The Sims 2
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The Sims 2 is a strategic life simulation game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the popular game The Sims.
The game was released on September 17 2004 in both CD-ROM and DVD-ROM formats. The DVD-ROM version, called The Sims 2 Special DVD Edition, contains a "Bonus Disc" with broad information on the Sims 2, interviews with the game developers, and commercials of past Sim products.
A port to Mac OS X was performed by Aspyr and was released on June 12 2005. The Sims 2: Holiday Edition, a re-release with holiday-related content, was released on November 17 2005.
Description
Sims age through 6 unique stages: baby, toddler, child, teen, adult and elder (although another stage, "young adult", was added with the University expansion pack) and there might be a possiblility of having "preteens" in later expansion packs. Unlike the previous game, when children stayed children and there was little game progress, the stages of life encourage players to move the game along and create relationships between Sims. Family relationships are much more integral to this version of the Sims than the previous version. As Sims age, get married and have children, these relationships are recorded in an extensive family tree.
In this installment of the series, Sims can have more realistic marriages with engagements and parties. Sims are pregnant before having children (unlike in the previous version, where children just appeared). Other unique events such as deaths, birthdays and a first kiss also take place in a Sim's lifetime. Good and bad experiences are kept as memories and can affect the Sim's behaviour.
The graphics and house design engines have improved with more choices for houses, neighborhood design, food and clothes. The Sims 2 Body Shop, a tool which allows a user to design a Sim's body, clothing, genetic features, etc., was available well before the game's release.
The Sims 2 introduces a new aspect into the game: Aspiration. Aspiration manifests itself in two ways: the aspiration which each Sim has, and the Aspiration Meter.
Sims will each have an aspiration which is set either when they are created by the player, generated by the game (if they are an NPC), chosen by the player when they become a teenager, or by assigning a Sim to use the ReNuYu aspiration reward from the Nightlife expansion pack. The five aspirations are: Romance, Family, Knowledge, Popularity and Fortune. A sixth aspiration, that of growing up, is possessed by all sims when they are toddlers and children, and a seventh aspiration, the Pleasure aspiration, was included with the Nightlife expansion pack. Also, an eight aspiration, the Grilled Cheese aspiration was included with the Nightlife expansion pack.
There are six levels to the aspiration meter: The highest is platinum, beneath that is gold, followed by two levels of green and two of red (red being negative aspiration and therefore an undesirable state). The level is raised when a Sim fulfills a "Want", and is lowered when a "Fear" is realized. Wants and Fears are different for each sim depending on several factors including aspiration type, age and aspiration meter level. They may change on a daily basis, and are displayed graphically in slot-machine fashion on the toolbar. When the Aspiration Meter is high, aspiration rewards may be properly used. For example, the Elixir of Life aspiration reward allows a Sim to live longer. If this aspiration reward is used before the Aspiration Meter reaches the gold level, however, it sometimes backfires and the Sim loses life days. The Aspiration Meter also affects how long an elder will live for once they enter this phase of their life.
This also means that while the game still has no set goals, there is a new strategic level to balancing a Sim's life as players now have a limited time in which to fulfill Aspirations, meet needs, progress in a career, socialize and possibly have a family.
"More Realistic"
When The Sims 2 was in pre-release stages, game creators stated that they were removing the robots and genies from the original game to make the game "more realistic". However, when the game was released, aliens were already embedded into the game, which most fans did not consider normal. Since aliens the expansion packs have also produced zombies (University), vampires (Nightlife) and robots (Open For Business). Fans have little doubt that something else will appear in a future expansion pack.
However, some other aspects of the game are more realistic compared to the original, when it comes to everyday life. For example, in The Sims 2 there is pregnancy, achieved with the Try For Baby interaction, if the Sims are a male and female pair. Male pregnancy is achieved through getting abducted by aliens; whereas, in the first The Sims, if two Sims kissed repeatedly, the player would get a dialog box asking them if they wanted a child. Also, The Sims 2 has life stages, memories, aspirations, fears, and more control over their life.
