that it isn't as easy as it looks. It actually reflects the problems of the modern cities, and that is one of the most interesting things in the game.
The game can get a bit monotonous by times; especially when you wait for receive the money at the end of the year. The game also has some bugs. Some bugs are really nasty, like the water/power selling thingy, and it has some visual bugs, but most of them are forgettable. As I said before, this game isn't for every person, and those who don't like slow-paced games will find this awful.
Overall, SImCity 3000 is an awesome game and it's the best of its group. I don't recommend it for everyone, just for those who like slow-paced or strategy games. Oh, and if you are a fan of "The Sims", you might like this too. Besides the name, they aren't very similar, but the main idea of administrate is there.