The Sims 3

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The Sims 3

Developer(s) Maxis[1]
Publisher(s) Electronic Arts
Series The Sims
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows [2]
Release date TBA 2009
Genre(s) Life simulation game
Mode(s) Single-player
Media DVD
System requirements TBA
Input methods Keyboard, mouse

The Sims 3 is an upcoming strategic life simulation computer game for the Windows operating system. It is a sequel to the highly popular and critically acclaimed The Sims and The Sims 2 computer games. It was announced in an interview by EA in November 2006,[3] where it was also mentioned that the release date of the game would likely be in the "fiscal 2009" year.

Contents

[edit] Teasers and previews

In the 7th expansion pack for The Sims 2, The Sims 2: FreeTime, an event occurs in which a Sim-version of Rod Humble, The Sims 3's executive producer, gives the player's Sim family an unopened gift box. When opened, the family gets a computer with The Sims 3 on it. The Sims 3 game cannot be bought in the catalog. Sims can then play The Sims 3 on their computers or console systems. Like all the other games that Sims can play in The Sims 2, The Sims 3 is a looping gameplay video shown on the player's Sim's computer screens when played by a Sim; The Sims 3 is not a playable demo game that the user can control. The video of the gameplay (recorded during one of The Sims 2: FreeTime preview sessions for fansites of The Sims franchise) was taken by the German The Sims fansite 'SimTimes'.[4]

Since late February 2008, multiple gaming magazines and websites have featured articles describing the changes made in The Sims 3 from its predecessors.

On May 23rd, an email was sent out to early sign-ups on the website, the people who signed up early, known by them as the VIP's, get special screenshots before their release to the website.

[edit] Gameplay

An image showing the gradual increase in weight and/or muscle on a Sim in The Sims 3
An image showing the gradual increase in weight and/or muscle on a Sim in The Sims 3

In the April/May edition of the Games for Windows: The Official Magazine, there is a 12-page preview of the game.[5] This preview explains that Sim houses and neighborhoods will be entirely in one seamless, continuous map, and states that "what you do outside your home now matters as much as what you do within". Also it is claimed that other Sims will age with the player's Sims as they interact with them. It also states that the typical bladder and energy motives will be overhauled, and replaced with "moodlets". The game will also incorporate further aspects of real life, including several new jobs.


An image showing the new Sims 3 Create-A-Sim rendering engine.
An image showing the new Sims 3 Create-A-Sim rendering engine.

[edit] Create A Sim

Create a Sim is the character (Sim) builder. In Create-A-Sim, the polygon 3-D models of Sims can be modified by changing a wider variety of properties than what was available in previous installments. This opens the door to creating completely unique Sims with regard to stature, height, weight, hair, and clothing.[6] Players can customize nearly everything in the game, including furniture, clothes and shoes.

Personality configuration for Sims has also been made more complex, with the original 'percentage bar'-style personality points replaced by descriptions similar to those in the personals section of newspapers. In addition to this, individual fitness bars have been added to adjust the Sims weight and muscle. Sims now have the capacity to become extremely obese, or extremely muscular. This is in comparison to The Sims 2, where Sims simply had 3 levels of fitness/fatness.[6]

The player can now choose their Sims' favorite color, music type, food, etc., an option not available in The Sims 2. Players can personalize much more about their Sim, such as changing body shapes as they could with faces in The Sims 2. Also there are sliders for weight and fitness, although Sims created as overweight can become slim by exercising and Sims created thin may become fat by eating too much and not exercising. Arm and legs are separate so players can create Sims with fat bodies and thin arms. Players can choose specific Asian and African models as well. Clothes are also customizable from Create A Sim. Players can change the color of a certain piece of clothes or use their own patterns; shoes are separate and players can also have their Sims go barefoot.[6]

[edit] Open neighborhood, neighborhood exploration

On March 19, 2008, EA revealed new gameplay experiences for The Sims 3, one of them being neighborhood exploration. Players will be able to have their Sims wander around the world outside of their homes with no loading screens. This also means that the entire game is played in real-time, so Sims that the player is not using will still age and may get married, have children, and/or gain other memories and experience other events. Due to the lack of loading screens, it is possible to zoom in and out from a complete view of the neighborhood to the inside of a house, a feature not technologically possible in previous The Sims games. Every building in a neighborhood will be interactable, none will simply be there to improve aesthetics.[7]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Sims 3 for PC from Gamespot
  2. ^ The Sims 3 set for Global launch in 2009 from IGN
  3. ^ Tor Thorsen (2006-11-02). Sims 3, next-gen Black, new SimCity and LOTR coming. GameSpot. CNET Networks. Retrieved on 2008-02-25. “"Yes, there's a Sims 3 in development and it's likely to be a fiscal '09 title," said Jenson, meaning the game would hit stores before April 2009.”
  4. ^ Freizeit-Spaß Fanevent in München from The Sims 2: Free Time Fan Event in Munich
  5. ^ Games for Windows 17 April/May Issue from Games for Windows
  6. ^ a b c The Official site
  7. ^ The Sims 3 Preview from IGN

[edit] External links