System requirements
The system requirements for The Sims 2 (from the official The Sims 2 website) are as follows:
Windows
- 800 MHz processor for systems with a T&L-capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM. 2 GHz processor for systems without a T&L-capable video card with at least 32 MB of video RAM.
- 256 MB RAM (384 MB recommended for Windows Me and XP in the manual)
- Windows® XP, Windows ME, Windows 98 or Windows 2000 Operating System or better
- At least 3.5 GB of hard drive space
Mac
- 1.2 GHz processor
- PowerPC G4/G5 or Intel Core (1.0 D patch required)
- (ATI) Radeon 9000 or better.
- 256 RAM
- Mac OS X 10.3.8 or better
- At least 3 GB of hard drive space
At the time of release, many criticized The Sims 2 for needing extremely high system requirements. In fact, just the required (and not optimum) system specs meant that many PC's purchased as late as 2001 would not even be able to run it at all. A similar complaint was levied against another Maxis game, SimCity 4, released more than a year and a half ago.
Bugs
The Sims 2 contains a number of bugs. Many of the bugs listed below have been corrected in a downloadable patch (Note: The installation of The Sims 2: University should correct most of the problems below).
- "Firstborn Clone": All Sims produced in the game are random, but only to a certain point. For instance, the first twelve 'randomly produced' Sims could be recreated if you exited the Sims 2, then re-opened it, started up CAS, then clicked the randomize button. If your Sims create a child without using the randomizing tool in CAS, it will be a certain combination of his or her parents' genes and personality. If you opened the game again a day later, and Sim A, who gave birth to Sim C, gives birth to another Sim, Sim D, it would be an exact copy of Sim C, in personality. However, if before birth of Sim D, E, ect. you exited the house of Sim A, B, C+, opened CAS, then pressed the randomize button an arbitrary number more than twelve, it would restart the game's randomization engines, and subsequent children would have personalities.
- "Liney" Sims: Graphical glitch with ATI Radeon 9000 GPUs. This problem has been fixed in the new version of ATI's drivers.
- "Jump Out" Bug: Time-out/scripting bug, causing characters to abort ( "jump out of" ) certain animations and interactions. Solved by the Maxis patch.
- Memory Leak: Memory leak, sometimes caused by hiring non-player characters, causing abnormal use of system resources.
- Invisible Colleagues: Graphics glitch involving colleagues visiting by helicopter, causing colleagues to be invisible. Solved by the Maxis patch.
- "Vanishing Family Members": Hardly anything is known about this glitch except that it occurs when a family member goes to work or school for the first time, they don't come back and vanish off the portraits of the family members on the left of the screen; there is no memory of the disappearance in any of the other family members.
- Unused objects designated as in use: Engine bug which makes unused objects appear as in-use, like doors that don't close. Caused by proximity to other usable objects.
- Floating Teddy: After a few uses, the object of the bear will float in the air and there will no longer be proper animation of use of the bear. Can be fixed by buying a new teddy bear. Also would float if use was cancelled during the talk-through action. This was fixed by the Maxis patch.
- Carpool bug: All Sims living on a lot refuse to enter cars, taxis, buses, etc, causing them to fail at their job or at school. Can be fixed by moving the family to another lot.
- Door-Clone Glitch: If you enter build mode with the moveobjects cheat enabled, go to the door creation tool. Act like you're about to place a door on the lot, but then, hit the delete key. Move your Sim to some other tile than where they currently are. Next, change the pitch of your camera. When you let go of the camera, it will start making more Sims, rather than more doors. Your lot can then be filled with clones of your Sim, since the game doesn't know whether to make more Sims or more doors. Another way of exploiting this clone technique for users without the Nightlife Expansion is to click on and move the Sim, and hold down the shift key when placing, or using the Tombstone of L and D to Add Neighbour To Family the same Sim more than once (this sometimes does not work, then starts working, then stops working again). Clones are in fact the same Sim and any changes in the relationship bars pertain to all clones. This can lead to sticky situations as a Sim will consider it cheating if he or she sees their spouse kissing/whoo-hooing/etc. with his or her clone, and all versions will become angry at the spouse (including the one the spouse romanced).
