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Sims 2 Goes Gold
Dan Farina writes "The long awaited 'The Sims 2' has gone Gold, as seen on the latest posting on Maxis' The Sims 2 updates page. It appears that it will be on time after all, an unusual occurrence in this industry." I'm already having a strange obsessive twitching in my left leg. I think I might need to use up some vacation time in September.
Funny, because that was actually the original name of the Sims (Doll House that is, minus the "glorified"). They decided to change it because they wanted a wider appeal for the game, and they felt that boys would have issues playing with dolls.
But there is definite gender attraction to this...My wife's been chomping at the bit to get ahold of this since it was announced...She already has a Best Buy gift card set aside just for its purchase.
How Jaded Are You?
The Sims Franchise Celebrates Three Years at the Top (feb. 2003)
The Sims franchise has shipped over 24 million units, including more than eight million units of the core product, The Sims.
Since the launch in 2000, The Sims franchise has spawned five expansion packs and a deluxe, console, and online version. The Sims has been translated into more than 17 languages and is sold worldwide.
According to The NPD Group, The Sims base product was the number one selling PC game in 2000, 2001, and 2002.
The Sims franchise games held five of the top ten spots on the 2002 best-selling PC games in North America chart, released by The NPD Group.
The game's long list of honors has included being selected "Game of the Year" for 2000 by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences and by numerous other publications in the United States and abroad. The creator of The Sims, Will Wright, was inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in February 2002, joining such industry legends as Sid Meier and Shigeru Miyamoto. Will Wright has also been recognized by ISDA in 2002 for his extraordinary body of work and enduring legacy he has established in the interactive entertainment industry.
We talked alot about the Sims and TS-Online in my philosophy class. We were having a discussion about human nature and virtual reality, and whether it would eventually lead us to a more enlightened era or if we would sink further into the dregs of humanity. I used The Sims to show that if there were no repercussions, people are generally going to do bad things - TSO is a haven for prostitution, crime and just all around deviance. Hence, we pretty much came to the conclusion that human nature is to do as much as you can get away with... So aside from spending hours on end playing the sims, you are also taking part in a really cool psychology and philosophy experiment. Check out the Second Life (formerly Alphaville) Herald for some more insight. http://www.alphavilleherald.com/
It was orginally named Doll House because that actually was the genesis of the game. It wasn't a game at all, but an architechtural/interior design program with the advancement that you could populate it with people and pets so you could see a more natural rendition of your design rather than just a static image.
After working it up they realized they had something that could be sold for entertainment.
Frankly, I have no gender aversion to dolls or doll houses. They really are valuable tools for design and I like designing. Being able to animate them is a major plus. Call them "models" if you get all weirded out by names.
They're also fun to play with. Sue me.
But I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in the game.
KFG
I just find it amazing that, after all of the space games, fantasy games, action/adventure games, sports games, etc... all people really wanted was a game that attempts to simulate real life in all of its monotonous glory.