The Sims 3 - Review

The Sims 3

Updated: Oct 10th, 2010

Overview

The Sims 3 has been out for awhile now, but I never had the chance to play it. My old desktop wouldn't run anything after Roller Coaster Tycoon and when I finally bought my new laptop, I was too busy doing other things. However, I finally manage to get a hold of a copy and sit down to play it for a couple of days. I had quite the trouble actually getting it to run. There seems to be a built in code that disallows you from playing the game if your PC has any CD or DVD burning software installed. I'm not the one to clean out my PC just to play a game. I did what everyone else did. I checked EA's official site for the game and found out that hundreds of people, if not thousands, were having the same issue. EA being the big greedy corporation that it is, announced that it's not a real issue and that there would be no patch fix anytime soon. I feel sorry for the people who paid up to $70 for the game and couldn't even run it on their computer, because of some software they didn't even know they had. How did I counter this problem? Downloading a NoCD Crack. Allowed me to bypass the load up menu and run the game. EA is pretty upset by this, but I see nothing wrong with it. There's mods and hacks for every game out there. A lot of the times its what makes people go out and get the game. Every game wants to be able to modify and add onto a game they love. EA is one of the few companies left who haven't figured this out.

Game Play

There's a few things that I noticed right away. The game itself loads faster then the previous version. This came as a surprise to me, because the graphics were better and your Sims had the ability to walk anywhere within the neighborhood with no loading time. In the current version that I have, there was only one neighborhood that I had the option to play in. This was fine for me, but I can see where it would get boring after awhile. One of the things that I enjoyed in The Sims 2 was the ability to create your own neighborhoods.The menu system was indeed different. I personally think it's set up a lot better. You can easily tab through the different information about each of your Sims. However, the building menu wasn't as great. I personally feel that it's more confusing then it needs to be and not player friendly. I still managed to find what I was looking for, but then again, I do have a lot of free time.

Creating a Sim

Creating a Sim in The Sims 3 works just about the same as the previous versions. However, they did improve on a few things. One being the ability to change the color and fabric design of any clothes your Sims can wear. Another is the ability to change the weight of your Sims. They did this slightly before, but never to the extent as it is in this game. You have the option to be skinny, fat, unfit, super fit, or any of the combination (IE: Skinny and unfit, making your Sim look like a toothpick). 

Living Life of a Sim

Your Sims's life works the same as all the other games. The object is to balance a job and family while keeping them happy. In this game doing different things will give you bonuses that will either be positive or negative depending on the traits your Sims have. If they like to be clean, then taking a refreshing shower or a nice bath will give them a boost of positivity. If the room that they are in has a lot of nice things, then they will be happier in that room. Sims love expensive stuff. I'm pretty sure that's the point of the game. Save your money and buy all the most expensive stuff you can. Make the houses unrealistically huge and continue having children, so that you can keep playing in it. Who wants to waste all that time building a nice house only to have their Sim die and no one else being able to afford to move in?

It's All Skill
The skills that are in the game help your Sim do things better. If they have a high cooking skill then they can cook a larger verity of food and have it turn out better. I haven't figured out what the quality of the food does yet. From what I've seen, no matter the quality it will always fill the Sim up. Doesn't seem to affect their mood either. Unless it's their favorite meal, then they get a small boost of positivity. There are many different ways to increase the skills of your Sim. Like the previous versions of the game, actually doing what the skill helps you with will increase it (IE: Cooking). Some skills can be increased by watching TV, job events, reading books, and/or by taking classes that are located in town. Since your Sims have free range, going into town is a lot more fun and convenient. I do enjoy sending my Sims off to go shopping for fresh produce and books. A few new skills have been added to the game. Fishing and Gardening are just some examples.


Wrap Up
In the end it's a lot of fun, but will get boring over time. I guess that's why they continue to release expansion packs and fun packs. You can always find new items, clothes, and mods online to download. I think a lot of people enjoy playing the game, because of all the extra stuff you can find to add to it. There's a lot of fan made stuff that has themes based off of TV shows, movies, and even other games. I highly suggest playing it, if you have lots of time to kill. If you have issues running the game, just download the NoCD Crack. Only downside is you can't update your version of the game (unless you get an expansion pack or fun pack).