- Build Mode Bug: This was documented as a bug, however, it is known by players that this build mode bug was caused by a cracked application of the game used by software pirates. Many users across several forums have been flamed for their complaints about this bug.
- Boddler Glitch: A dangerous bug that occurs when you don't save Sims after they've switched from one age band to another, and then deleted them using the "moveobjects on" cheat.
- If you have moveobjects activated and delete a Sim that has age-transitioned since your last save, exit to the neighborhood without saving. Otherwise, if you try to restore them by using the hidden Reset Age Duration option on the trash can, they will return to the lot in the age band they switched to...but accessing the behaviors and animations of the age group they left behind!
- In the case of most age group transitions, this makes the bug harmless. Children will act like toddlers, teens like children, adults like teens, and elders like adults. But if your Sim was an infant that had transitioned to toddler and was deleted without being saved first, then the game has a skeleton conflict.
- It will use the skeleton for toddlers but the animations and behaviors for a baby. The toddler animations which the game tries to run on the baby skeleton will fail, causing the action that was being performed with the toddler to fail also. This makes it impossible for your Sims to pick them up and tend to their needs. If the social worker shows up, she won't be able to take the toddler. However, the save and exit options, which are locked when the social worker arrives, are not re-enabled, because the social worker's routine failed without cleaning up after itself. This renders the lot unplayable, as the game goes into an Infinite loop. The only way to escape the game is through the Windows Task Manager.
- The glitch is named the "Boddler" Glitch rather than "Toddler" Glitch because the toddler acts like a baby, or "Boddler." Other age groups that act like babies produce variations called the Bild, Been, Bault, and Belder. But it's the same skeleton conflict in all of them. One of the first uses of the word "Boddler" to describe this is by a user on the official Sims 2 website, posted to the BBS section on October 27 of 2005. Similar bugs produce groups known as the Tild, Teedler, Tault, Toolder, Cheen, Chault, Chelder, Tendault, Telder, and Aulder. With University, it's also possible to have Byaults, Tyaults, Chyaults, Tenyaults, and Yaulders, but these are rare. The occurrence of beens and byaults increases with the presence of third-party no-townie-respawn hacks. Boddlers are easy to spot, as they are toddlers acting like a baby. Byaults and Beens are also easy to spot, since they are Young Adults and Teens that act like babies.
- Stove Glitch: If a child has a play stove and leaves a muffin in it, the stove can't be deleted until a child takes it out. If the child grows older no one in the household can empty the stove, so you're stuck with it until you can create another child.
Bugs also surfaced relating to both expansion packs. These have been tackled with patches released in October 2005. Another patch was released in February 2006.
Various editions of the game
As of 2006, three different editions of the game have been released:
- The Sims 2: This edition contains the original core game stored on four CDs with no additional content.
- The Sims 2 Special DVD Edition: This edition contains the original core game stored on one DVD with a second DVD containing bonus content that is watchable on DVD players. This edition was released alongside the edition mentioned above.
- The Sims 2 Holiday Edition: This limited edition contains the original core game along with content from the Holiday Party Pack.
Expansion Packs
The Sims 2: University
Maxis released the first expansion pack, called The Sims 2: University, on March 2, 2005 for PC and December 12, 2005 for Mac. In it, Sims can be sent to college in a new neighborhood type called University. A "Teen" sim sent to the university will become a "Young Adult," a new age group introduced with this expansion, and that sim will become an "Adult" when it graduates or flunks out. Sims that don't attend the university will skip Young Adult and become Adults, as in the original version of the game. A more minor introduction in University is the addition of "influence points" that can be used to influence others to do a certain thing.
The game also introduces zombies and career based rewards which can be "purchased" when you reach a certain level in a specific job.
