The second major gameplay addition that Downtown brings to your sims is
vampirism. Wandering downtown at night are the Count and Countessa, two
green-skinned creatures of the night. Let your sim get bitten and he or she will
become a vampire too. Vampirism has the benefit of eliminating needs, leaving
your sim free to enjoy the finer things in life – only after dark, that is.
You’ll need to purchase a coffin object and have your sim in it by sunrise lest
he or she be consumed by the sunlight. Needless to say, this makes it difficult
to hold down a job which leaves only the small object-focused jobs such as
tending bar for tips as your only possible source of income. Another benefit of
vampirism is the ability to turn into a bat, allowing you to fly around instead
of walking. Vampirism can be cured with a potion sold by the local gypsy, so
it’s not a permanent condition. It’s something that you can have some fun with,
but it doesn’t work too well if you’re serious about leading your sims through a
whole lifetime of goals and aspirations.
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| Two sims relax at a friendly game of poker. |
Dating is not the only social change in store in Nightlife. Your sims will
now be able to form social groups. With a single phone call you can arrange to
go Downtown or throw a party with all of the friends in your group. Groups are
also great ways to expand your social circle as group members will constantly
introduce your sim to new sims. If everyone has fun on your group outings,
expect to meet a lot of sims, get a few gifts of appreciation, and to have a
phone that keeps ringing off the hook.
Nightlife comes with plenty of objects to allow you to create your own
Downtown destinations. There are 125 new objects in the game, most of which are
related to the nightlife such as dance floors and bars. The objects include a
poker table where your sims can try to win a little extra cash and a photo booth
that produces snapshots that your sims can take home with them. Probably the
most anticipated new objects are the cars. Build a driveway at your house and
you can then purchase one of the five different cars that are available. Cars
give you the advantage of letting you go anywhere without having to call and
wait for a taxi first, they’re an alternate to having to take a car pool to
work, and they also help with your sims’ fun motive (especially since they
provide a new place to woo-hoo). On the downside there are no customization
options for the cars outside of selecting one of the stock colors, and the
benefits don’t really justify their high cost.
Nightlife adds a lot of content that will take some time for you to explore,
and it also makes dating its own activity rather than a consequence of your sims’
normal social interactions. There aren’t any big enough changes in Nightlife to
change your mind about the game if you’re not a The Sims 2 fan to begin with,
and certain issues such as long load times still persist in the game. However,
if you’re looking to add some fun to your sims’ lives, Nightlife fits the bill
quite nicely.
In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated:
86%. Nightlife gives you all the paint you need to help your sims
paint the town red.
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