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The Sims: It’s your life The Sims is the latest game from Maxis, the makers of the remarkably popular Sim City series and numerous other spin offs such as Sim Ant, Sim Farm, Sim Tower, Sim Isle, and Sim Safari. As one might infer, all are simulation games. In Sim City, for example, you play the role of the mayor of your own city and your job is to zone areas for industrial, residential, etc., build parks, provide services such as police and fire departments, and adjust taxes to make your city as appealing to people as possible. The Sims takes place on a much smaller scale. It is set in a small neighborhood in the suburbs of Sim City, where you control one household of people. You help them get jobs, make money, buy cool stuff, and stay happy and healthy. Well, actually you can do whatever you want, which makes it a very interesting game. Want to have your people be slackers who work once a month and watch TV and sleep the rest of the time? Want them to rise to the height of their chosen career field and get rich? It’s all possible. What draws some people to this game (and frustrates others) is that there is no way to win. Some people may consider becoming a millionaire and getting the best job and home to be winning, but the game will never come right out and say "YOU WIN!" To start off, you can either pick a pre-built house, or you can design your own with an easy to use "build mode." Then you populate it with up to 8 people. You can customize the people’s appearance and personalities, as well as write a short biography about them. Then deposit them into the house. As I’m describing this game, I realize it may sound tedious and boring, but just take my word for it that after awhile it becomes REALLY addictive. The ability to create your own complete home and people can be great. And there is a certain sense of humor in the music and descriptions in the game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. For example, the music in “buy” mode is a cross between The Simpsons’ theme and a kind of 50’s TV show jingle. The item descriptions are usually at least a bit funny, and sometimes outright hilarious as they describe either completely fictional household items or parody real ones. All around, this is an exceptional game, and extremely fun to play. Though action fans may want to look elsewhere, anyone who has been a fan of the Sim series or even RPGs (role-playing games) and some RTS (real-time strategy) games will probably love it. The Sims, by Maxis, a division of Electronic Arts - $50.00
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