The Sims 2: Nightlife
The second expansion, The Sims 2: Nightlife, was released on September 13 2005. Based loosely on the original Sims expansion Hot Date, it includes entertainment options like nightclubs, restaurants for romantic dinners, and bowling alleys, in a new neighborhood type called Downtown (much like the University Town in the first expansion pack). A new attraction system introduces turn-ons and turn-offs that cause Sims to be attracted to or disgusted by other Sims. Players will now be able to see other lots in the neighborhood from inside a lot. In addition, players can now own cars instead of taking the carpool.
Maxis also added vampires that bite sims, thus turning them into vampires as well. However, vampires can be entirely avoided if the player does not want to play with them.
Nightlife also added two new aspirations:
- Pleasure: Pleasure sims' wants are extremely variable as they seek only to enjoy life.
- Grilled Cheese: Accessed only by unsuccessfully using (using while in an aspiration level of green or lower) the ReNuYu Senso Orb. After receiving this aspiration, your Sim will want and fear nothing but things involving grilled cheese sandwiches. This can be fixed by re-using the ReNuYu Senso Orb when in gold or platinum aspiration.
A special car download (the HotRod Hauler Chop Socky Special) was available to those who preordered the game.
The Sims 2: Open for Business
The Sims 2: Open for Business, the third expansion pack for The Sims 2, allows your sims to operate their own businesses. They are able to manage their staff and develop their talents. Create prized items to bring in top dollar or watch as things go haywire while they are making the next big thing. Players can choose to set up businesses like an electronics store, a restaurant, a beauty salon, a boutique shop, and much more. It was released on March 1, 2006.
This expansion pack also offers robots as sims in the nostalgic form of Servo from The Sims Livin' Large and also robots which help with various housework so that maids and gardeners are not needed. They can water plants, pick up garbage, keep your house safe from robbers, put out fires, and even bring back food when they sense that your sim is hungry.
A special Mascot download (a chicken suit) was available to those who preordered the game.
The Sims 2: Pets
On May 10, 2006, a video shown by EA at E³ provides a glimpse at a possible new installment of The Sims 2. It is being marketed as The Sims 2: Pets. Little information is provided besides indication that pets will be introduced in the new expansion. The video may be viewed at the following site
Stuff Packs
The Sims 2 Stuff Packs are packages that offer approximately sixty new objects, NPCs and textures, but contain no new gameplay elements. Two stuff packs and one expansion pack are planned for release in every six month cycle. A new stuff pack, The Sims 2 Glamour Shopping Stuff, will be released in June 2006.
The Sims 2 Holiday Party Pack
The Sims 2 Holiday Party Pack (The Sims 2: Christmas Party Pack in Europe) is a semi-expansion available only through the EA Online Store, select Costco stores, and other video game retailers. This adds over forty new objects to the game, allowing for better depiction of holiday celebrations (mostly Christmas) by sims in decorative ways not possible with the standard game. This comes alongside the limited-edition The Sims 2 Holiday Edition core game, which contains the Holiday Party Pack already in the core game with most bugs removed, in a way similar to the way that The Sims Deluxe Edition included both The Sims and The Sims: Livin' Large in a single package. However, the pack on its own is available through European retailers in a CD-ROM. Although not officially announced as such, this pack can be considered as the first stuff pack since it contains new objects but no new gameplay elements.
The Sims 2 Family Fun Stuff Pack
The next The Sims 2 stuff pack has been announced, The Sims 2: Family Fun Stuff. [1] An advertisement in the form of a flyer was included in The Sims 2: Open For Business. The Sims 2 Family Fun Stuff Pack was released on April 13, 2006. The Sims 2 Family Fun Stuff Pack includes over sixty all-new items including all new underwater and fantasy themed sets composed of castle beds, sun dresses, tropical wall-hangings, and more.
Some European stores offered a special outfit (a green dress) to those who preordered. Target stores were also given this item.
