Sims: Sometimes It is My Real Life

I decided for this blog entry I would express my love for The Sims. For those of you that are not familiar with The Sims, it is a strategic life simulation video game series. There are currently four main series and about six renditions of The Sims. It is one of the most successful video games series of all time and as of May 2011, the franchise has sold more than 150 million copies worldwide, and is the best-selling PC franchise in history.

I have The Sims 3 and have spent countless hours at a time creating characters, falling in love, getting jobs, burning food and so much more. It is a great game to have to pass the time, when your sick or when you are just completely bored out of your mind. You have total control of almost everything in this game, which is the biggest reason I love this game. It makes me feel like God! I also like that it is so life like. For example, in order to get into a relationship with another Sim you need to first talk to the character, then establish a friendship with them by telling jokes or asking about their work. Then you are able to start making moves like flirting. But at the same time I also like the parts of the game that aren't so life like. For instance, in The Sims 3 to adopt a child all you have to do is call child care and they will give you a kid the next day even if you already have like six of them. These little twists in the game make it a little more fun than just regular life. Another aspect of the game that makes me like the game is the quality. I like how it is a mid-level quality game. Having that quality gives the game a simplistic look, which is what the game is. It is just a simple, relaxing,  and fun game that allows you to control everything within it. I definitely recommend getting one of games from The Sims franchise, it is definitely worth it!

The Evolution of The Sims

Most of my friends know about my serious Sims addiction. I've been playing since the game came out 2000 and own almost all of the expansion packs for each stand-alone Sims (The Sims, The Sims 2, The Sims 3). As of today, Electronic Arts is on their third version of the the Sims, which has made huge strides since the original came out 11 years ago.

In the original Sims, the graphics were basic, though at the time the game seemed amazing. The characters walked in stiff movements, with their fingers clearly stuck together. The options when creating your Sim was very limited. You were able to choose your sims face from a short number of options. This meant sims in the same town could have exactly the same look (facial features, hair color, eye color, etc;). The same went for clothes, you could select the athletic outfit, the pink dress, the grungy homeless-looking one, and a few others. There was never an option to change the colors or mix and match the tops and bottoms. And forget about picking the shoes or accessories. All in all, the graphics were plain and didn't allow for creativity.

Today, the Sims 3 allows for serious creativity. Controls allow users to manipulate almost every part of the face. You can adjust cheek bones, nose bridge width, and how far set in the eyes are, just to name a few. Hair color can be changed in great detail, featuring alterations in base, highlight, low light, and root colors. And of course, you have the entire color wheel to choose from. Clothing can be customized piece by piece, adjusting color and pattern. Aside from the huge spectrum of customizing you can do to the look of your sim, you can also customize the furniture, and wallpaper in your house. The reality of the interactions between these sims vs. the sims featured in 2000 is remarkable.

(The image on the left is a screen shot from the original Sims, the image on the right is taken from the Sims 3)