Now lets get something straight right out of the gate here, I've never been a huge fan of The Sims. But, over the last decade since The Sims originally debuted it is almost impossible for someone not to have tinkered around with the anti-climatic simulation in some shape or form. With that said, I put my reservations about the franchise aside and picked up a copy of The Sims 3. Upon playing the newest addition of the Sims universe, I found myself quite surprised at how different The Sims 3 actually is while it still maintains all of the elements that made the game famous.

     Players will begin by creating their virtual counter part with a ton of new customizable options. With a more detailed face creator, each person will be able to successfully render themselves in the Sims 3, although the process is very time consuming. There are also a large variety of clothing options which they too can be customized by selecting different colors, and patterns. One of the more interesting points of creating your Sim is the return of traits from the Sims 2, however there are a ton of more traits to choose from like making your Sim heroic, a kleptomaniac, the perfect lover, you get the idea. There's something for everyone. The player can even decided what their Sims' favorite color is, music style, and what their life goals will be. All these elements make the Sims 3 much more personal than previous Sims games. As time goes on, your Sims will also age, your children will grow up, and eventually all Sims will pass on. However the original starting characteristics like appearance, and traits will be passed down as the family tree grows.

     After the character creations process is over and done with, players will be able to move into or build the house of their dreams...with the allotted cash allowed for starting a new game. As you would expect, this process is no different than any other Sims out on the market. You'll pick the décor you find suitable and arrange it just so, or you can stick with the preexisting furniture that comes when buying the house. By this point for an action fan like myself, the excitement is abounding. Anyway, after getting your Sim settled in to their new surroundings it time to get them a job. The Sims 3 offers a few new ways to find work, which ties into the biggest change to the franchise overall. Purists of the franchise can still check their news papers or log onto a computer to get their Sim off the unemployment line, or those who are feeling more adventurous can take their Sim for a little stroll around the open town in which they live. That's right, players are no longer confined to the household and don't have to pay for a Hot Date expansion to have a night on the town. At any time, your Sims can freely move about their larger surroundings to find a job, catch a movie, or stop in at a café for a quick lunch with no loading time. This open ended environment gives new freedom to your Sims and with their free will often go out to explore on their own. One doesn't have to do much, and the artificial intelligence takes over. Just sitting back and watch your sims go through their daily lives on their own can actually be pretty entertaining. But, with these new strides in the franchise there are still the same dull moments. For numerous hours at a time, your Sim will be off to work or school depending on their age. As with the other games, there isn't a ton to do while your sim is making some cash. Sure you can decide whether to talk to co-workers or slack off, but for those few hours your stuck looking at the outside of a building...YAWN.

     When it was all said and done, the Sims 3 is a great step forward for the franchise. Undoubtedly as time goes on, this game will attract more and more people and in turn there will be another onslaught of expansions for fans to buy. Although this game isn't exactly the perfect game, it was still enjoyable for even skeptics. It is easily one of the better Sims games on the market.

Written by RB

Over and Out

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