Humor and inside jokes
Veronaville
The neighborhood Veronaville is supposed to be a spoof of Verona (the Italian city in which Romeo and Juliet, a play by William Shakespeare, takes place). In this neighborhood, there are two families who are supposedly conflicting with each other: the Capp family and the Monty family (obviously reflecting the Capulet and Montague families in the play). Supposedly (according to the story of the neighborhood) the conflict started when the leader of the Capp household broke a promise to the leader of the Monty household. The memories of Consort Capp and Patrizio Monty suggest that the broken promise may have been to help Patrizio out in time of need. They were best friends. Instead, Consort apparently conned Patrizio and the result was that Consort became a CEO and Patrizio got fired. Memories also indicate that Patrizio Monty was once involved with Consort Capp's wife Contessa, before she met Consort. Just like in the play, there are two lovers from each family: Romeo and Juliette. The other teens from either household are named after actual characters in Romeo and Juliet, except for Hermia. Her character (as well as a third family, the Summerdream family) was pulled from A Midsummer Night's Dream, another Shakespearean play. Characters from other Shakespearean plays can be found in the family trees in Veronaville. Although these spoofs are supposed to parallel the plays they parody, the Romeo and Juliet parody is significantly less tragic than the actual play. (E.g., Tybalt cannot kill Mercutio to imitiate the conspiracy and suicide of Shakespeare's play, but can still laugh if he sees Mercutio die from a satellite falling on his head, etc...) Other names based on plays include King Lear, The Tempest, The "Hal plays", Othello, The Merchant of Venice, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Love's Labour's Lost, Measure for Measure, Macbeth, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Taming of the Shrew.
- See also: List of pre-made Sims in Veronaville
Llamas
Llamas appear in The Sims (as in many Maxis titles). Speculation suggests that this is an inside joke due to one of the producer's love of Monty Python movies (specifically, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, where its opening credits credited llamas for the movie's production). An alternative explanation is that this is paying homage to the work of Jeff Minter, a legendary games programmer who began programming games, featuring all sorts of fluffy animals, for the Vic-20 and Commodore 64 for his company Llamasoft.
Michael Bachelor
Should one take a look at the Goth family tree, they can find out more about Bella's branch of the tree. As it turns out, "Michael Bachelor" is her brother (now deceased). The Bachelor family was one of the pre-packaged families that came with the original The Sims. Only one person was in that family...a man named Michael (his urn/tombstone can be found in the Caliente house in Pleasantview). Furthermore, examining the memories in Pleasantview shows that before he died Michael married Dina Caliente - the woman who now wants to marry Bella's husband, Mortimer Goth...
Mary-Sue Pleasant
One of the characters living in Pleasantview is named "Mary-Sue Pleasant". This is probably a reference to the term "Mary Sue," which is used to describe an idealized character in a work of fan fiction. It may also bear relevance to the original The Sims, wherein there was a pre-packaged family named the Pleasants (Mary-Sue's husband, Daniel Pleasant, was also from the original Sims. Daniel is the brother of Jennifer Burb, who is the wife of John Burb and mother of Lucy Burb. The Burb family is available as a package in Pleasantview).
Angela and Lilith Pleasant
Angela, the 'good twin', is named Angela because of its similarity to 'Angel'. Lilith, the 'bad twin', is named Lilith because Lilith was supposedly the first wife of Adam, according to the Jewish Midrash. She was a seductress, and therefore 'bad'. [2]
Bella Goth
Bella Goth, the wife of Mortimer Goth in The Sims, is absent from the family when the game begins, as it is revealed she was abducted by aliens. A missing person's photograph of her appears on milk cartons seen while preparing some foods, but she can also be found as a townie in Strangetown without her memory of her old residence and family. Although some say she can be found in the hot air balloon which is a neighborhood decoration, the figures in the hot air balloon are actually taken from screenshots of The Sims Hot Date. Several family photo albums also reveal her past actions prior to her alien abduction.
The Newbies
Looking into the family tree of the Broke family will reveal that Brandi's parents are Bob and Betty Newbie, the tutorial characters of The Sims. The family tree will also reveal Bob's parents and Betty's parents. The characters shown in the family tree strongly resemble their original selves from The Sims. Template:Endspoiler
References to popular culture
Television channels and content
Television channels in The Sims 2 mirror those found in real-life television networks:
- SimStation Sports - A reference to sport channels such as ESPN
- Sim Broadcasting Network - A reference to the major broadcasting networks such as NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and The WB. The channel also features shows similar to ER, The O.C., Survivor and The Oprah Winfrey Show. The station also shows a satirical version of the many half hour local news blocks found on most basic networks.
