So I've always liked the sims, I've had Sims Deluxe, Sims 2 (with
nightlife, pets, seasons, university, and a few stuff packs), Sims 2
console versions, Sims 3 for xbox 360, and now I finally have The Sims 3
for the PC!
Really a lot of people think The Sims is boring because it's just managing lives of your characters, but that's not completely true. For anyone who has not played 3 yet, let me go over a few of the major changes made to the game.
For the most part the game stayed the same with you making your character, moving/building your own house, and then finally living out your life. However as with each game, these features have become a lot more advanced, new objects have been added in, and character customizing has been increased as well.
When you start the game and you make your sim you're able to customize just about everything. You can change their face, hair, and even their body (expansion packs also allow you to change chest size of female sims, and mussle size of male sims). You can also plan differnet outfits, and hairstyles can also be changed to go along with each outfit. This might not be a feature you'll really want to mess with, but it's always there for anyone who really REALLY cares about fassion.
The final major edition to the customization would be making your sims personality. You can pick from a long list of different traits which you can mix and match to make a sim thats unlike any other sim. Want to be a crazy sim who steals stuff but at the same time likes to help people while becoming famous? You can do it. Some of the effects of your personality are passive, but some will let you do new actions as well so you might really want to play around with this feature.
Once you get into the game you'll notice a LOT of things have been changed. You are no longer limited to a single map, but instead a HUGE city that you can freely walk around without ever seeing a loading screen. Think of it as a bigger Sims 2 map where you can just click on the road and have your sim go there without actually having to change lots. The map (which includes all houses/buildings) IS the lot.
The game has also become a LOT more like an RPG with a LOT of different "side quests," and stats to level up. Everything you do is pretty much a skill now, and you can get better at doing it by either practicing, or by buying books from a book store. Once you level up your different skills you can then use them in different ways. Such as, if you are good at chess you can actually enter chess contests, get your chess ranking up, win money, and become the best chess player in the city. If you're a good cooker you can start going to cooking contests, learn new recipes, and become the best cook in the world.
Just about every skill has some type of log to go along with it that will allow you to follow just how you've advanced and what you'll be able to do with that skill. There's REALLY a LOT to mess around with here, so it really adds a lot to the game. Heck you could spend 100s of hours just messing around with this new skill system, its that big of a change.
Expansion packs have also been released for the game which also really double the size. While in the past expansion packs mostly added new items/small features, these expansion packs are actually full games on their own. One expansion pack actually lets you go on adventures (which play out like console Sims games like cast away), and another lets you become a star (by going into movies, forming bands, etc). These packs really add a whole lot to the game and it'd actually take quite awhile to explain all the features they change. If you really want to find out more about them, I recommend checking out videos on youtube.
Working has also been improved (even more so with an expansion) and you can now pick what your sim does at work. They can work hard, slack off, hang out with co workers, suck up to the boss, or even ditch. With expansions you're able to play mini games while at work, and sometimes even get to play a full job (such as if you're a ghost hunting or if you're a PD). These changes make working a LOT better, and a LOT more fun. No more just waiting for your sim to come home for hours...
As for the city themselves, they are big but not all buildings can be entered. Later expansion pack buildings/any community building you actually build can be entered, but there are quite a lot of buildings that your sim can only enter which forces you to wait outside. It's not really that big of a deal, but it would have been nice to have all buildings as real buildings.
In the end, The Sims 3 is a BIG improvement, it takes customization to a whole new level, makes the game feel more like a RPG, and has an improved house system (yay for having a basement in your basement's basement!). Well that's all I really have time for today... So, until next time!
Really a lot of people think The Sims is boring because it's just managing lives of your characters, but that's not completely true. For anyone who has not played 3 yet, let me go over a few of the major changes made to the game.
For the most part the game stayed the same with you making your character, moving/building your own house, and then finally living out your life. However as with each game, these features have become a lot more advanced, new objects have been added in, and character customizing has been increased as well.
When you start the game and you make your sim you're able to customize just about everything. You can change their face, hair, and even their body (expansion packs also allow you to change chest size of female sims, and mussle size of male sims). You can also plan differnet outfits, and hairstyles can also be changed to go along with each outfit. This might not be a feature you'll really want to mess with, but it's always there for anyone who really REALLY cares about fassion.
The final major edition to the customization would be making your sims personality. You can pick from a long list of different traits which you can mix and match to make a sim thats unlike any other sim. Want to be a crazy sim who steals stuff but at the same time likes to help people while becoming famous? You can do it. Some of the effects of your personality are passive, but some will let you do new actions as well so you might really want to play around with this feature.
Once you get into the game you'll notice a LOT of things have been changed. You are no longer limited to a single map, but instead a HUGE city that you can freely walk around without ever seeing a loading screen. Think of it as a bigger Sims 2 map where you can just click on the road and have your sim go there without actually having to change lots. The map (which includes all houses/buildings) IS the lot.
The game has also become a LOT more like an RPG with a LOT of different "side quests," and stats to level up. Everything you do is pretty much a skill now, and you can get better at doing it by either practicing, or by buying books from a book store. Once you level up your different skills you can then use them in different ways. Such as, if you are good at chess you can actually enter chess contests, get your chess ranking up, win money, and become the best chess player in the city. If you're a good cooker you can start going to cooking contests, learn new recipes, and become the best cook in the world.
Just about every skill has some type of log to go along with it that will allow you to follow just how you've advanced and what you'll be able to do with that skill. There's REALLY a LOT to mess around with here, so it really adds a lot to the game. Heck you could spend 100s of hours just messing around with this new skill system, its that big of a change.
Expansion packs have also been released for the game which also really double the size. While in the past expansion packs mostly added new items/small features, these expansion packs are actually full games on their own. One expansion pack actually lets you go on adventures (which play out like console Sims games like cast away), and another lets you become a star (by going into movies, forming bands, etc). These packs really add a whole lot to the game and it'd actually take quite awhile to explain all the features they change. If you really want to find out more about them, I recommend checking out videos on youtube.
Working has also been improved (even more so with an expansion) and you can now pick what your sim does at work. They can work hard, slack off, hang out with co workers, suck up to the boss, or even ditch. With expansions you're able to play mini games while at work, and sometimes even get to play a full job (such as if you're a ghost hunting or if you're a PD). These changes make working a LOT better, and a LOT more fun. No more just waiting for your sim to come home for hours...
As for the city themselves, they are big but not all buildings can be entered. Later expansion pack buildings/any community building you actually build can be entered, but there are quite a lot of buildings that your sim can only enter which forces you to wait outside. It's not really that big of a deal, but it would have been nice to have all buildings as real buildings.
In the end, The Sims 3 is a BIG improvement, it takes customization to a whole new level, makes the game feel more like a RPG, and has an improved house system (yay for having a basement in your basement's basement!). Well that's all I really have time for today... So, until next time!
