The Sims 3

Did You Know?

• The Sims 3 was supported by eleven expansion packs and nine stuff packs.
• Stuff packs include only new items like furniture and clothing, adding no new functionality.
• Stuff packs are compatible with both Windows and Mac OS X.

Gameplay

Players control Sims' activities and relationships in an open-ended game with no defined goal. The neighborhoods, now called worlds, are seamless, allowing Sims to move freely without loading screens. Community lots include leisure spots like parks and gyms, and job lots such as the town hall and hospital. Sims progress through life stages from baby to elder, with adjustable lifespan, and can die from old age or accidents like fire, starvation, drowning, or electrocution. The base game includes the world Sunset Valley, with Riverview available for free from The Sims 3 Store. Expansion packs, except Generations and Seasons, each added a world, and additional worlds could be bought with SimPoints. Sunset Valley is connected to the storyline of earlier games, set twenty-five years before The Sims and fifty years before The Sims 2, with younger versions of pre-made characters appearing.

Development

Electronic Arts announced The Sims 3 on March 19, 2008. In January 2009, Maxis invited custom content creators to a Creator's Camp at their Redwood Shores campus, where they spent a week creating Sims, houses, and content to pre-populate The Sims 3 Exchange. The game went gold on May 8, 2009, and on May 15, Maxis released online teasers including SimFriend, SimSocial, and SimSidekick. Two weeks before release, an unauthorized copy of the digital version leaked; Maxis stated it was a buggy, pre-final version with more than half the game missing. The game reportedly saw higher copyright infringement rates than Spore. Developers used real-life references of people doing tasks in outrageous ways to create believable but goofy animations. Each character was given a life story, wishes, dreams, and personalities. On October 31, 2008, teaser trailers featured John McCain and Barack Obama in a comical view of the 2008 US presidential election. In April 2009, billboards appeared in areas like Times Square, costing an estimated $10 million a month. The Sims 3 was threaded into an episode of One Tree Hill on March 23, 2009.

Ports

Mobile versions of The Sims 3 were released in June 2009 alongside the PC version. A touch-operated 3D version for iOS (iPhone and iPod Touch) worked similarly to the PC version and later came to Android, Bada, Symbian (as The Sims 3 HD), Palm webOS, and Windows Phone. A cursor-based 2D version with isometric graphics was released for Java (J2ME), N-Gage 2.0, BlackBerry App World, and Windows Mobile. In Create-a-Sim, personas replace Lifetime Wishes and are the largest factor in a Sim's personality. Sims start with a small house that can be expanded every five sim days if affordable. Four careers are available: biology, politics, business, and culinary. Sims can learn skills, and there are nearly 75 wishes; fulfilling all unlocks the criminal career and the ability to buy a car. Some events require minigames. On November 6, 2009, EA announced a vampire theme pack for iPhone with Live it or Wear it Sets featuring vampires, werewolves, Castle, and Campus Life themes. Standalone expansion packs for mobile include World Adventures (February 2010 for Java, April 2, 2010 for iPhone), Ambitions (September 16, 2010), Supernatural (2012 for Java), and Winter Edition (Java).

Reception

The Sims 3 received generally favorable reviews, with a Metacritic score of 86/100 from 75 reviews. PC Gamer gave it 92% and an Editor's Choice badge, calling it the best Sims game yet. IGN rated the PC version 8.9/10, praising the freedom of the open world and the lack of load screens. GameSpot awarded 9.0/10, stating it strikes a balance between fresh and familiar. The game ranked No. 91 on IGN's Top 100 Modern Games and No. 89 on Edge's list of the top 100 videogames of all time. The Nintendo 3DS version received a 7.5/10 from IGN, noting welcome additions but odd removals of features like multiple saves and personality traits. The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated The Sims 3 for Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year at the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards. In its first week, the game sold 1.4 million copies, which EA called its most successful PC game launch. It was the top-selling game in Australia from release until June 30, 2009, and ended 2009 as the year's best-selling PC game worldwide.