- SimStation Dance - A reference to the music TV networks such as MTV, VH1, and most likely Fuse TV.
- KidzTube - A reference to Nickelodeon, the Disney Channel and Cartoon Network, though the scenes are similar to the children's live action shows of the 1950s like Howdy Doody, Captain Kangaroo, and Sesame Street in the 1970s.
- The Yummy Channel - A comical parody of the Food Network, with two of its programs ending up with a fire breaking out in the kitchen.
It should also be noted that several city scenes are in-game video clips from SimCity 4, including a KidzTube television program depicting a robot destroying a city, and various outdoor news reports in the Sim Broadcasting Network.
Furniture and electronics
- Moneywell - A reference to the Honeywell electronics conglomerate
- Soma - A reference to Sony, and also a reference to the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Soma is a drug used to keep people happy, like TV.
- SSX 3 - An actual game that made its appearance in computers and TV sets with the Maxis Game Simulator Console in The Sims 2.
- Myshuno, a game, is also a phrase in Simlish that Sims used in The Sims.
- Reference to Maxis: Two computer games that may be purchased in game include SimCity 4: Rush Hour and The Sims Bustin' Out, and features video clips of actual game play when Sims play any of the games on the computer.
- Prisoner of Azkalamp - A reference to the third Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
- Shiny Things Inc. - A possible reference to The Sharper Image. Shiny Things Inc. is also the name of a factory in SimCity 3000.
- The Rave Against The Machine ultra-modern light is most likely in reference to the band Rage Against the Machine.
- Pix-Arm Drafting Lamp - A reference to Pixar Animation Studios and their film Luxo Jr., whose main characters are lamps.
Miscellaneous
- Music featured in The Sims 2 pop music soundtrack resembles the sound of many teen pop artists such as Britney Spears and Hilary Duff. In reality, much of the music for the base game was written and produced by The Humble Brothers.
- The minivan that players may purchase in the Nightlife expansion pack bears resemblance to a vehicle looking like both a Ford Windstar and a Toyota Previa, The headlights resemble those of a late 1990s model Dodge Caravan. Also, the truck in Nightlife resembles the Chevrolet Silverado of the early 1990s, the luxury sedan resembling a Lexus LS, and the sports hot rod looking like a Ford GT.
- A type of flowerbed that players can buy is dubbed "Daisies of Our Lives". This is a reference to NBC's soap opera, Days of our Lives.
- The smustle dance in Nightlife mimics some dance moves found in the music video of Michael Jackson's Thriller.
- The New Wave station on radios includes a Simlish version of "Too Shy" by Kajagoogoo
- The Stairway To Eleven staircase is likely a clever double reference to both the song "Stairway to Heaven" by Led Zeppelin, and the well-known line from the spoof film This Is Spinal Tap, "These go to eleven."
- The Caliente family has a similar spoof to the ABC/WB/Disney show Sister, Sister
Console/handheld ports
The Sims 2 was released on the following consoles and handhelds:
| Platform | NA release date | EU release date |
| Nintendo DS | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Game Boy Advance | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| GameCube | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| PlayStation 2 | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Xbox | October 24, 2005 | November 4, 2005 |
| Cell phone | December 1, 2005 | availability/release date varies by mobile carrier (see moble game info for details) |
| PlayStation Portable | December 7, 2005 | January 13, 2006 |
The game made its debut to the console/handheld market during Q4, 2005 (source). GameSpot gave all the console versions a 6.5, and said "The Sims 2 loses something in translation from PC to consoles. Namely, its addictive, entertaining gameplay." On several websites, the Sims 2 for PlayStation2 was considered an outrage and many people wanted their money back; saying that all the qualities from PC mode (getting pregnant, aging, etc.) had been taken away.
