The Sims 3

The sims 3 is now out in both the US and UK... did anyone else pick it up? What are your thoughts?

I've tried my hand at it for a couple hours.  I really like the build and buy additional features.  It would seem entering into the game that there isnt a ton of options for things like wall coverings or furniture, but digging deeper each item is fully customizable.  Essentially, you are only choosing the shape or model of most items in the game, and then customizing everything else from color, to fabric, to texture.  I find this to be a vast improvement over the previous system.

Your thoughts?

I've been playing it. I like the seamless game play but I don't like that you can't visually enter public buildings anymore. I suppose that may be something they bring out with an expansion pack. It's annoying though when they come out with a new version of the game and take away stuff that used to be there just so they can bring it out in an expansion pack.

My daughter bought it, but I need to put more memory into her laptop before she can use it.  I'm sure she'll love it, because she's always loved The Sims.

I've been playing it. I like the seamless game play but I don't like that you can't visually enter public buildings anymore. I suppose that may be something they bring out with an expansion pack. It's annoying though when they come out with a new version of the game and take away stuff that used to be there just so they can bring it out in an expansion pack.

This was my reaction too.  Can you buy then new clothes?  I've not figured it out if you can.

I dont think you can buy new clothing as of yet.  And i agree with the sentiment of releasing a game that is basically just an upgraded version of the old thing but with most the content mssing.  You got to hand it to EA for knowing how to milk a cash cow, what with the fact we saw pets released as an expansion in Sims1, and then again in Sims 2. I suspect they will release the sims 3 pets as well (among other similarly released expansion themes).

I dont think you can buy new clothing as of yet.  And i agree with the sentiment of releasing a game that is basically just an upgraded version of the old thing but with most the content mssing.  You got to hand it to EA for knowing how to milk a cash cow, what with the fact we saw pets released as an expansion in Sims1, and then again in Sims 2. I suspect they will release the sims 3 pets as well (among other similarly released expansion themes).

Absolutely.  They know when they hit it big.  I suspect viewing community buildings will come with an expansion.  They love them some expansions! 

Yeah, the expansion thing is annoying. I am wondering if I should go ahead and get this now or wait until the expansion packs come out? (Anyway, I don't have any expansions on my Sims 2, so I guess I didn't know what I was missing! Although, you can view community properties in that one. I don't understand why they would remove that.)

I don't know if you can buy new clothes... I haven't tried yet. Now that I'm thinking about it though I can't remember seeing a clothes shop.

Finally finished my review of the title this morning, this will go up on thestartscreen.com later today, but I'll paste it here:

The Sims is one of those franchises where, even if you are not a franchise fan, you still hear about the long awaited and most recent releases.  Having been a franchise fan myself since the original Sim City, I was one of "those people" checking the official site for updates, mentally counting down until release, and eagerly awaiting an actual hands on with the latest in the series.  Having now had a few days with title in hand, I believe I just might speak for a large portion of the fanbase when I say "are you serious, EA? I mean, really?"

 One thing you've got to hand to EA is their sheer balls-to-the-wall audacity in releasing titles in a franchise that are only slightly altered from the previous year's release  (Football, anyone?).  Yet when our Sims made the jump from The Sims 1 to The Sims 2, we had a glimmer of hope that this particular franchise wouldn't fall into the same pattern as other EA titles, as 2 was a vast improvement over the first.   However, this is not the case when making the jump from The Sims 2 to The Sims 3, and almost feels as though we've now taken a step back... at least until the expansion packs.

Upon installing and loading up the game for the first time, I noticed a few things: slightly improved graphics overall, moderately improved sim models with better clothing and customization options, and the cheat codes remained the same as in the previous titles (Hey! my sims are independently wealthy, I don't need to work to wallpaper my beach home thank you).  So I went through the motions, created a husband and wife sim family of fairly attractive individuals, and moved them into the beach home I placed smack-dab on the edge of the beachy peninnsula of Pleasantville (she will later leave him after birthing his child for the lesbian down the road... but that's neither here nor there).   

