Caesar III is a much better game than Settlers II, and combines some of the best elements of both that game and SimCity.

Instead, you are commissioned to perform a much wider array of tasks, ranging from setting up efficient production lines to maintaining a military force. Unlike in SimCity, you do not simply zone your territory and sit back while your city prospers or fails. You do run a city (or, rather, a series of cities) in a fashion somewhat like the classic urban management game, but the game mechanics of Caesar III are more akin to Blue Byte's Settlers II.

The company line on Caesar III is that it's SimCity set in the Roman Empire.