The PC version of The Sims only has a single mode of play, the life
simulation in which there are no goals other than keeping your sim happy and
advancing it as far in its career as possible. Promotions at work lead to
more money which can be used to buy more interactive objects for your sim's
home, giving the game's life simulator a dollhouse aspect. That's all a
part of the Xbox version of the game, but you also get a new mode of play that
actually gives you concrete goals to achieve. The Get a Life mode presents
you with a series of increasingly difficult levels that require you to complete
a set of goals. The goals are structured so that they emphasize a certain
aspect of play, which makes this mode also serve as a trainer for open-ended
play. For example, you may be required to repair all of the objects in a
home, receive a promotion at work, or throw a party. Completing a goal
will unlock a new object for use in the game, and completing all of the goals
for a level will unlock the next level for play.
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| Multiplayer mode. |
The Sims on PC relies heavily on mouse control, something which doesn't
always translate well to consoles (just look at how well real-time strategy
games have made the transition to consoles in the past). The developers
have done a good job in this case of reworking the control scheme to fit an Xbox
controller. A cursor that looks like a yellow beam of light is moved
around the screen to highlight and select objects, and then actions can be
selected by using the buttons to select from a context-sensitive list of
available actions. The directional keys can be used to pop-up status
information that lets you monitor your sim's needs, social network, skills, and
job performance without obscuring the the action taking place on screen.
The camera can be freely rotated and zoomed with the control sticks, but the
game's zoom level stops a little too short to let you get as close a view of
things as you'd probably like. The control scheme works well for the most
part, but it can be problematic at times when in the game's build mode.
This mode allows you to add object's to your sim's home and to add and decorate
walls, floors, and rooms. The wall tools are easy to use on the PC, but on
the Xbox it seems that they don't always align things quite right and you can end up
papering part of your living room with the kitchen wallpaper you were putting
up.
The aspects of the game that make it so interesting to many players can also
make it very boring for others. There are stretches in the game where
you'll need to concentrate on managing your sims needs and you'll face game day
after game day of telling your sim to eat, shower, and go to the bathroom.
The game's voyeuristic nature will not be enough to substitute for its lack of
action for plenty of gamers. Even the game's multiplayer levels can't come
close to matching the excitement of a deathmatch or a sports event. When
you're competing to make the most friends in the game you and your friend will
be doing a lot of sitting on the coach and watching the game play itself after
you give a few orders.
Taken for what it is, The Sims is a very different kind of game that will
certainly add variety to your game library. If you're unsure of how you'll
take to managing a sim's life, though, you'd best give the game a rental run
first.
In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated:
85%. A unique life-simulator that is
definitely worth a look for its novelty alone. Be careful though, you just
might find yourself helplessly hooked on The Sims.
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