What followed next in my The Sims 3 experience happens to be one of my favorite features of the game: interior design.   On design, The Sims 3 is leagues ahead of the other titles in the franchise.  First off, we can finally place items at a diagonal.  That means yes, you CAN have that bookshelf now span the corner of the room, facing inward... thus completing your living room's feng shui.  Endtables can now hold more than one small tiny item, and they've finally given us a few meaningless decorations to use throughout the house like towels, candles, kitchen utensils, fireplace tools, and magazines just to give the homes a bit more realism.  The best new feature of the build/buy mode, hands down, is how they've managed to make everything customizable.  Color of wall not available? You can specify the color you wish to use by fine tuning the color and tone through a color wheel system.  Or take the canopy bed, as example.  You can choose the pattern, color and tone of the bed sheets, the type of wood used for the frame and the color and texture of the canopy draping. You can then custom match the curtains, wall treatments, decor and other furniture to pull together some astonishing rooms. 

Sadly, there ends the amount of good I have to say for the newest title.  The Sims 3, as an overall game experience, is several steps back from the The Sims 2 when you take into account all of the expansion pack addons.  If you made the jump from 2 to 3, you are quickly aware that you've now lost veggie gardens, seasons, pets, universities, advanced careers and business opportunities, buying extra clothes and probably a couple hundred (in my case: thousands) specialty items gained through downloading player-made pieces from the web.  You've gained a more open neighborhood experience, but if you're like me and line your entire property with a fence and a locked gate this may or may not be the most positive addition (hey, you kids... get off my lawn!).  It quickly dawns on you that EA will eventually add these features into the game via regularly released expansion packs as they have with the previous titles, but it leaves you questioning if you will actually buy them this time around.  To be fair, EA, we've already paid $30 to have cats and dogs and guinea pigs in The Sims 1, and then we paid another $30 to, again, have the privelage to own cats, dogs and guinea pigs in The Sims 2... are we really to be expected to pay another $30 for the same in The Sims 3? My landlord in real life would not charge me $90 to have a guinea pig at the property, so why should I pay that much to have a fake one comprised of nothing more than pixels, 1s and 0s?  If the game is supposed to be an improvement over the previous title, it should include all the features we were already accustomed to having, and then expansion packs should have *GASP!* new and original, never before seen content.   Shocking idea I know, I'm awaiting the Thought Police now.

 Overall, if you are a huge Sims fan and you are prepared to continue buying the same old expansion packs released with every version of the game, you might like The Sims 3 and consider it another investment in your enjoyment of the franchise.  For myself, and probably a good portion of the fanbase, there is simply not enough of an improvement over The Sims 2 to warrant praise for the title.  While they did improve upon a few things, The Sims 3 feels like an unfinished, unpolished title and alot of that probably comes from the mere fact we had grown accustomed to the expansion pack features of The Sims 2 and they elected to not include those features in the release of The Sims 3.  As I stated before, it feels as though EA is simply milking the franchise name and completely buggering off the fanbase.  At the end of the day, the hardcore fans WILL pay yet another lot of thirty hard earned simoleons for the right to buy and then neglect household pets, but I won't be amoung them.

Wow, good review. That is so naff that they just re-release the same expansion packs every time. But, I never bought any of the expansion packs to begin with, so like I said, maybe I will get the game anyway, and go from there.
Any news on a new SimCity? I like it much better, anyway... especially with the Rush Hour expansion pack. So addictive! 

Both my kids that have played it LOVE it.

I like the expansion packs.  Always something to buy them for Christmas. 

Agreed Mindy, the expansion packs are great gifts for the Sim-fanatic.  My only problem with them is they tend to be the same as in the previous Sims. For the casual gamer, this won't be a big problem... if at all. 

However, as someone who games at more than a casual level , it's about being analytical to make sure there is a balance of value vs cost vs time you will invest.  Even given my review above, I am still playing the title haha albeit sparingly. My Warcraft addiction must have priority, after all

I'm looking forward to picking this up.  Mostly because of this comic: http://aliceandkev.wordpress.com/