In Defense of The Sims

[Dr Spaceman]

I've been playing video games for a long time. I remember playing NES games like Duck Hunt and Int'l Track and Field. (The running and the jumping? Amazing.) The first PC game I ever bought was Warcraft, followed shortly by Warcraft II and Quake. I remember going to my friend's house to play Half-Life with him, and knowing that it was a game that was going to change everything. Over this time, I have seen great moments and low moments in gaming.

Having actually lived through so much of this history, I am terribly pained when gamers either forget their history or just don't care enough to look back. I've been seeing this a lot in relation to The Sims. I bought and played the first Sims release, along with a few of the expansions. When it came out, The Sims was unbelievable. Nothing like it had ever happened. The people acted (relatively) realistic. It was fun. And hell, it's the only video game I've ever gotten my sister to sit down and play with me. (well, until Wii Sports showed up)

It's too bad that The Sims has become derisively known as a major component of the "casual gaming" threat to our existence. If you look back, The Sims garnered huge review scores and won many GOTY awards. At the time, nearly all PC gamers were excited by the game. Even better, it provided definitive proof that PC gaming was alive and well, something that PC gamers are always concerned about.

I feel sorry for those of you who can't let themselves enjoy The Sims as the masterpiece it is, simply because of its massive popularity and purported targeted demographic. This is a game that was designed for all of us, and I believe especially the hardcore gamer.

Without question, I rank buying your first house in The Sims as a gaming moment up there with Aeris' death, the Half-Life train ride, or even your first kill in a multiplayer match of Halo (or Quake, for the old school). It changed gaming. For better or not, it did. The Sims is a classic, always has been and always will be.

 

[Stereophonik]

The reason I'm upset about The Sims isn't because it was "casual" is that they release expansion whenever, no matter how recent the last expansion was.

 

[Inverse Skies]

Well said. You can't create a game such as the sims which was as popular and massive as the sims and not be doing something correct. It has been forgotten largely in the cut-throat market of todays gaming, but that's because most the majority of people have short attention spans. It's a shame, as it was such an excellent game.

 

[Zer_]

The reason I'm upset about The Sims isn't because it was "casual" is that they release expansion whenever, no matter how recent the last expansion was.

Yeah that's pretty much my only gripe with The Sims. So many expansion packs there's no way I'd even consider purchasing more then 2.

 

[Yog Sothoth]

I have many hours of great memories logged with both The Sims and the The Sims 2, and I do not consider them to be casual games at all. I'm sure the rest of you know how difficult and time consuming it is to reach the top of any of the career paths, or to build a functional home from the ground up. These are anything but casual pursuits...

Not to mention the vast amount of user created content available, and some of the difficulties associated with installing them. "Casual" gamers simply don't invest that much time and effort into games.

 

[Puppeteer Putin]

Good piece. I was thinking about the exact same thing the other day when I stumbled across my copy. The Sims was the first PC Game I had been given and really liked. It was a fantastic game and I daren't think the hours I sunk into it and as you say it was recognised as a revolutionary experience at the time. But as with any hugely successful commercial products it's going to receive the "cop-out" whinge, just the nature of the beast.

 

[Good morning blues]

I agree that the games are great. I also agree that intentionally leaving holes in the content so that players will be forced to fork over $40 for a new expansion once every 6 months is a really shitty way to do business. It does hamper the quality of the game, but not enough to ruin it, or indeed to stop them from being great.

 

[EzraPound]

I played The Sims 2 on Xbox, for the co-op. Was pretty fun.

Oh, and the original was great when it came out.

 

[Fire Daemon]

Playing as the People, I feel, is not the best part of the game. The best part is building the houses. Anybody that says the Sims is a bad game has never built their own house.

Or trapped a person in a box and made him suffer... I suppose thats fun to.

 

[Jovlo]

I'm a long time Sims fan.
What I like best is making copies of me and friends, put them in a house and watch hell break loose.
I always get bored with it after some time but I keep coming back to it very often.
If you've never tried it, you should see for yourself and you might be amazed how addictive and funny it is.

 

[Sir Ollie]

I like the sims just the expansion packs, i think theres 12-13 for sims 2

 

[AndyFromMonday]

Sims 2 was awesome.
But for fucks sake to many damn expansions.

 

[Aardvark]

I don't get these "In defense of..." threads people make. The game made more money than God, it needs no defending or justification. You either like it or you don't and you stop dwelling on it. The same goes for every other game, console and/or business that people seem to fall over themselves to defend on the internet.

 

[Ganado_Headshot]

I like the sims games. I just never could keep up with all the expansion packs so I fell out of touch with the games.

 

[Filtertip]

The Sims is a classic. one of those gmaes that you grow into and enjoy and grow out of again. I don't enjoy The Sims any mroe and gave away my copy and expansion packs because i've had my fun with the game but i cant say its because its a bad game.

 

[johnman]

I loved the sims, it really did seem like somthing special. What i dont like though is the way EA see an expansion pack that adds a few new clothes as somthing worth charging full dollar for.
Hell one expansion makes it snow, couldnt that have been included in the orginal game? And some of the Sims2 expansions are simply the old ones rehashed.

 

[Theo Samaritan]

My problem with The Sims, and many will agree with me on this, is not the gameplay.

The problem I have with it is that they took what was a good game and turned it into an exercise of milking the punters for all they are worth.

Name a game with as many expansion packs as Sims 1 or 2 and I will eat my shaved beard. It is insulting to think they can get away with it, but yet they can and are. Its saddening.

 

[Jovlo]

My problem with The Sims, and many will agree with me on this, is not the gameplay.

The problem I have with it is that they took what was a good game and turned it into an exercise of milking the punters for all they are worth.

Name a game with as many expansion packs as Sims 1 or 2 and I will eat my shaved beard. It is insulting to think they can get away with it, but yet they can and are. Its saddening.

You're right, and it's getting worse and worse.
Not to long ago, EA opened the Sims 2 Store, where you can buy new hairstyles, objects, wallpapers... for about a dollar each.
In times of The Sims 1, maxis would put free new items on their site on a regular basis.
In the beginning of The Sims 2, they would do this too, but then it stopped.
Now the only free items you can download are sponsored, like the latest Ford car.
They are squeezing every last penny out of this cash cow.

 

[Spudgun Man]

I am terribly pained when gamers either forget their history or just don't care enough to look back. I've been seeing this a lot in relation to The Sims.

Same here, on a daily basis i have to remind freinds that the sims did not start off as that god awful console version, the second console attempt the badly spelt 'Breakin' out' was not too bad but the first one was diabolical. I just didn't see the idea in making a life sim have a story mode and so people reffering to these as the first ones really makes m irate. of course it all started out with ants anyway.

 

[zirnitra]

I really liked the sims when I was young, I remember when it first came out I'd pray that I didn't get robbed because the first time I got a burglar the speakers were on full blast and scared the life out of me and from then on I was terrified of the burglar through classical conditioning. but still really enjoying it.

I'd actually buy the sims 3 if my laptop could even play Mount&Blade with out a hissyfit.