Gaming News - January 2004

Redwood City, CA (January 13, 2004) - Electronic Arts today announced that The Sims Online (TSO) will be featured in the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts’ upcoming “Bang the Machine: Computer Gaming Art and Artifacts” exhibit.

“We are thrilled that The Sims Online has impacted popular culture to such a large degree that it is being represented as part of this exhibit,” said Erick Hachenburg, Senior Vice President Global Publishing. “This game lets our players create their own worlds to live and play in, and this exhibit exemplifies the spirit and creativity of The Sims Online players.”

From EA:

This new exhibition explores the history and influence of computer game culture and the extraordinary relationship between interactive computer games and contemporary art. As part of the exhibit, a real-life recreation of a room from The Sims Online game and a virtual representation of the exhibit in the game will be featured. The exhibit’s opening event is Friday, January 16th, 2004, from 8–11 pm, and the exhibition runs from January 17 through April 4, 2004.

Electronic Arts will be hosting a press event on January 16th, 2004, between 6:30-8 pm. At the event, Will Wright, creator of The Sims? and The Sims Online franchises, will give a brief speech on how The Sims Online has truly blurred the lines between reality and virtual reality. In addition, in support of the fans that have made the game a success, Electronic Arts is extending an invitation to Sims fans to join the exhibit’s opening night fun. All Sims fans attending the opening night event will be given a 50% discount on the $12 entry fee, courtesy of EA.

Katherine Isbister and Rainey Straus are the artists behind The Sims Online exhibit. They will construct a virtual recreation of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Galleries in the online gaming environment of The Sims Online. Isbister and Straus will also recreate the look of The Sims Online environment in the physical space of the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts complex.

Based on The Sims (the top-selling PC game of all time), The Sims Online is a massive online world built from the imaginations of tens of thousands of players. Since its launch in 2002, The Sims Online has built a strong community with tens of thousands of people each day meeting each other, falling in love, building friendships, throwing parties, and having fun in the game. In addition, the developers and players are constantly expanding and reinventing the game’s universe.

In this alternate reality, players create and control the actions of a character known as a Sim. Players enter the world with a bankroll (called Simoleons) to spend as they wish. They can purchase their own piece of land to do with as they please, or join with other players to create homes, coffee bars, or dance clubs. In the recently released version, Sims can embark on a whole new range of exciting job opportunities, where Sims actually get to do the work instead of having the work action happen off-screen; own pets for a new level of mischievous fun; and employ service Sims to help Sims take care of their properties and daily activities, and new hobbies. The Sims Online players get to know other Sims through live text chat and private instant messages.

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