At the moment it will be announced on October 24, 2006 whether The 80s: Sims in Culture will be ported to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, and mobile phones. [citation needed]
As with the port of the original The Sims to consoles, the game will most likely feature greatly different mechanics and goals as compared to the original computer version. The Nintendo DS version has a few mini games including painting a picture. Also the console games have 2 modes of control, direct control, the default mode which allows you to walk your sim directly, and classic, where you have a light tower starting above your sim, where you can move it to select objects to use; e.g: The PC.
User Modifications ("mods")
The Sims 2 enjoys a large fanbase of users who enjoy modifying both game content and behavior. Such fans are often called modders.
Modders have developed websites to share and distribute modifications to the "base" or unmodified game. Using programs such as SimPE, users are able to examine and edit game objects. Such edits can be as simple as a "recolor" (where a user provides an alternative color or texture to an already-exiting game object) to the creation of completely new items,"meshing", for use in the game.
Other modders work to directly modify the game's original code. Such modifications can be as simple as disabling a game interaction (such as removing the sim's ability to play "kicky bag" with one another) to expanding or enlarging a game interaction (such as enabling teen sims to become pregnant). Mods of any kind can significantly change game play techniques and strategies, and can fundamentally change the "flavor" of gameplay.
Modders are not limited to changing game behavior. Tools exist to modify a specific sim's appearance, gender, memories, skills, personality, and relationships. Modders are also able to modify existing careers and add new careers which can add a new exciting aspect to game play.
Accusation of sexual contents
On July 22, 2005, Florida attorney Jack Thompson attacked Electronic Arts and The Sims 2. Thompson claimed The Sims 2 was "worse than Hot Coffee" (a reference to the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas' Hot Coffee mod) because, using a mod, players could see nude Sims. Thompson claimed "pubic hair", "labia", and other genital details were visible if the blur was removed.
Electronic Arts issued a statement correcting Thompson, pointing out when the blur was removed from a Sim, the Sim lacks anatomical definition (there are no visible genitalia much like naked dolls).
Several third-party mods, including custom meshes, are required to make nude Sims have the features Thompson accused the game of having. Most makers of such mods have taken some measures to prevent players under the age of 18 from accessing such mods.
Thompson later retracted his misstatements concerning "pubic hair" and other details about which he was misinformed. However, he defended his fundamental position on The Sims 2, and expressed his opinion that EA should "lose their right to defend their copyright" on the The Sims 2 because the company does not prevent the mod community from making adult-oriented changes to the game. However, while one can lose their rights to enforce a trademark by not defending it, this does not extend to copyrights, so his expressed opinion lacks legal grounding. Most likely, it is just another attempt to make accusations in the hope that some will stick.
EA executive Jeff Brown told US website GameSpot:
This is nonsense. We've reviewed 100 percent of the content. There is no content inappropriate for a teen audience. Players never see a nude sim. If someone with an extreme amount of expertise and time were to remove the pixels, they would see that the sims have no genitals. They appear like Ken and Barbie.
One Albert Mackenzie from the website illspirit.com claims that he deliberately baited Thompson into his attacks on The Sims 2 as "the Hot Coffee fiasco began to reach dizzying heights of sillyness." He reproduces a purported e-mail exchange with Thompson on his site [3].
See also
External links
Official sites
- The official Sims 2 website
- Electronic Arts' The Sims 2 update page; contains the latest Sims 2 patches.
- EA Media Center; contains the The Sims 2: Pets teaser movie. The teaser is available in the "E3 Lineup" clip as a low resolution version (23.5 MB) and a high resolution version (195 MB).
Producer journals
- Sims 2: Nightlife Producer Journal, Tim LeTourneau
- An update on the journal
- Sims 2: Open For Business Producer Journal, Tim LeTourneau
- Sims 2 Family Fun Pack Developer Journal
Resources
- The Sims 2 at MobyGames
- The Sims 2 website directory at the Open Directory Project
- Sims 2 Bug Tracker
- The Sims 2 Downloads
Forums & BBS
Fansites
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